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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Box

    Score8.9 out of 10
    N/ABox is an online Intelligent Content Management solution that caters to individual users as well as businesses.

    $20

    per month 3 users (minimum)

    HCL Notes

    Score3.5 out of 10
    N/ANotes from HCL (formerly from IBM, acquired by HCL in late 2018) is a collaboration platform based on the Lotus platform.N/A

    Ideagen Collaboration Portal

    Score9.1 out of 10
    N/AIdeagen Collaboration Portal , formerly Huddle is Ideagen’s tool supporting teams' work by enabling them to store, share and work on content.

    $10

    per user/per month

    Pricing
    BoxHCL NotesIdeagen Collaboration Portal
    Editions & Modules
    Business Starter
    $7
    per month per user (3 minimum)
    Business
    $20
    per month per user (3 minimum)
    Business Plus
    $33
    per month per user (3 minimum)
    Enterprise
    $47
    per month per user (3 minimum)
    Enterprise Plus
    $50
    per month (billed annually) per user (3 minimum)
    Enterprise Advanced
    Contact us
    per month per user (35 minimum)
    No answers on this topic
    Huddle
    $10
    per user/per month
    Huddle Plus
    Contact sales team
    Huddle Premier
    Contact sales team
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    BoxHCL NotesIdeagen Collaboration Portal
    Free Trial
    YesNoYes
    Free/Freemium Version
    YesNoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    YesNoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeOptionalNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional DetailsA discount is available for annual pricing.——
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    BoxHCL NotesIdeagen Collaboration Portal
    Considered Multiple Products
    Box
    No answer on this topic
    HCLSoftware
    No answer on this topic
    Ideagen
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    93%
    Would buy again
    96 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Delivers good value for the price
    99%
    Delivers good value for the price
    81 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Happy with the feature set
    96%
    Happy with the feature set
    99 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    100%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    61 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation went as expected
    97%
    Implementation went as expected
    68 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Features
    BoxHCL NotesIdeagen Collaboration Portal
    Enterprise Content Management
    Comparison of Enterprise Content Management features of Box and HCL Notes and Ideagen Collaboration Portal
    Feature
    Box
    8.0
    26 Ratings
    1% below category average
    HCL Notes
    -
    Ratings
    Ideagen Collaboration Portal
    -
    Ratings
    Content capture & imaging8.119 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    File sync, storage & archiving9.825 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Document management9.024 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Records management7.420 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Content search & retrieval8.624 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Enterprise content collaboration8.021 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Content publishing & creation5.015 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Security, risk management & information governance8.926 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Contract lifecycle management9.612 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Automated workflows9.614 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Artificial intelligence2.011 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Mobile support7.723 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Integration9.823 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Project Management
    Comparison of Project Management features of Box and HCL Notes and Ideagen Collaboration Portal
    Feature
    Box
    -
    Ratings
    HCL Notes
    6.9
    10 Ratings
    11% below category average
    Ideagen Collaboration Portal
    7.2
    6 Ratings
    7% below category average
    Task Management00 Ratings7.09 Ratings9.16 Ratings
    Gantt Charts00 Ratings6.03 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Scheduling00 Ratings8.09 Ratings4.53 Ratings
    Workflow Automation00 Ratings5.06 Ratings4.52 Ratings
    Mobile Access00 Ratings8.010 Ratings6.46 Ratings
    Search00 Ratings6.09 Ratings6.56 Ratings
    Visual planning tools00 Ratings8.03 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Communication
    Comparison of Communication features of Box and HCL Notes and Ideagen Collaboration Portal
    Feature
    Box
    -
    Ratings
    HCL Notes
    9.2
    10 Ratings
    15% above category average
    Ideagen Collaboration Portal
    8.8
    5 Ratings
    10% above category average
    Chat00 Ratings6.010 Ratings10.03 Ratings
    Notifications00 Ratings9.010 Ratings4.54 Ratings
    Discussions00 Ratings9.57 Ratings9.03 Ratings
    Surveys00 Ratings9.14 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Internal knowledgebase00 Ratings10.06 Ratings10.04 Ratings
    Integrates with GoToMeeting00 Ratings10.03 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Integrates with Gmail and Google Hangouts00 Ratings10.02 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Integrates with Outlook00 Ratings10.05 Ratings9.02 Ratings
    File Sharing & Management
    Comparison of File Sharing & Management features of Box and HCL Notes and Ideagen Collaboration Portal
    Feature
    Box
    -
    Ratings
    HCL Notes
    7.6
    9 Ratings
    5% below category average
    Ideagen Collaboration Portal
    7.6
    6 Ratings
    5% below category average
    Versioning00 Ratings9.04 Ratings9.16 Ratings
    Video files00 Ratings6.05 Ratings7.35 Ratings
    Audio files00 Ratings6.05 Ratings6.45 Ratings
    Document collaboration00 Ratings8.08 Ratings6.56 Ratings
    Access control00 Ratings6.08 Ratings6.56 Ratings
    Advanced security features00 Ratings8.08 Ratings10.05 Ratings
    Integrates with Google Drive00 Ratings10.02 Ratings8.01 Ratings
    Device sync00 Ratings8.05 Ratings7.34 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    BoxHCL NotesIdeagen Collaboration Portal
    Small Businesses
    Egnyte
    Score9.3 out of 10
    Flock
    Score9.5 out of 10
    Flock
    Score9.5 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Epicor ECM
    Score7.7 out of 10
    Troop Messenger
    Score9.8 out of 10
    Troop Messenger
    Score9.8 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Dashpivot - By Sitemate
    Score10 out of 10
    Cisco Business Edition 7000 (discontinued)
    Score9 out of 10
    Cisco Business Edition 7000 (discontinued)
    Score9 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    BoxHCL NotesIdeagen Collaboration Portal
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.4
    (154 ratings)
    7.0
    (16 ratings)
    9.1
    (6 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    8.0
    (12 ratings)
    1.7
    (5 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Usability
    8.4
    (21 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    8.2
    (1 ratings)
    Availability
    10.0
    (5 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Performance
    9.1
    (12 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Support Rating
    8.5
    (29 ratings)
    9.0
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    In-Person Training
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Online Training
    10.0
    (3 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    10.0
    (6 ratings)
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Configurability
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Vendor post-sale
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Vendor pre-sale
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    BoxHCL NotesIdeagen Collaboration Portal
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Box
    I think Box is great for research teams or anyone that has a large number of files that need to be securely stored. Particularly in the case of social science research, where it is important to protect identifying data, Box is a great option. In cases where teams need a more reliable means for real-time collaboration, I would probably consider a different alternative
    Read full review
    HCLSoftware
    I often work with teams from other country and regions, hence HCL Notes is a very useful platform for internal company management operations. It standardized organisational work standards in most of the offices worldwide. HCL Notes also enables chat with other team around the world that I find very helpful when initiating conversation or just want to have a quick update rather than sending emails and waiting for replies. However, HCL Notes is not very efficient in web browsing and user still need to use other internet service providers.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Ideagen
    If you are sharing private information like contracts for designs and designs that aren't meant to be shared only with one client, the platform is very secure
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Box
    • The main feature that I like the most in Box is that it makes collaboration seamless, workers can easily check the documents any time and make changes according to the needs.
    • Box manages and backs up all of your files on its cloud servers, and provides a very nice interface for creating, viewing, editing, and collaborating on the most commonly used file types (PDF, XLS, DOC, etc.).
    • Over the past few years, Box has built on top of its basic cloud storage management with a host of other tools, such as workflows, AI, monitoring, and analytics.
    • It is helping us to make good connections with clients and our workers themselves as to its syncing and viewing feature to all is very much helpful and easy to go.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    HCLSoftware
    • It has a really strong and robust database that's extremely scalable and holds up well to thousands of users and many different environments.
    • It has a really good enterprise-grade framework for development custom database applications
    • All of the custom database applications along with the email all have a nice uniform look and feel so their easy-to-use.
    • I really like how it's developed and supported on every client OS (Windows, OSX, Linux)! The competitors definitely do NOT offer this (M$).
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Ideagen
    • Huddle allows users to use the native document file types. For example, Word files are still in a Word, not a "Huddle" file version.
    • Huddle workspaces are invitation-only. If someone should not be in the workspace, they will not be invited and provided access to the documents. Or, they can be removed from the workspace if needed.
    • Communication about documents is located with the documents in a discussion thread under the document preview. Thus, email inbox clutter can be limited.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Box
    • The graphic design of the dashboard should be simpler and more tangible that can be changed to the liking of the Admin.
    • Sometimes there are some syncing issues in the background.
    • The product has very limited functionality in some areas which could be a bit frustrating at times.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    HCLSoftware
    • Notes' backwards compatibility sometimes gets in the way. Menus are cluttered with extraneous, outdated options and features that modern users will never use, and Preferences are often difficult to navigate for those coming from Gmail or Outlook. We have greatly simplified this via Policies, but users still find it daunting to go through all the options that are available.
    • The IBM Notes client for Windows & Mac is essentially the Eclipse Java development platform...so it is HUGE. Performance initially was very slow but IBM has done a good job of speeding things up. As IBM moves more toward cloud-delivered applications, this will not be as much of a problem.
    • Notes and Domino can be complex to manage for administrators who are more accustomed to ActiveDirectory, Group Policy, etc. Editing a notes.ini file to add a feature, or working with XML files by hand to create a SmartUpgrade kit can be daunting to those coming from more modern administrative roles.
    • Some users claim to "hate" Notes mail. While I have heard this less and less over the past 10 years, we have had 3rd party software offer plugins to Outlook and it's rare to see any for Notes.
    • The client update process should be automated more. I would like to see the Notes client update quietly and quickly more like an Adobe software update. If an update fails it should automatically try again without prompting the user over and over.
    • Notes multiple language spell checking is a downloaded add-on Java-based resource that has to be deployed in a convoluted way that is difficult for users to grasp. Therefore any foreign language spell check updates must be done individually per Notes client by IT, which is unfortunate. I would prefer to see that be a "live download" update option for users to get directly from IBM (don't make me download it and put it on my network).
    Read full review
    Ideagen
    • The desktop app is occasionally unreliable and it is never easy to get to the bottom of it with the tech support people...
    • Tasks are virtually useless as they have no context. We want tasks to be against documents so we can make our workflow more formal but they are not, so we don't use them. A reimplementation of to do and calendar facilities with files/documents as the context would make a huge difference to us.
    • The Huddle Office plugins are a great idea, but they cause us far too many Word and Excel crashes so we have to turn them off.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Box
    I like the security features and I like the website. It's easy to use and create and move things around as needed. The main reason for a lower rating is because the Box Sync app is just not a good program. It's a memory hog, it's slow, transfer speeds are slow, and it's not the most efficient route. If you have a large Box account and you need to get a computer up to speed on a large amount of data within Box, you are in for the long haul. Last time I had to do this, it took 3 days to sync all of the files and we are talking around 100 GB worth of data
    Read full review
    HCLSoftware
    I've been in IT business and as a Programmer/Developer for 20+ years with too many programming languages experiences/back ground (C/C++/Visual Basic/Basic Program/Unix/COBOL/Java). Also with 18+ years with Lotus Notes/IBM Domino, I am still and always think Lotus Notes is the best RAD platform available!. When the time where resource is very limited and the expectation is very high and the turn around is too short, IBM Domino/Notes is the platform to use and it's the only choice available.
    Read full review
    Ideagen
    No answers on this topic
    Usability
    Box
    Everything with Box is seamless. It can be integrated into virtually any other software or application. You can even get the app for your phone or tablet to work on the go. File syncing is so quick. The only reason I gave it a 9 is the issue I discussed earlier about the local file application rebooting and not continuing to sync files. Other than that, it's great!
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    HCLSoftware
    Easy to use for the user, most of the apps we developed, there is not much need for user training. Most of the times, we just do a demo to the users group and they can pick up from there.
    Read full review
    Ideagen
    Huddle is very easy to use whether you are a new user or you have used it for years, it is an incredibly intuitive system that is so simple to teach to new users, the lock feature prevents important documents from being edited accidentally, while the edit features allow for true collaborative working
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    Box
    Yeah, it's always worked, I've never had any kind of connection issues, the only issues I've had it I've been on our end when the Internet hasn't worked.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    HCLSoftware
    No answers on this topic
    Ideagen
    No answers on this topic
    Performance
    Box
    The general operation and management of Box is very efficient, both when accessing the account, and when adding files, downloading or modifying any document directly. The web platform, mobile and desktop versions work really well and quickly, making all the work and process flow smoothly and without setbacks. So far I have not been able to observe any inconvenience
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    HCLSoftware
    No answers on this topic
    Ideagen
    No answers on this topic
    Support Rating
    Box
    I found their support community lacking in clarity when I experienced a login issue. The error messaging was poor on my Box Sync application. I did not reach out to support staff for help, instead, I reasoned that I should try downloading the Box Sync application again and reinstall it. That fixed my issue, thankfully. I think a less computer-savvy user would've been much more frustrated.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    HCLSoftware
    I've been using the production for a very long time and very happy with it. Also, all the online resources and forums for notes is very friendly and easy/quick for getting help. I found out that compared to Microsoft or Oracle or any other platforms, IBM Notes online forum is the best I have seen.
    Read full review
    Ideagen
    No answers on this topic
    In-Person Training
    Box
    The in person training was done in house and I helped with the training, people seem to respond well.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    HCLSoftware
    No answers on this topic
    Ideagen
    No answers on this topic
    Online Training
    Box
    The documentation is good. Since Box is a popular service, there were also a number of YouTube videos and other sources that were helpful as we were considering the product and planning for deployment. Also, the ability to try the free version helped to prepare us.
    Read full review
    HCLSoftware
    No answers on this topic
    Ideagen
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation Rating
    Box
    Be careful with settings. It is easy to get overwhelmed with updates. For example, you don’t want to be updated when doing historical data uploads. I recommend taking off notifications initially and then turn on post you have done your historical data upload.
    Read full review
    HCLSoftware
    Implementation is easy and smooth if the requirement is well gathered/documented. Notes is a RAD platform, all projects in Notes is simple in the implementation step.
    Read full review
    Ideagen
    No answers on this topic
    Alternatives Considered
    Box
    They are kind of the same. And both of them do their job as promised. But for company and project wise I think that Box slightly wins for some points. Which [makes him] win over Google Drive (don't forget that Google Drive is very easy to use and has a lot [of] nice features too).
    Read full review
    HCLSoftware
    Outlook has been considered for years as a replacement platform. Pricing and support staff made it prohibitive. Our long-time use of Microsoft Office productivity suite naturally led us to consider the adoption of Office365. A recent investigation told us that Azure Cloud services propel an O365 solution to the forefront. Early adopters in international divisions have paved the way for Azure and O365.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Ideagen
    We liked how simple it was to use. And the feature set it offered was more in line with our needs than the alternatives we looked at
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Scalability
    Box
    It's great, as we put more files on there it's done very well.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    HCLSoftware
    No answers on this topic
    Ideagen
    No answers on this topic
    Return on Investment
    Box
    • Box has been an only positive experience. It provides a seamless way for me and my team to collaborate on documents in such a way where we're not sending the document back/forth via email. It's a huge timesaver.
    • Box reduces the risk of sharing a sensitive document to the wrong person via email.
    • Box has provided a platform where my team can share notes in meetings - this has helped streamline and organize our meetings. Our meetings are more productive and actionable.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    HCLSoftware
    • Over the years, we have lost countless hours of productivity from the thousands of crashes we have experienced.
    • One benefit of IBM Notes is that it is very simple to train a new user on. Many people prefer and are familiar with Google tools, but those that use IBM Notes have very little trouble acclimating themselves.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Ideagen
    • This has made it a lot easier for remote workers to access important documents without needing to use the VPN at home (which does not always work).
    • It clearly shows who updated the last document and when so it is clear who you need to ask if you have questions or something.
    • We have used it in client settings, so this saves money as we do not need to request a separate client laptop or VPN token.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    Box Screenshots

    Screenshot of an overview of Box's intelligent content management platform. It provides a unified, AI-powered approach to managing and securing your unstructured data, or content. ICM provides organizations with collaboration, AI, security, compliance, and workflow tools, interoperable and customizable, to get the most from their content.Screenshot of how with Box AI, AI can be accessed right where enterprise content exists. While that work can reside within Microsoft, Google, Apple, and other productivity suites, Box helps users to tap the full potential of AI for unstructured data.Screenshot of how Box creates a central workspace to edit, review, and assign tasks. Users can automate business processes and centralize content workflows in Box, including a configurable content submission, unlimited e-signatures, user-drive no-code workflow, and task assignment to power approvals.Screenshot of how Box secures content from threats, including malware and ransomware, and recover from attacks if they happen. This helps to maintain a zero trust architecture to ensure proper usage of corporate data, and prevent data theft.Screenshot of how Box can connect to any productivity suite, including Microsoft, Google, and Apple. This extends any existing security investments with integrations into key DLP, SIEM, and network security tools. Thus, seamless experiences can be built for users in any system they use, whether that’s a business tool like Salesforce or ServiceNow, or communications engines like Zoom and Slack.Screenshot of an overview describing Box's scalability. With unlimited storage capabilities Box has an exabyte (1,000PB) of customer data plus 1 gigabit per second upload and download speed. At its core, Box is a multi-tenant global SaaS platform with enterprise-grade reliability and end-to-end encryption to secure content.

    Ideagen Collaboration Portal Screenshots

    Screenshot of Document collaborationScreenshot of Document approval trackingScreenshot of Mobile apps that support remote productivityScreenshot of Android & iOS apps to stay connected while on the moveScreenshot of Huddle Overview