Illustrator CS4 is here (as a standalone app for $599 direct or as part of all CS4 suites except Web Standard) and it lacks the sort of killer addition that made Photoshop CS4 a five-star app. Don’t get me wrong: I tested under Microsoft Windows Vista and Macintosh OS X Leopard, and I did find that many existing features had been polished, enhanced, and made easier to find. And there are a couple of new ones that might make this version a draw—not because these features are “unimaginable,” but because users have been waiting for them for years. Overall, this is still the best vector graphics application out there—it just didn’t improve this year as much as I’d expected, and not quite as much as I’d hope for the $600 price tag (or the $200 upgrade).

Even though I don’t really use Illustrator, there have been improvements. I believe it’s worth the price of $600. They fixed many bugs and problems I experienced with the previous version.

Illustrator CS4 adds a couple of long-overdue features, a few interesting new ones, and a host of smaller tweaks and improvements. This isn’t the most compelling new iteration in the program’s venerable history, but Illustrator is still the best vector graphics program around.

The Good- Multiple artboards for multipage support. Transparency in gradients. Organic Blob Brush. Other useful refinements.

The Bad- Not enough new “killer” features for a $600. No “spring-loaded” keyboard shortcuts.

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