Blackboard Collaborate vs. Whereby

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Blackboard Collaborate
Score 7.4 out of 10
N/A
Blackboard Collaborate is an online, collaborative learning platform well-suited for the education industry and corporate learning needs. It includes features such as screen and application sharing, web conferencing, and integration with Blackboard Learn.
$300
per year
Whereby
Score 8.6 out of 10
N/A
Norwegian company appear.in offers their flagship video conferencing platform to small teams, both in a free edition hosting up to 4 guests simultaneously in a session or a paid edition that supports up to 12 simultaneous meeting guests, among other features.
$0
per user
Pricing
Blackboard CollaborateWhereby
Editions & Modules
Classroom
$300.00
per year
Department
$9000.00
per year
Free
$0
per user
Pro
$9.99
per user
Business
$59.99 and up
per user/room
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Blackboard CollaborateWhereby
Free Trial
NoYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoYes
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Features
Blackboard CollaborateWhereby
Performance & Compatibility of Online Events Software
Comparison of Performance & Compatibility of Online Events Software features of Product A and Product B
Blackboard Collaborate
-
Ratings
Whereby
7.8
14 Ratings
3% below category average
High quality audio00 Ratings9.014 Ratings
High quality video00 Ratings9.014 Ratings
Low bandwidth requirements00 Ratings8.012 Ratings
Mobile support00 Ratings5.011 Ratings
Screen Sharing
Comparison of Screen Sharing features of Product A and Product B
Blackboard Collaborate
-
Ratings
Whereby
8.0
13 Ratings
0% above category average
Desktop sharing00 Ratings8.013 Ratings
Whiteboards00 Ratings8.04 Ratings
Online Meetings / Events
Comparison of Online Meetings / Events features of Product A and Product B
Blackboard Collaborate
-
Ratings
Whereby
9.4
13 Ratings
13% above category average
Calendar integration00 Ratings9.94 Ratings
Meeting initiation00 Ratings9.010 Ratings
Integrates with social media00 Ratings9.72 Ratings
Record meetings / events00 Ratings9.07 Ratings
Slideshows00 Ratings9.35 Ratings
Online Events Collaboration
Comparison of Online Events Collaboration features of Product A and Product B
Blackboard Collaborate
-
Ratings
Whereby
8.3
9 Ratings
2% below category average
Live chat00 Ratings9.09 Ratings
Audience polling00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
Q&A00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Online Events Security
Comparison of Online Events Security features of Product A and Product B
Blackboard Collaborate
-
Ratings
Whereby
6.9
11 Ratings
19% below category average
User authentication00 Ratings8.86 Ratings
Participant roles & permissions00 Ratings5.09 Ratings
Confidential attendee list00 Ratings7.04 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Blackboard CollaborateWhereby
Small Businesses
Tovuti LMS
Tovuti LMS
Score 9.5 out of 10
ClickMeeting
ClickMeeting
Score 9.4 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Tovuti LMS
Tovuti LMS
Score 9.5 out of 10
ClickMeeting
ClickMeeting
Score 9.4 out of 10
Enterprises
Panopto
Panopto
Score 7.6 out of 10
Google Meet
Google Meet
Score 8.3 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Blackboard CollaborateWhereby
Likelihood to Recommend
8.6
(31 ratings)
9.0
(15 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
9.0
(1 ratings)
10.0
(2 ratings)
Usability
8.5
(8 ratings)
10.0
(2 ratings)
Availability
8.0
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Performance
9.0
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
8.9
(6 ratings)
5.1
(9 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Product Scalability
8.0
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Blackboard CollaborateWhereby
Likelihood to Recommend
Class Technologies, Inc
I would say it is very useful for group collaborations online, as well as virtual classrooms where you wish your students/guests to collaborate in an adaptable environment; however I would advise against using the shared screen to display audio or video, nor would I encourage the use of the shared board with a group of people with disciplinary issues (as there is no accountability for who wrote/drew what).
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Whereby
If you cannot use another more common solution on the market or are looking for an alternative to the known solutions, it is a great alternative. If you have other tools already, and just want to test [them], that's fine, but I think the better-known ones have a better chance of using, knowing, and the learning curve will be shorter.
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Pros
Class Technologies, Inc
  • The Whiteboard feature is perfect for tutoring. We use it to write out formulas, draw diagrams, etc while in video chat to enhance explanations.
  • The file attachment feature is also very handy. This means we don't have to do a follow-up with a student using their email to send files of handouts, etc.
  • It's great that we only have to share a classroom access link for a student to enter a session. With other products, they had to set up a username and log-in with an account. Link access means 1 less hassle.
  • We are currently beginning to use the "record session" feature video sessions to use as training for new employees.
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Whereby
  • Easy to use: The app is very, very easy to use. Literally just create a chat room (input a name) and access it to chat.
  • Call/video quality: I've experienced better call quality on appear.in than in almost all other chat and video conferencing services out there.
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Cons
Class Technologies, Inc
  • Some of the newest computer high resolution screens are not as compatible with the interface. The font and windows are much smaller and the user is not able to increase the size of the windows to make it easier to read/navigate.
  • The audio can sometimes be inconsistent and tune in and out when someone is speaking. This is not every time though and many times the audio is clear.
  • The login process takes a bit longer to get into the program. You have to go through a few step process and loading time to get into the application.
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Whereby
  • The paid version may have dial-in. But I have always used the free version. Dial-in is typically required for an "official" multi-purpose teleconference platform.
  • I did have some trouble with larger groups (5+) when it was Appear.in but almost always use it for small 1-on-1 or 3 person meetings.
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Likelihood to Renew
Class Technologies, Inc
It is a tool that faculty likes to use. It has so much flexibility to allow students to see a class even if they happen to not be available in the classroom.
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Whereby
We are using a larger tool suite that already includes video conferencing instead of our older approach of using different apps from different vendors. appear.in has a simple but great set of features but its pricing scheme is not as scalable as we really need in a 500+ employee company.
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Usability
Class Technologies, Inc
Blackboard Collaborate is reliable and feature-rich. It's a great web conferencing tool for teaching & learning, offering polls, chat, video and audio, whiteboard, content sharing, and breakout rooms. Blackboard Collaborate can be used for virtual office hours, lectures, guest speakers, training, professional development, conferences, technical support, academic advising, and so much more. Blackboard Collaborate can be used separately from the learning management system or it can be integrated for a single sign-on experience. It supports recordings, playbacks, private sharing, and MP4 downloads. Overall, it's a solid tool and very reliable.
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Whereby
Very easy to use, technical and non-technical colleagues have used it with no instructions needed. That says all about the app and services.
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Reliability and Availability
Class Technologies, Inc
The availability of the software is quite impressive. You can access it at any time that you want and from anywhere that you want, but that depends on how the software is set up by the University. There might be sudden outages due to not having enough space on your database, which we had that very issue happen recently here at our University. During that time, you could not access their blackboard at all until it was brought up online again.
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Whereby
No answers on this topic
Performance
Class Technologies, Inc
The performance of the software is remarkable. The loading speed of the pages is more than satisfying, it all depends on the users internet package. So far, there wasn't any issue of Blackboard slowing down other software or systems when integrated with them
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Whereby
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
Class Technologies, Inc
Sometimes they do planned maintenance. Depending on the time zone you’re in, this may be in the middle of the night. That’s great. Sometimes this maintenance isn’t completed overnight however, and you need to use the platform and it is down. I’ve never been able to successfully contact them to report an outage or get assistance when it is down. I just have to wait until it comes back up to go to class, review sessions, etc.
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Whereby
Never had to contact support, so we cannot give a rating for their overall support. When we noticed the audio was not always great quality, we simply educated our users to mute the mic and use the in-room conference phone which is connected via a dedicated VOIP link and had much better voice quality. The video performance varied by locations network speed and found it got much worse when the room size increased to over 4 connections.
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Implementation Rating
Class Technologies, Inc
No answers on this topic
Whereby
After a recommendation from a partner, as the system is very easy to use, we simply start.
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Alternatives Considered
Class Technologies, Inc
Nearpod does not allow for the same type of synchronous environment that Blackboard collaborate does. Further, Nearpod, as the name suggests is best suited for a face-to-face classroom that is, preferably, one-to-one. While it has some of the same functions as Nearpod, Blackboard collaborate is best suited for remote transmission rather than face-to-face
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Whereby
I find Zoom more complicated to use and harder to use because a lot of people do not like having to download things to their computers or devices and Whereby is so easy to get connected with . I like that Zoom offers larger rooms, but at this point the cost is not worth the extra expense.
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Scalability
Class Technologies, Inc
The reason for this rating is that the software is a pretty good tool that can be utilized for use in all of the Universities around the world. It has the capability to fulfill the needs of various different education systems. Although, there are slight improvements that are needed, therefore the rating is at 8.
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Whereby
No answers on this topic
Return on Investment
Class Technologies, Inc
  • Because faculty can schedule sessions on-the-fly without IT involvement, they are able to accomplish goals that they plan for weeks in advance as well as impromptu goals that come up at a moments notice.
  • Integration with the campus Learning Management Systems provides quick and easy scheduling of sessions that can be joined easily by students in those courses.
  • Scheduling of meetings can also be done through the web interface directly which enables administrative departments not associated with courses in the learning management system to also schedule meetings not affiliated with courses.
  • On-campus users can schedule meetings without outside participants by sending an open "guest link" URL that allows users to participate despite not having an account within the system iteself.
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Whereby
  • In general, any sort of online collaborations saves a lot on your budget. The meetings are rather more on time and can be efficient and short.
  • Easy to drop-by and have a small talk with clients/teammates within COVID era.
  • The URL makes you look fancy instead of a random hash.
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ScreenShots

Whereby Screenshots

Screenshot of Easy video meetings in your browser. No downloads, no login.Screenshot of Up to 50 participants in Townhall rooms.Screenshot of Record, save, and share meetings.