heh
*.3ds I'm a 2d/3d artist .Avoid that format.
what Hybrid says is correct, that format is terrible for smoothing. Even more, by how it is, it cannot have a 3d vertex with two UV coordinates. It simply break the mesh there when you save as 3ds. And if you saved before, doesn't matter now is converted to obj. It was already broken. So, when it finds an vertex with two uv pairs (every time an uv island ends... sooo often) it breaks as needs a new 3d vertex. there's now double vertice there (problems with weighting in many 3d tools, and probs in engines/formats) , and as there's a mesh break, the smoothing break is forced.Only way to fix is apply some forced code, or weld m esh very carefully (to not weld other vertex too near somewhere else) and reapply normals.
An obj if was born from an already exported as 3ds file from your Max or a sample wich was in 3ds format, man, it's broken already. Youc an fix it in another different art package.There's a load supporting OBJ better than max, and available free.
In your first ogre shot, looks like you have a diffferent screen ratio or fov, dunno.
in your latest OBJ screenshot, there's actually a cut, dunno if is mesh cut (could be easily) , or if simply you asigned an autosmooth value with a tool or code: that is usually depending on the angle it finds betwen every pair of faces...if it's sharper that certain angle threshold, it produces an smothing crease there, wether or not there was there a mesh break.
I very well know irrlicht supports vertex normals: Murphy and I produced MIM test levels with all normals well applied and well preserved from my : Wings, Milkshape, XSI, Giles, Blender.
Is a matter on your knowledge on the art side, sorry, and probably on the coding side, too.
But don't you worry, we all learn things every day
seems like ogre applies normals by default even if it hasnt em, which is quite newbie friendly, but imo, not an engine advantage or issue, when a good artist plays with an engine, must pass you correct meshes, and hopefully in a not so faulty, ancient format. Md2, and md3 suffer from that and worse probs, and is for the age they show. Go use a better format like OBj from start, or ms3d, collada, b3d...
I agree with you the fps is not a valuable dat with a cube loaded, probably ogre loads in memory a load of things to have them available, dunno.
i gess that obj has some mesh problem, as I say..