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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

    Powtoon

    Score8.7 out of 10
    N/APowtoon is an online video creation platform used to turn any document or idea into a video. Its AI tools include Doc to Video, an AI scriptwriter, text-to-speech, and text to video.

    $49

    per month per user

    Pricing
    OBS StudioPowtoon
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    Lite
    $49
    per month per user
    Professional
    $99
    per month per user
    Advanced
    $199
    per month per user
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    OBS StudioPowtoon
    Free Trial
    NoYes
    Free/Freemium Version
    YesYes
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details—Discounts available for annual billing and educational institutions.
    More Pricing Information
    Best Alternatives
    OBS StudioPowtoon
    Small Businesses
    No answers on this topic
    iMovie
    Score10 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    No answers on this topic
    iMovie
    Score10 out of 10
    Enterprises
    No answers on this topic
    Adobe Premiere Pro
    Score9.2 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    OBS StudioPowtoon
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.0
    (13 ratings)
    7.0
    (12 ratings)
    Usability
    7.9
    (4 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Support Rating
    9.0
    (3 ratings)
    8.7
    (3 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    OBS StudioPowtoon
    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
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    Powtoon
    Powtoon is a very capable suite of tools that help a developer create training videos that look way better than they should. I've used it to create fun, attention-getting commercials for new topics, I've used it to enhance what would otherwise be boring step-by-step tutorials, and I've used it to create all manner of "Explainer videos" for all kinds of topics - this is where it EXCELS! In my opinion, its biggest limitations are limits on imported video (max of 90 seconds), which mean that you have to do a lot of extra work to break up and import anything of substantive length. And because it presents your personal library of imported images and audio ONLY sequentially, it's VERY LIMITED in the re-usability of those assets - it's way faster to just import a new instance of an image and audio than to try to find it in your library.
    Incentivized
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    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
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    Powtoon
    • Powtoon is very easy to use; no previous experience is needed.
    • It has a lot of features (images, backgrounds, videos, sounds, etc.)
    • It automatically saves your work
    • After you have created your video, you can download it to your computer in different resolutions
    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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    Powtoon
    • Comparing it to Vyond, it is more time consuming to make videos. The timeline could be easier to understand.
    • They recently started upcharging to use some scenes. This has made updating some of my videos challenging as the scenes that were included as part of my plan are now an upgrade to use.
    • They don't have a voice over option. I have actually taken some of the videos out of the platform over to Vyond to add voiceover.
    • Some items they have introduced, like turning a powerpoint into a video really don't work.
    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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    Powtoon
    No answers on this topic
    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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    Powtoon
    I have never needed the support feature. As I mentioned, everything was intuitive to me however I have taught myself Adobe, Final Cut and iMovie so most of these programs became intuitive.
    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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    Powtoon
    Powtoon has the advantage over traditional video editing software in terms of the library of characters and elements that can be easily dragged and dropped onto the canvas. Powtoon is easier to use and has a more intuitive user interface than Vyond.
    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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    Powtoon
    • We don't have to spend money on traveling to a location to do an actual live shoot.
    • I'm spending less time on hand animating videos.
    • We used these to create teaser videos for our professional development offerings. I believe because of the captivating graphics, we had a lot more people driven to our site.
    Incentivized
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    ScreenShots