Adobe Connect has the goal to take you beyond a standard web conferencing experience. The most recent version of the software, which is Adobe Connect 10, features an all-new HTML client to empower you to create fantastic digital training opportunities. You can craft collaboration experiences or develop a webinar for distribution as well.
On this one platform, Adobe Connect gives you rooms that are persistent and customizable, which means they are useful for numerous situations. You can still use it for your web conferencing needs as well. Enterprise-level solutions are available if they are needed to take your organization to the next level.
If you have found that your current web conferencing solution is not powerful enough to meet your needs today, then these are the pros and cons of Adobe Connect that you will want to review.
List of the Pros of Adobe Connect
1. There is a new HTML client available for participants.
When you need to get people together from different locations, Adobe Connect 10 gives you the chance to gather participants without requiring them to download anything. That one feature takes away many of the barriers that there are to entry when there is a training, webinar, or conference to manage. It is also supported by today’s modern browsers, including Safari, Firefox, Chrome, and Edge. There is also more accessibility for screen readers if your guests prefer that option instead.
2. The user interface is simple to use and intuitive.
There are modern design elements given to Adobe Connect 10 that make it feel familiar, even if this is your first time using the platform. Because it stays active through your browser, the speed of interaction is significantly improved for participants when compared to competitive products. You’ll be able to use polls, question-and-answer sessions, status options, chat boxes, polls, and plenty of additional options that ensure your communication and collaboration moments are always on point.
3. There are new audio workflows to consider with Adobe Connect 10.
When you start to use Adobe Connect, then you can take advantage of the microphone support that’s in place for the participants who are using the HTML client. There are simplified workflows in place for your telephony and VoIP options so that the meeting can be managed effectively without reducing the opportunities to get work done. With just a couple of clicks, you can adjust volume levels, select a preferred microphone to use, or disconnect your input from the audio source.
4. You receive HD-quality video through the browser.
You have the option to broadcast HD-quality video through Adobe Connect 10. The video settings give you the opportunity to choose the quality used, going from low to 720p HD. Then it scales dynamically so that participants can conserve their bandwidth. You also have the opportunity to change the aspect ratio from the standard 4:3 to the widescreen 16:9 if that serves your needs better when conducting a training, meeting, or one of the other uses that this platform offers.
5. You have an out-of-the-box single sign-on to use with Adobe Connect.
When you choose to use Adobe Connect as your primary conferencing and training platform, then you can authenticate users with SAML-2.0 identity providers to create a seamless sign-on experience right out of the box. This software helps you to improve the workflow of joining a meeting, taking another barrier away from the process so that you can worry about learning or teaching instead of trying to figure out how to finish the login process. There are unlimited meetings, storage and VoIP options available, with a capacity of up to 1,000 in a single webinar manager or up to 1,500 from a shared webinar room.
6. You don’t need to offer any payment information for the free trial.
If you are thinking about using Adobe Connect 10, then you should take advantage of the platform’s 30-day free trial offer. Registering for this opportunity is a straightforward process. All you need to do is provide your name, company name, email address, and other contact information. Then you’ll answer a few questions about the structure of your company, its focus, and the overall size. You don’t provide payment information until making the decision to sign up for one of the paid plans.
Once you accept the license agreement from Adobe and submit the information, you’ll receive an activation link that includes login information and the expiration date of your platform trial. There’s a guide to help get you started, and then the welcome email includes links to the learning and resource centers of the company.
7. You don’t need to use Flash to use Connect.
If you thought about using Adobe Connect in the past and went in a different direction, then now might be a good time to give this platform a second look. There is no longer a requirement for you use Adobe Flash Player as part of the user experience. They have still provided support for it, but now this element is no longer a prerequisite for using the features of this software to become more productive.
8. The meeting experience is shareable with Adobe Connect 10.
If you are a presenter and you use Adobe Connect, then your screen is sharable. That means you can let participants in your meeting, webinar, or training session share their screens as well. This option is nice to use to facilitate communication in situations where there might be some confusion about the information being presented to everyone. Most programs only allow the host to share their screen, and some don’t allow sharing at all.
Presenters can also use their webcams to help promote specific concepts or provide comprehensive training over the Internet. There is no limit to the actual number of feeds that you can display during a meeting. You can also preview your look before going live so that you can feel confident about what you are doing.
List of the Cons of Adobe Connect
1. Adobe Connect does not offers its own dial-in service.
If you are using the browser-based functions for Adobe Connect, then you can have a useful experience straight out of the box with little difficulty. When you need to use the VoIP features of this platform, then you will quickly notice the need to use a third-party solution that is compatible with the software to take advantage of the full usability of the meeting and training opportunities. You can still use the bare-bones capabilities within the platform to make the product functional, but you are severely hampered in this area without the opportunity to integrate.
That means sending out separate invites for screen sharing, dial-in, and a lack of recording for audio and video.
2. There are cheaper solutions available for your business.
Adobe Connect does not publish most of their pricing tiers for this platform. The one published plan that is available will cost you $50 per month to host up to 25 participants and nine meeting hosts per incident. It includes mobile access to meetings, desktop plans, custom URLs for visitors to access, and file storage. You can prepay for the entire year to save $5 per month off of the other rate.
If you need to host a meeting with more than 100 participants or 10 hosts, then you’ll need a custom plan from Adobe that comes with a potentially significant higher charge. You can take advantage of a 30-day free trial to see if the platform will work for you.
3. The interface for Adobe Connect 10 has zero personality.
Adobe Connect uses a white and gray interface that provides you with an experience that feels very corporate and impersonal. It feels more like the accounting software that you would use to track expense reports than it does a meeting platform. The layout is still very positive, with easy navigation routes to follow that help you to be productive almost immediately. It will not take you very long to figure out where you need to be and what you need to do to become productive while using this platform.
The navigation platform is also a little overloaded, so it can feel overwhelming to use Adobe Connect during the first few meetings or training situations. If you are running low on memory, either physical or virtual, then the service tends to freeze or shut down too. It can even give you this outcome without a noticeable reason.
4. You cannot invite non-Adobe users within the platform.
When you start to use Adobe Connect 10, then you do have the option of adding users that are not current users of the developer’s products. You must go outside of the system to share a specific domain link with each person, like when you share a link to a Google drive folder. If you don’t get a fully copy of that link, then the guests are left to guess at how they should connect with you unless you can speak with them in real time through a different means.
5. Long videos can still be a problem in Adobe Connect.
Although Adobe Connect does an excellent job at displaying videos in its platform, the browser-based functions cannot account for lag, memory issues, or other independent problems outside of the meeting software. It is not unusual for long video presentations to stall, buffer, or refuse to play during a meeting. If you have a reliance on this medium to convey information to different departments, teams, or groups, then you may need to figure out a few workarounds to make sure the training is sufficient for your needs.
6. You must use a different platform to manage a private chat.
One of the most significant disadvantages of using Adobe Connect 10 is the fact that the software does not come with a private chat option. If you want to maintain a conversation outside of the public stream, then you must use an alternative application or communication option. That means you may need to pay for more services on top of this platform. It may be safe and reliable, but the inconveniences that are present could be enough for some small business owners to consider a cheaper solution.
7. The sharing screens feature can drop users out of the meeting.
Another one of the common complaints there are about Adobe Connect is the fact that it tends to be a bit buggy during use. Outside of the video freezing issue and the crashing, the audio can sometimes catch as well. This issue tends to occur if you receive a ping from your ISP for some reason. When someone tries to share a screen, the user can sometimes get dropped from the meeting, room, or training session altogether. If you want your users to have an excellent experience, then you are going to need to have their tech awareness and knowledge rise.
8. There can be audio quality issues to consider, even when everything works as it should.
Adobe Connect may provide multiple audio streams that are useful for training and support, but this feature can impact the quality of the feed for the user at the other end. If the people in your meeting do not have headphones, then there can be a lot of feedback issues that occur in a real-time situation. You might have volume problems as well. It is not unusual for the host to go through a bevy of technical support issues before you can get started, which means you end up spending most of the time that you can save with the available features of this program.
Verdict on the Pros and Cons of Adobe Connect
Adobe Connect 10 works to fix many of the problems that users had with the previous versions of this platform. It does a reasonably good job of offering solutions while facilitating conversations for a variety of purposes. If you have a team that is spread out and cannot come to a central campus or meeting point, then this option could save you some money despite the cost of a subscription.
The pros and cons of Adobe Connect show that this platform can provide a useful meeting and training experience for companies of every size. Although the cost of a subscription is a little higher than it would be for other software options, the pod functionality and overall experience makes it a suitable solution if you need more ways to collaborate.
Although millions of people visit Brandon's blog each month, his path to success was not easy. Go here to read his incredible story, "From Disabled and $500k in Debt to a Pro Blogger with 5 Million Monthly Visitors." If you want to send Brandon a quick message, then visit his contact page here. Brandon is currently the CEO of Aided.