Spotfire requires some effort, but offers the best combination of advanced analytics with data visualization
Updated December 09, 2020
Spotfire requires some effort, but offers the best combination of advanced analytics with data visualization
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Software Version
TIBCO Cloud Spotfire
Overall Satisfaction with TIBCO Spotfire
Spotfire is used across the entire organization for implementing forecasting, data visualization, and model building. We use Spotfire because of its advanced analytics capabilities combined with its broad data visualization offerings. Perhaps the most useful aspect of Spotfire is the R Script interface, where we can use R scripts in Spotfire to create useful models and graphs.
- Spotfire performs well for analysts that need more than just real-time data visualizations. These analysts need the ability to create advanced models.
- Spotfire's graphs are a little bit more difficult to create than some other data visualization tools. I think this comes with the advantage of allowing the user a greater ability to customize visualizations.
- The suggested graphs part of creating graphs is world class. It offers more than just one suggestion and makes it easy for the user to create usable graphics.
- The software takes a while to start up. It's almost like using a Windows 7 machine with an old hard drive.
- Sometimes creating the most aesthetically-pleasing graphic takes a long time. This is because of the many adjustments that have to be made to a graph in Spotfire. Some other visualization software makes it easier.
- Although Spotfire has a number of advanced modeling capabilities, it would be nice to have more rather than having to build R scripts for some of the more advanced models.
The advantage of Spotfire over Tableau or Domo is the advanced modeling capabilities. Although Tableau and Domo have created interfaces with R, they are nowhere near as easy to implement as they are in Spotfire. The advantage of Spotfire over SAS Enterprise Miner is the broader range of easily created visualizations that don't require an experienced data scientist. Spotfire, of course, does not have some of the advanced modeling capabilities of say a SAS Enterprise Miner nor the zooming ability that Qlick Sense offers. Overall, it stacks up well.
- The ROI from Spotfire has generally been positive. After digesting the healthy up front cost, analysts have come to rely on the software more than most any other software product besides perhaps Excel.
- The initial time spent on Spotfire looked like it might turn out to be a waste of money. But after putting the time in, Spotfire saves analysts time and thereby money.
- Perhaps the most positive return on investment from Spotfire is the automated reports, eliminating analyst effort.
- Online training
- Self-taught
The Spotfire training has come in two forms - online webinars and self-taught. The online webinars provide interesting updates on what is capable with Spotfire and what others are using the software for. The self-taught training is a bit more difficult than other software tools because Spotfire is less well-known, which means that the online presence is smaller. With that said, I think we've solved most of our issues simply by trial and error. It's one of the advantages of Spotfire - trial and error only leads to new knowledge, rather than breaking the product.
We have not specifically purchased any other add-on products to Spotfire. With that said, we are considering looking at Spotfire X. In addition, we are thinking of using Spotfire for more data wrangling, location analytics, real-time graphics, and real-time streaming of data. Of these, I think the two most important items that will save time are making the data wrangling tasks more automated and making the real-time streaming of data actually real-time streaming of data. Accomplishing these two tasks is more difficult than what it sounds.