CorelDRAW upgrades mean its still a viable alternative to Adobe

The digital art and graphic design software CorelDRAW retains a loyal community of fans, and its maker, Alludo, has just announced a bunch of new features for the program. It's adding an AI vector generator, helping it to compete with Adobe Firefly, and there are also new brush packs and settings as well as Pantone colour palettes.

The catch? Well, the new features require a subscription to the full CorelDRAW Graphics Suite rather than the more beginner-focused Corel packages, and use of the generative AI tool Vector FX requires a separate purchase. All the same, the upgrades could be enough to keep CorelDRAW in our pick of the best graphic design software .

The latest release of CorelDRAW Graphics Suite offers a bunch of new subscriber-exclusive brush packs. There are 50 pixel-based brushes available free to subscribers and additional ones available for purchase. Meanwhile, the Painterly Brush Properties/Settings have been expanded to provide new controls for Texture and pen pressure simulation to allow users to more easily customise the appearance of brushstrokes.

Users can also now save their favorite brushes in the brush selector menu for easier access, so their most-used brushes are always just a click away. The dedicated Painterly Brush Tab has also been improved, adding easy-to-access Density, Smoothing, and Glow controls in the Properties docker/inspector, potentially improving workflows.

Another addition is Pantone's Dualities color palette, available in CorelDRAW and Corel PHOTO-PAINT at no additional cost. It provides 175 new shades that set accurate color expectations for output.

And the AI? Well, PC users will have the option to purchase Vector FX, a standalone generative AI application that can create vector graphics based on text prompts. After creating an initial vector, users will be able to launch CorelDRAW directly from within Vector FX to continue refining and editing. Alludo assures us that it's committed to responsible AI use, and that Vector FX ensures that all generated content adheres to ethical guidelines.

There's additional news for users of CorelDRAW Technical Suite and CorelDRAW Technical Suite 3D CAD. The latest update includes everything from the CorelDRAW Graphics Suite update plus a new S1000D color palette, accessible directly from XVL Studio’s Color toolbar. CorelDRAW Technical Suite 3D CAD users can benefit from an S1000D illustration output preset for professional compliance and expanded 3D CAD import capabilities for greater flexibility with the latest CAD technologies.