Moovly Review

Detailed Reviews

Video making is a serious business. There are plenty of tools out there in the market to help one create excellent videos based on various needs of the user. Moovly is one of those tools. The fact which differentiates Moovly from the rest of the video making software is that it comes with a great deal of versatility. Its target audience comprises of everyone ranging from kids creating videos just for fun to enterprises creating videos to launch full-fledged campaigns.

Pros

• Highly versatile editor.
• The content library offers a wide variety of elements.
• Easy to implement layering of elements.
• Preview section helps optimize the process.
• The drawing hand animation is available.
• Template videos help save time.
• Allows one to even automate video production.

Cons

• Navigating through the content library might be annoying.

Introduction

Videos are taking over most of the content forms these days, and there are some solid reasons for it. Written content needs the reader to focus, which seems to be too much of an ask from an audience with continuously shrinking attention span.

With audio content being suitable only for music and audiobooks, it all comes down to videos. Videos don’t require users to focus too much, they are usually more fun and interactive, they incorporate most of the advantages of other modes of communication, and most importantly, the content consumers seem to prefer videos over others.

From explainer videos to social media trends, you will find videos everywhere. Enterprises like to use them for promotions, teachers and professors like to use them to explain complex phenomenons, public organizations like to use them to spread awareness, and so on.

With videos getting so much popular, it only makes sense that more and more people are looking for ways to create high-quality videos with relatively less effort. There are various tools available to take care of these needs.

Unlike other marketplaces, there are significant differences between most of the video creation tools. The differences are so glaring that one can even go ahead and sort them into even more categories.

Some specialize only in animations, some are excellent movie creators, some are popular because of whiteboard animations and so on.

Moovly is one of the few video creation software which comes with enough tools to create most of the kinds of videos.

You can use it to create promotional content, tutorials, whiteboard animations, and so much more. It might be the one-stop solution to all your video creation needs.

However, it is much easier said than done to be a tool with such characteristics. It would require the tool to be kitted with a vast variety of customization tools.

In this review, we are going to try to find out if Moovly comprises of all the necessary features and functions to be the video maker you are looking for.

We will assess everything from the content library to the nuances of editing on this platform. By the end of this review, you will not only know much more about Moovly but about video makers in general, as well.

The editor

Let us waste no time and jump right into the editor. This is where all the magic happens, and you get to shape your ideas into great videos.

Since it is the editor which gives a complete idea about the capabilities of a tool, we like to make sure we explore all the corners and crevices of the editor.

While we want to tell you everything about the editor, we don’t want to turn this review into a tutorial for Moovly. Therefore, we will measure this editor against three desirable parameters. The parameters are flexibility, neatness, and robustness.

These three categories take care of the aspirations of most users, and an ideal editor will have all the three characteristics. So, let us begin with our first desirable trait.

Flexibility

If we are talking about a video creation tool which can be used to create all kinds of videos, then it is not possible without the tool being flexible.

There should not be a lot of limits as to what a user can do on the editor. Moovly provides an editor with very advanced capabilities.

Even though this is a web-based product, the editor seems to be comparable with a lot of the desktop applications created for the purpose.

Usually, online video makers go easy on the features available within the editor to make sure there are not a lot of latency issues, and to make sure even the beginners can start creating videos without much of a problem.

However, Moovly didn’t seem to hold back punches when it comes to providing the customization options on the editor. The editor allows the user to get creative and churn out some interesting videos.

One of the marks of flexibility is that the editor can be used to create various kind of content. You can use the Moovly editor to take some video clips and apply animations over them.

The content library provides the treasure in the form of clips, animations, videos, gifs, images, etc. If you have got some original content, then you can upload it in the gallery and use it in the videos.

In any case, you will have enough freedom as well as features to go about creating the kind of video you want. However, you will not get as much control on the elements as on Vyond, but Moovly is not limited to animations like Vyond.

The elements you add on the editor may differ in the customization options available for them. And it is one of the strong points of Moovly.

The customization options vary depending on the item you have selected. This way, there is no need to display all the customization options on the tool at all times.

Since only those customization options are visible which are relevant for the element, the user may find it easier to learn how to use the editor.

Along with specific editing options for elements, there are some standard customization tools on the editor. You can apply animations on all of them, have the ‘drawing hand animation,’ and so on.

Once you use the editor for some time, you will realize that the editor only looks cluttered and buffed from the outside. All the tools are present at just the right place, and it makes the whole video creation process very intuitive.

The general workflow on the editor is that you select an element from the library and place it on the screen. There is a drag and drop mechanism.

Once the element is on the canvas, you can take care of the size, make the necessary modifications, add effects and animations if necessary, adjust the coordination using the timeline, and that’s it.

Now you can repeat the same process with other elements you introduce in the video, go back to the previously added items, and modify them if necessary. It is the same process each time but with different elements, and you will have an excellent video in the end.

We found Moovly capable enough to handle most of the complicated tasks one expects to do on a video maker. We don’t think one will feel left out in any way when it comes to the availability of features.

Neatness

A cleaner and a better-organized user interface makes it easier for a beginner to get used to the tool, and it also makes for much better user experience, in general.

When it comes to defining a neat editor or interface, the definition may vary from person to person. Some may prefer only the essential and more frequently used tools to be available on the screen and the other features hidden away in an easy to access menu or tab.

There may also be some users who would want everything to be available directly on the interface so that they don’t have to click more than once to reach the feature.

It is not possible to take care of the needs of everyone, but better products make sure that everyone gets a bit of what they want.

At first glance, Moovly’s editor may seem like it is packed with way too many tools and buttons. But once you start using the tool, you will realize that buttons are strategically placed, and everything is there for a reason.

The left panel is dedicated to the content library. You can browse and access the content you have uploaded on the tool, the content available from Getty Images and Storyblocks, and also content provided by Moovly.

One can either browse content through various categories and classifications or simply search for what’s needed.

The canvas or stage is present right in the middle. You can drag and drop items from the content library to the stage and start modifying them. One gets a preview of the image, clip, or graphic on the right panel. This way, you will not be second-guessing and have a complete idea of what the graphic or video clip has got to offer. On the right panel, you can also make some modifications in the element. It will help you make better decisions when it comes to adding elements in the video.

Even after you have introduced an element on the stage, you will get a lot of customization options for the selected item on the right panel. With this kind of editing methodology, the user will always know where to look for relevant customization options.

The bottom panel on Moovly is just like the one you will get on a video editor. Here you get a complete timeline of the final product. You can synchronize animations and effects, take care of transitions, and control the overall flow of the video.

Layering is one of the most preferred methods of editing, and Moovly is second to none in this aspect.

The top panel contains a few of the common workflow tools. You can add text, undo and redo actions, flip elements, etc. using the options available in the top panel.

The animation button is present at the bottom of the timeline and layers. We don’t know why Moovly went ahead with such an unusual placement for such a frequently used tool.

But this unusual placement does not hinder productivity in any way, and you can still go on and create excellent videos filled with animations and effects.

Robustness

Sometimes creativity just oozes out of you, ideas flow out effortlessly, and you get in a state of Zen while working on a project. Video making requires one to get as creative as they can get.

Therefore, video making tools should be such that they facilitate workflow and do not get in the way of creativity.

Not everything is under the control of service providers when it comes to ensuring a smooth workflow. For desktop products, it is the user who needs to ensure that the device is capable of handling heavier workloads. If we move to web-based products like Moovly, the focus shifts from the device to the quality of internet connection.

If you have a stable and fast internet connection, then you should not run into a lot of problems while working with Moovly.

The possible roadblocks while creating a video are the ones when elements take too long to upload or show up on the screen. While there is always a possibility that it might be an issue from the service provider’s server end, in most of the cases it is user’s internet connection.

The preview of the video you see on the right panel is usually loaded in a slightly lower quality to make sure it does not take too long to show up.

If you are using a lot of high-quality clips in a single video, then you may run into some bottlenecks. The Moovly editor is such that it will take care of almost anything you throw at it.

Sometimes it can be a bit time consuming to go through the content library, but that is one of the side effects of having a lot of choices, and most users will happily take it.

We never came across any issue while scrubbing through the timeline, even when there were some high-resolution video clips. It might get a bit jittery when the video is too long, but that is going to happen only in rare cases.

Vast content library

One of the reasons for Moovly being such a good video maker is the huge collection of content that comes along with it.

One of the major issues that anyone faces while creating videos is the high production cost attached to good quality production videos.

If the video includes clips, then you may need to arrange for some sophisticated equipment, professional actors, exotic locations, etc.

If you are creating one of the animated videos, then you will have to probably hire some expert animator to take care of things.

On Moovly, you can stay away from the need to spend big bucks and still have some quality content for your videos.

Moovly has not only got its content for you to include in the videos, but you can also get images and videos from Getty Images and Storyblocks gallery.

The content library is rich enough to help you create videos of any kind. You can create some promotional content with great backgrounds and illustrations, there can be informative videos with various images, clips, and animations.

Moovly is good enough if you want to create videos to educate the viewers. You can use some of the available graphics to make learning a fun process.

Usually, people forget about audio when discussing content for videos. The right music and sound effects on the video can do wonders.

It can add so much of flare to a moving object. With right synchronization, you can grab user’s attention towards things which matter according to you.

Moovly’s gallery takes care of most of your audio requirements, as well. You will find background music, ambient noises, various sound effects, and more.

They allow users to record audio directly using a mic. This feature turns out to be extremely useful in videos which require narration or dialogs.

Moovly was able to take care of most of our content-related issues. If you want to create a video but don’t have any original content at all, then also it is highly likely that you will be able to create some excellent stuff using only the items available in Moovly’s gallery.

Plenty of template options

Moovly’s editor comes with all sorts of capabilities and customization options. But creating a great video up from scratch requires a bit more than just a capable editor.

You need to have a clear idea of what kind of video you want to create, what kind of effects and animations you want to include, and so on.

With the abundance of options in all the sections of this platform, it is natural that users may get confused at times. They might feel the need for some motivation or ideas on how to use the different features of the tool.

Moovly comes with a template section which consists of various examples on how one can use the features available on this platform. These templates are short videos created on the platform.

You can browse these templates under various categories. Some of the available categories for templates are explainer, marketing, social media, etc.

Each of these categories contains multiple videos, hence, you will get not just one but numerous suggestions and ideas for each topic.

Moovly allows the user to edit the templates to create some personalized content or copy them directly for use.

While this might not be an excellent long-term solution, it can be of great assistance to beginners. Even the professionals can benefit a lot from the feature when they are running short of time or ideas.

It is a straightforward task if one wants to edit these templates and create some personalized content. When you start editing a template, you can also see how all the different effects and animations were applied on the video.

If you decide to go for one of the higher-end subscription plans on Moovly, then you get the ability to create your own templates, as well. It can help save a lot of time if you need to create videos of a similar nature again and again.

Being consistent helps maintain brand value as well. You can create templates for intro or outro sections. This will help you maintain some form of brand standards and create your own space.

Automate video production

Even though this is a feature available in upper-tier subscription plans, the fact that you can have unique and exclusive videos created automatically is terrific, in our opinion.

Enterprises and businesses may feel the need to have a tool which can automatically create some video content or at least make the whole process a lot easier.

Moovly offers video automation in three ways. Let us discuss them one by one.

The first automation option is what we just discussed in the previous section. One can use templates to create videos in no time. All one needs to do is edit and modify some elements of the template, and it’s done.

The better subscription plan allows the user to save templates. So, if you are creating the same kind of video again and again with different content, then you can save appropriate templates. It will then require you to change only some part of the template, and you will have a new video in no time.

The other way of generating videos is that you can integrate records and data with the platform to mass-produce videos.

This particular way can be beneficial for so many campaigns. The template used for each data set will be different from the previous one. So, it is not just data which will vary along with each video, each video will be unique in its own way.

There can’t be a better way to mass-produce videos. Videos with some personality to them and something that viewers would like to see.

The third way of automating videos include even more dynamic factors. It involves various kinds of feeds from the internet.

Let’s suppose you have an online campaign going on, and you want to create a video which also showcases the responses you are getting from users.

In usual cases, you would wait for people to comment online, and then add those comments in the video to complete it. However, with Moovly, you can choose an appropriate template, set the comments to publish in the video automatically, and it’s done.

This way, you won’t have to wait for others. You can just do your job and move onto the next project.

It is not just the comments on social media that you can integrate with this automation, you can also have your blog feed or any other RSS feed linked to it.

So, if you are a blogger who would like to roll out videos about new blog post every time one of them goes live, then you can use Moovly to automate the whole process.

All three automation methods available on this platform are capable of taking care of the needs of the user under a wide variety of scenarios.

Screen and webcam recording

Majority of video creation software claim to help users create great explainer and informative videos, yet they miss out on simple features such as screen recording and webcam recording.

If you go through multiple online video makers, you will be surprised to find out that only a few of them provide the user with joys of screen and webcam recording.

We don’t think it is necessary to emphasize how useful these features can be when you are creating explainer videos.

By integrating screen recording and webcam recording with Moovly animations, graphics, and other features, you can create some valuable content for the audience.

As we just mentioned, the two features are not so common in online video making tools, therefore, you won’t find these options in basic subscription plans.

There will be a need to shed some extra money if you want to be able to use these features.

Conclusion

Moovly is among the more popular video makers out there on the internet, and we found plenty of reasons why is it so, in this review.

One expects a video maker to allow him to create any kind of video and Moovly will enable you to do just that.

It has got one of the more capable and detailed editors which works quite like most of the prominent desktop video editing tools.

The content library on this platform is at the core of anything you create. There is no need for anyone to spend a fortune to get some high-quality raw content. Moovly offers it all to you on a single platform.

There are high-quality images, videos, graphic and infographic content, background music, sound effects, etc. The count reaches millions if you start adding the number of items available in the gallery.

The learning curve is not so steep, and the little tutorial, in the beginning, is very helpful. You will find plenty of resources if you want to learn anything about using the project.

They have a help section, tutorial videos, and so much more. The customer support turned out to be satisfactory, and we do not have many complains in that area.

The effects and animation options are enough for you to bring most of your imaginations to life. Somehow a lot of video creators want to have as many animations and effects possible and Moovly would not disappoint them.

We are impressed by how they propose to automate the whole video creation process. The feature can turn out to be of great benefit for enterprises and organizations with the need to churn out a lot of videos each day.

One can use templates in any way they want. It can help with both learning and saving time and efforts.

It was a difficult task to find flaws in this tool. Even though we might hesitate to call it the best online video maker out there, but it is one most optimum and cost-effective ones for sure.