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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    OBS Studio

    Score9.2 out of 10
    N/AOBS Studio is free and open source software for video recording and live streaming, featuring real time video/audio capturing and mixing. Users can create scenes made up of multiple sources including window captures, images, text, browser windows, webcams, and capture cards.

    $0

    Panopto

    Score7.5 out of 10
    N/APanopto is a video management platform for businesses and universities from the company of the same name in Seattle, supporting the recording, sharing, live streaming, and (after recording) sharing via LMS or internal video site, video search, and virtual classroom.

    $14.99

    per month

    Pricing
    OBS StudioPanopto
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    Pro
    $14.99
    per month
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    OBS StudioPanopto
    Free Trial
    NoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    YesNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details——
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    OBS StudioPanopto
    Considered Both Products
    Open Source
    Chose OBS Studio
    OBS is the only robust screen capture with a stable graphical user interface that works on Linux (that I could find). That's why I originally chose it. Since the program is cross-platform, I have been able to keep using it. I could switch back to Panopto, now that I am on …
    Incentivized
    Panopto
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    100%
    Would buy again
    11 Answers
    100%
    Would buy again
    5 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    100%
    Delivers good value for the price
    10 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Happy with the feature set
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    11 Answers
    80%
    Happy with the feature set
    4 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    100%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    9 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation went as expected
    100%
    Implementation went as expected
    10 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Features
    OBS StudioPanopto
    Video Marketing
    Comparison of Video Marketing features of OBS Studio and Panopto
    Feature
    OBS Studio
    -
    Ratings
    Panopto
    7.0
    6 Ratings
    8% below category average
    Video personalization00 Ratings7.06 Ratings
    eCommerce00 Ratings6.01 Ratings
    Support for advertisements00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
    Video SEO00 Ratings8.02 Ratings
    Video Platform Integrations
    Comparison of Video Platform Integrations features of OBS Studio and Panopto
    Feature
    OBS Studio
    -
    Ratings
    Panopto
    9.4
    7 Ratings
    41% above category average
    Integration to LMS00 Ratings9.47 Ratings
    Video Security
    Comparison of Video Security features of OBS Studio and Panopto
    Feature
    OBS Studio
    -
    Ratings
    Panopto
    8.8
    10 Ratings
    3% above category average
    Video access controls00 Ratings9.09 Ratings
    User management00 Ratings9.010 Ratings
    Video link sharing00 Ratings10.010 Ratings
    Internal video00 Ratings8.010 Ratings
    External video00 Ratings8.09 Ratings
    Video Player
    Comparison of Video Player features of OBS Studio and Panopto
    Feature
    OBS Studio
    -
    Ratings
    Panopto
    8.5
    10 Ratings
    4% above category average
    Player customization00 Ratings7.08 Ratings
    Embedded videos00 Ratings9.08 Ratings
    Video quality / Bandwidth controls00 Ratings8.89 Ratings
    Mobile compatibility00 Ratings9.08 Ratings
    Video Analytics
    Comparison of Video Analytics features of OBS Studio and Panopto
    Feature
    OBS Studio
    -
    Ratings
    Panopto
    7.5
    10 Ratings
    5% below category average
    A/B testing00 Ratings9.04 Ratings
    Streaming quality reports00 Ratings6.04 Ratings
    Per viewer tracking00 Ratings8.010 Ratings
    Per video tracking00 Ratings8.010 Ratings
    Video analytics dashboard00 Ratings6.38 Ratings
    Video Hosting, Management & Storage
    Comparison of Video Hosting, Management & Storage features of OBS Studio and Panopto
    Feature
    OBS Studio
    -
    Ratings
    Panopto
    8.1
    9 Ratings
    6% below category average
    On-Demand video00 Ratings7.68 Ratings
    Live streaming00 Ratings7.28 Ratings
    Impact of streaming on network00 Ratings8.04 Ratings
    Video upload & format support00 Ratings9.08 Ratings
    Video library / File management00 Ratings9.29 Ratings
    Video portal00 Ratings7.88 Ratings
    Video Engagement
    Comparison of Video Engagement features of OBS Studio and Panopto
    Feature
    OBS Studio
    -
    Ratings
    Panopto
    8.8
    7 Ratings
    10% above category average
    Audience polling00 Ratings10.05 Ratings
    Audience Q&A / Live chat00 Ratings7.25 Ratings
    Video comments00 Ratings9.27 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    OBS StudioPanopto
    Small Businesses
    No answers on this topic
    Vidyard
    Score8.3 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    No answers on this topic
    Vidyard
    Score8.3 out of 10
    Enterprises
    No answers on this topic
    Ensemble Video
    Score9.1 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    OBS StudioPanopto
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.0
    (13 ratings)
    8.0
    (12 ratings)
    Usability
    7.9
    (4 ratings)
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    Support Rating
    9.0
    (3 ratings)
    7.0
    (2 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.0
    (1 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    OBS StudioPanopto
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Open Source
    From simple streaming to bigger events, OBS has been able to handle all of it with full confidence from us. Have never questioned if it was going to be unreliable in a specific situation, even with minimal training. Software identified the external input source easily and had no issues setting that up (Blackmagic Mini Recorder), and great for pulling in separate audio from the computer input.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Panopto
    Panopto is great if you have a lot of video content that you need to put in a central repository. It makes it easy to manage who sees it and how it is categorized. The captioning features are also really good too. For folks to view the video, they don't need a Panopto account. You can send them a direct link. If you want to upload videos, however, they will need a Panopto account. If you only have a few videos or care less about usage statistics, SharePoint may be a better file repository option
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Open Source
    • RTMP Streaming with customizable bitrate
    • Scene Composition and Switching + source control which allows for creators and our customers to move between different types of content they might have (different video feeds, slides etc)
    • Audio mixer and audio control - noise gating, a/v syncing, audio source control
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Panopto
    • Simple to use - It really is a click-and-go system. Log in, click on record, and you're set.
    • Flexible - It allows multiple information-rich inputs to be recorded simultaneously (for example, the screen, webcams, microphones, etc.). For some demonstrations, having multiple perspectives/views can be beneficial. The ability to add multiple webcams enhanced the value of some of my recordings.
    • Reliable - This is critical when an unforeseen opportunity arises and you want to capture it visually and with audio. I had multiple experiences where a unique person was available briefly and due to Panopto's reliability, I was able to capture content that would otherwise have been seen by only those physically present at the time.
    Incentivized
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    Cons
    Open Source
    • OBS can be a little clunky sometimes, the lots of features can be a bit overwhelming
    • I can multitask with it, but can't run heavy software like Premiere alongside it
    • No way to make adjustments to file after it's done, have to use After Effects or Premiere for that
    Incentivized
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    Panopto
    • Panopto doesn't fully support Ultra courses in Blackboard - we can do quizzing, which is very helpful, but we can't do video submissions like an Original course.
    • There is no built-in certificate option for completing a video and its quiz questions, which requires us to use additional systems for tracking and awarding.
    • Analytics are mediocre. The reporting tools are challenging to use and to get clear information on a consistent basis.
    • Quizzing is limited to multiple choice or T/F -- there is no reflection point or open-ended question format.
    Incentivized
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    Usability
    Open Source
    Very usable because it is free and has had a lot of people helping to suggest improvements and sponsors have allowed the product to grow in sophistication and suitability across a variety of situations and use needs. It is very logical to use once you get started, although the dashboard can seem intimidating at first.
    Incentivized
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    Panopto
    Needs some work, but I'm sure improvements will come over time
    Incentivized
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    Support Rating
    Open Source
    For a free product, a range of support is available. There are plenty of ways to find out answers to questions, because there are probably thousands of people using the product who are willing to share what they have learned. It usually works as designed, so needs for support are limited.
    Incentivized
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    Panopto
    Panopto has been quick to answer any questions, but their rollouts and updates have caused issues where we felt a little blindsided by unexpected changes. Their development cycle is slow and often their promises for future updates have been extremely slow or never come.
    Incentivized
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    Alternatives Considered
    Open Source
    I have also used TinyTake by Mango Apps and I prefer OBS studio because the video quality results are better and OBS allows you to record an unlimited length of the video. OBS also lets you record an entire screen instead of manually having to draw your parameters, which can create oddly sizes videos if you miss by a few pixels.
    Incentivized
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    Panopto
    Cost wise, unless you have a huge audience, Panopto is better. Both Zoom Meeting and Kaltura and for more expensive and a smaller program/company may not have the demand to justify them. Kaltura - is a far superior tool, the UI is much more modern and easier for a novice user to understand, and it makes sharing videos amongst faculty much easier. The LMS integration if far smoother and the recording is much easier and faster (from within the LMS). The analytics are also present in a much cleaner and digestible way. Lastly, the quizzing feature is far more robust. Zoom - Smoother at streaming and live interactions. Stronger chat feature and supports larger audiences, it can handle over 100 HD webcams at once if needed. It does basic desktop capture and supporting audio-only formats that can easily be converted to Podcast or Soundcloud. Google Loom - This one is not listed above as it's rather new but its a FREE tool for fast video/desktop/PPT recordings and it's extremely fast and easy to share. That said it's pretty basic as far as any additional features are concerned. Post-production editing is limited to basic timeline trimming.
    Incentivized
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    Return on Investment
    Open Source
    • It was great to have a platform that is free that I can experiment with without having to use our business capital on.
    • It took time to learn, but it helped me understand a lot of things, so it was a great learning experience.
    • It was a great balance of cost and time with the high-quality product we got from it.
    Incentivized
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    Panopto
    • Panopto integrates with our LMS, D2L quite well. It makes the process very simple for our instructors and students to record and watch videos.
    • It does not require any plugins or software to watch videos, as they load up in a web browser.
    • The videos work on mobile and embed easily in courses or on websites.
    • We also enjoy the easy sharing of videos and simplified management in the web portal.
    Read full review
    ScreenShots