Lego Digital Designer Decoration Tool Too Small

Lego Design byME

Other names	Lego Factory
Availability	2005; 16 years ago (2005) (as Lego Factory)–2012
Total sets	8
Official website

Lego Design byME set designed with Lego Digital Designer

Lego Design byME (previously known as Lego Factory since the 2005 launch) was a service connected with the construction toy Lego. Using this service, people could design their own Lego models using a computer program, then upload them to the Lego website, design their own box design, and order them for actual delivery. The brand also covered a small selection of products that have been designed by Lego fans, and which were available to purchase as a set.

System [edit]

Lego Design byME was created for people to build and experiment with virtual Lego bricks. This was done on a program called Lego Digital Designer. Models were uploaded to Design byME on the Lego website, and creations could either be shared with the world in the gallery or purchased as a custom Lego set.

Pricing [edit]

When purchasing models from Lego Design byME, the price was significantly high compared to store-bought Lego sets, leading consumers to believe that the prices were unreasonable. However, the price was divided into a few different parts. These are listed below:

A service fee, which includes the handpicking of bricks and producing a custom made box.
The cost of the bricks, which is based on the amount as well as the types of bricks in the model.
Standard shipping fees.
The optional building guide does not produce any additional fee.

Design byME did not accept returns due to its classification as a custom service.

Lego Digital Designer [edit]

LEGO Digital Designer

Screenshot Building a creation in the program
Developer(s)	The Lego Group
Initial release	2004; 17 years ago (2004)

Stable release	4.3.12 / November 18, 2019; 2 years ago (2019-11-18) ^[1]

Operating system	Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8 or Windows 10 mac OS X 10.1 or higher
Size	276 - 285 MB
Available in	English, German
Type	Computer-aided design
License	Freeware
Website	www.lego.com/en-us/ldd

As part of the Design byME service, Lego produced a computer program called Lego Digital Designer, which allowed people to design a virtual Lego model using a selection of virtual Lego bricks. These models could be saved locally, as well as uploaded to the Lego website for sharing and ordering as a physical product.^[2] ^[3] It is available for macOS and Windows, but only as a 32-bit application, which means that it no longer runs on current versions of macOS. The program allows users to build models using virtual Lego bricks, in a computer-aided design like manner. Until January 16, 2012, these could be uploaded, along with instructions and a box design, to the Lego Design byME website, from where the models could be ordered for delivery as a real, packaged set. Users can also take screenshots of their models and store the models on their computer in an .LXF file. On November 9, 2011, Lego declared that the Design byME service was going to end on January 16, 2012 due to its failure to meet quality expectations and for being too complex. In its absence, custom brick orders have had to be made via the Pick a Brick service. The closing of Design byME has not affected the ability of users to print custom instructions for their models.^[4]

On January 21, 2016, Lego announced the project had been defunded, and would not receive additional updates.^[5] However, in March 2016, a new updated version, 4.3.9, was uploaded.^[6] The latest version, 4.3.12 was uploaded in late 2019 and is currently the only version available.

A special version of Lego Digital Designer (Hollywood Edition) was used in the making of the Lego Movie franchise.^[7] The Hollywood Edition has also been used in the creation of Forza Horizon 4 - Lego Speed Champions.^[8]

Discontinuation of service [edit]

In late 2011, Lego announced that it would discontinue its Design byME service in its current form forcing people to buy Lego models that are designed by the developers or build their models from scratch. As of 16 January 2012, models created in Lego Digital Designer can no longer be purchased directly as Lego Design byME sets. This does not affect the HERO Recon Team Hero Creator range of products. At the time Lego confirmed that it would continue Lego Digital Designer as a free design software, and also keep its Pick-a-Brick service operational. Lego claims that Design byME has proven to be "too complex for children", and that despite its success, "the overall Design byME experience has struggled to live up to the quality standards for a LEGO service".^[9] Subsequently in 2016 Lego also discontinued support for Lego Digital Designer.^[10]

List of sets [edit]

5524 Airport – Location: Super Airport, Hotel
5525 Amusement Park – Location: Pirate Ship, Car Race, Ski Slope, Robo Destroyer
5526 Skyline – Location: Hot Pursuit, Sears Tower, Liberty, LEGO Corp
10183 Hobby Trains
10190 Market Street – Minifigures: Townspeople (3x)
10191 Star Justice – Minifigures: Astronauts (4x), Space Robots (x3)
10192 Space Skulls – Minifigures: Space Skulls (4x)
10200 Custom Car Garage – Minifigures: Repairman (1x), Flagman (1x), Drivers (2x)

References [edit]

^ "LEGO Digital Designer 4.3.12.0 Download for Windows / Old Versions / FileHorse.com". www.filehorse.com . Retrieved 2 June 2020.
^ "The Lego Group Lego Digital Designer 2.0 - reviews - Software and Services - Education - PC World Australia". © 2011 IDG Communications. ABN 14 001 592 650. 2011. Retrieved 2012-01-20 .
^ "Changes to Design byME in January". Lego. 2011-10-09. Retrieved 2011-11-17 .
^ "Lego Digital Designer officially defunded and unsupported [News]". The Brothers Brick. 2016-01-21. Retrieved 2018-08-07 .
^ "Lego Digital Designer 4.3.9 available now!". thebrickblogger.com . Retrieved 2021-02-27 .
^ "The Lego Movie Complete B-ROLL (2014) - Will Ferrell, Nick Offerman Movie HD". Movieclips Coming Soon. 2014-01-27. Retrieved 2021-01-01 .
^ "Forza Horizon 4 - Lego Speed Champions Behind the Scenes Part 3". Forza. 2019-06-13. Retrieved 2021-01-01 .
^ Changes to Design byME in January
^ "LEGO Digital Designer officially defunded and unsupported [News] | The Brothers Brick". The Brothers Brick. 2016-01-21. Retrieved 2018-08-07 .