Snagit Review

Detailed Reviews

Computer geeks never cease their search for better, whether it be software, some application, a computer language, or any other technology. Screen capturing is an output of such a search. If you wish to work with an innovative screen recording software, that too with a combination of standard and advanced features, you can allow Snagit Screen Capture to serve you.

Snagit Screen Capture; developed by TechSmith, comes with several options to capture screen, a screenshot, webcam recording. You can collaborate it with the editor to edit and augment your videos and images.

Pros

• It provides Panoramic capture.
• It provides the feature of text grabbing.
• It allows you to create GIFs.
• Allows sharing through several platforms.
• It provides enough of editing features.

Cons

• Sometimes, you need to download the editor separately. Recorder and editor generally do not come in a single package.
• There is an ullage of editing features for video.
• You cannot add any hotkey.

Introduction

If you are tech-savvy and like to explore and work with different software, you would love to try Snagit Screen Capture. If you are fatigued of searching a smart screen capture software that can provide you the amity of traditional screen recording with a pinch of newfangled functionalities, you can go for Snagit Screen Capture.

It does not only provide you features of screen capturing, screenshot, video recording, webcam recording but also allow you to edit them so that you can present them anywhere in the world. Through this review, we shall try to find out the features and functions that it can provide you. We shall try to search for pros and cons of the software and its limitations if any. Hopefully, in the end, we shall be able to conclude.

Beginning with the software

Downloading and installing the software is a walk on the cake. You merely need to visit the official website of Snagit from where you can download the software and then you can install it on your computer.

The home screen of the software looks like the one, as shown in the image above. The orange button is the thing that comes into the eye of the user in the first glimpse of the software. It is the capture button. The ‘capture’ introduces a frame to capture a screenshot, a screen capture video or a webcam video.

After the introduction of the frame, the software allows you to have three kinds of capture; an image capture, best known as screenshot, a screen video capture, and a panoramic capture.

Through image capture, you can take a screenshot of the specified area, in fact, the area under the frame.

Similarly, if you choose to capture the screen, then the activities that take place in the area under the frame are recorded.

Panoramic capture is a new addition to the software. Let’s discuss it in detail.

Panoramic capture

Screenshot allows you to view the content that was available on the screen at the time of capture. You cannot view the content that appears on scrolling the screen. If you wish to see it, you need to capture another screenshot.

Panoramic capture overcomes this problem. This new addition in the software allows you to capture the content with scrolling. You select an area underframe and choose for panoramic capture. While the software captures the screen, you can scroll the screen, and the software would record the contents that appear on scrolling.

It is useful when you want to capture a large area of the screen. Generally, it is used to capture maps. If you want to record the entire path from source to destination on the map, it is a useful tool.

Some people might question its utility in the presence of video capture. However, the point to understand here is that the video does not remain still and captures every activity of the screen if some icon covers the content; the video cannot prevent it. Though recording audio depends on choice, but audio might become a disturbance if it is not required at that point.

Panoramic capture prevents you from all these hurdles and allows you to capture a silent, clear, and visible panorama.

By default, for any of the three captures, the software chooses full screen as the capture region. You can adjust it by dragging the frame. If you are good at math and finding coordinates, you can enter the resolution of capture region manually.

Presets

The software allows you to have ‘presets’ in your recording. You can have various settings for the presets. You can allow the preset to have the same settings that are already there within the software. Presets are the effects that add to your recordings while you record.

The software also allows you to add the hotkeys in the software for various purposes. The software tends to provide a personalized experience to users. It allows renaming the functions that are present in the software by default.

Moreover, the software also provides various other settings with presets. You can make some changes in the default settings of the presets through the edit. The software allows you to create a copy of the selected feature through ‘duplicate.’ You can also export the presets to any file or folder of your computer. The software is lenient and allows the user to delete the presets.

The primary customizations

There are several customizations in this software. When we shall discuss the editing of the videos, we might encounter even more.

In this section, we shall discuss the primitive customizations we have in this software. They are associated with recording videos, capturing a screenshot, panoramic capture, and presets.

The selection option allows you to select the capture region before the software introduces the frame on the screen. You can have a full screen, region capture, or a window capture. All three of them allow you to capture different resolutions of area.

Moreover, if you select the same resolution every time you capture an area of the screen, you can allow the software to choose a fixed resolution of the screen automatically. For this, you need to enter the resolution once while making the change, and the software would select the area of that resolution on every capture.  Otherwise, you choose to capture some selected area, and the software waits for the user to drag the frame or enter the resolution manually.

The other primary customizations involve ‘preview’ in the editor. Through this option, you can allow the software to present a preview of the recorded video every time you open it in the editor. Preview helps us to watch a demo play of the video, through which we can have an assumption about how the video would show up when someone would play it. If you are sure about the view of the recorded video, you can disable this setting.

The other option allows you to copy the link of the video to clipboard automatically. It prevents you from the loss of the video. If you miss the video or forget to save it anywhere, you can use this link. Though, it is of little use because this setting would only act if we upload the video through any platform or on the software’s official website, as it is only when the link would be generated.

You record videos for different purposes. Some of the videos are recorded to present as tutorials. Alternatively, you might play them as a professional business presentation. The requirement of every video differs depending on the purpose for which you record them. The appearance of the cursor on the video screen is one such requirement. You might or might not like the cursor to appear on the screen while the video plays. You can set the respective option accordingly.

When you start to record a video, the software starts a timer.

By default, the software counts time of three seconds. If you wish, you can increase this delay to five seconds. A long delay merely allows you to prepare the screen for recording.

Sharing is another feature you see in the image. If you do not want to edit the recording and want to share it directly from the recording panel, you can use the platforms it provides. We shall discuss this feature distinctly in upcoming sections of the review.

Grab the text

You captured a screenshot of a document containing some text. If you want to copy the same text at any other location. It is not possible. Alternatively, if you want to make a few changes in the text, it is not possible in the screenshot. Nevertheless, a screenshot is merely a kind of image. You can edit it through image editing features but cannot achieve all these.

Through Snagit Screen Capture, you can make these a reality. The software provides you a text grabbing function. Through this feature, you can grab a text of some image.

Before opening the frame, select grab the text option, and when the frame appears, you can select the desired region of that text that you want to grab and further edit.

Once the software grabs the text, it allows you to copy and paste it anywhere on your computer. Also, you can make any required changes in the text.

It is an innovative addition. It allows users to edit their documents which they save as an image. Also, it reduces efforts of typing the text manually by looking at the image for making a few changes. Capturing a screenshot is all you need to do.

More to know

We discussed several features of the screen capture software. Before we head towards the editor of the software; there are a few more features of screen capture section.

The file option at the top left corner allows import and export the presets. You can also close and exit the software through this option. It also allows you to upgrade the software and provides you information about the software and product key.

The edit option allows you to change the output and destination of the captured file. If the default destination at which the software saves the file does not suit you, you change it to the one you want.

The view option allows you to change the output preferences. This option allows you to select various platforms to share your files. If you do not want to share the recording on any social platforms, you can save it on your computer in various formats. You can save it as a Word file, a PowerPoint presentation. You can save it on Google Drive or Dropbox. To directly share the software provides you platforms like YouTube, screencast.com, Camtasia, and a few more.

The help section provides you online tutorials to learn the functioning of the software. You can also check for the updates of the software. A technical support section is present there to provide technical help when needed.

Moreover, you can also send feedback about your experience with the software. Further, there are several categories in which the queries, problems, and answers are sorted. In this section, you also get articles, FAQs, and articles related to the software. You can also read the reviews and feedback from other users of the software across the globe. You also can get information about other TechSmith products through this section.

Don’t just record, create!

Recording videos and capturing screenshot is not a single step task. The next step involves editing of those captured images and videos.  

No one likes a tedious, colorless image. Neither people like boring videos merely with a voice at the background. Snagit video editor provides you several editing features to augment and enhance your files. You can add different shapes, icons, stamps, and many more things to your videos and images.

You can add various effects to your files. You also get features to change the shape, size, color, and style of the elements of the image or video. You can add text, dialogues, arrows, and a few more elements to beautify your captured image or a video.

In this section, we shall try to look at all these features and shall try to elaborate on some of them. Let’s begin with a few basic editing features.

The first option you see is the ‘favorites.’ Through this option, the software allows you to collect all your favorite tools in one place. You can add the frequently used tools in this section. Adding tools here allows you to access them quickly when you need them. It saves time while editing the images.

The tools next to favorite are arrow and text. The arrow tool allows you to insert an arrow in your image. The software provides you a few customizations in the arrow. You can have a simple arrow, a dotted arrow, a double-headed arrow, and a few more.  You also get colors to choose for your arrow. Also, you have various styles and properties to choose from. You can change the width, opacity, start size, end size. Also, you can enable the Bezier curve.

The text option allows to enter some text in the text box, it provides. By default, the software provides you two themes for the text, namely, basic and urban. If you wish, you can add a new theme, or you can also import one from some file on your computer. Further, you get various styles for your text in addition to the font size and width of the letters entered. The software also allows you to change the color of the text with a few more effects.

The ‘callout’ option allows you to add a text bubble to your image. Besides, it also provides a few more customizations. Like, you get an effect of a folded sheet of paper, a cloud, and a broad, thick arrow. Like the text, you can also choose the font size and style for the text you enter in the callout bubble.  You can also change properties like shape, shadow, and color of the font. To choose the size, you can either choose them manually or can also adjust the slider to change the size.

‘Shape’ allows you to enter the various shapes to you’re the image. Like the text, you can change the theme of the shape. Either you can choose anyone from the available theme, or you can add or import any theme from the computer. Through shapes, you can add a circle and a rectangle. Except for these two, you do not get any other shapes to enter, at least not in a trial version of the software. You can change properties like thickness and opacity.

Moreover, you can draw shapes of different styles. You can have either a filled shape or an outline shape. Alternatively, you can add a shadow effect to your shape.

“A picture speaks a thousand words.” In the time of emoticons and stickers, expressing your moods has become facile. You can speak something through an image with a little use of words.

Stamps are also one of such things.

Stamps are a kind of icons that can be used to express your words. Further, some stamps are the standard pre-defined icons or symbols that people use worldwide, and they mean the same at every corner of the world. Like the icon for the wireless network, best known as wi-fi, or that of Bluetooth.

In the software, you have several stamps to add to your image. Adding a stamp reduces the speaking effort of the user.

Moreover, you can select any of the categories from those which are available to insert a stamp that is relevant to the image. You get categories like math, medical, business, emoji, and many more. You can also organize the stamps. If the available stamps do not seem enough to you, you can download a few more of them from the official site of the software. With stamps, you get customizations in color, distance, angle, opacity, and blur. You can adjust the size of the stamp by dragging the corners on the canvas. You can have a tiny stamp to no small stamp that covers the entire canvas.

The next option you see after stamps is ‘fill.’ This option allows you to fill different colors on the canvas, different elements of the image, or various portions of the canvas. The software, by default, provides you two themes; urban and basic and provides few colors accordingly. Basic provides you the styles and colors that are conventional and standard in any editing software, whereas Urban provides you a few advanced or say, innovative patterns of styles of filling color.

If the available colors do not contend you, then you can change and choose the color of your choice. The good thing about the software is that, if you choose a dark color or a color that is different from the color of the icons or stamps inserted in the image, it does not change their color and they appear same even the color of the canvas changes.

If you insert some icon, stamp, or any other external element to the image and any color of one such element suits you. You wish to paint the canvas with that color. Searching for it in the list of colors of the software is not a good idea. You can go for the ‘eyedropper’ option. Through this option, you can pick any color that is already on the canvas and paint the required portion with it.

Opacity and Tolerance are a few more customizations that you get with ‘fill color.’ To change these, you get a slider, that you can adjust according to the opacity and tolerance effect you want to have on your image or the canvas. Except for these customizations, the trial version does not provide any other customizations with color filling.

‘Move’ allows you to move inserted elements on the canvas. Through this option, you can select any object on the canvas and move them. This option seems to be of little use until we encounter its smart move feature. By enabling the smart move, you allow the software to identify the movable objects on the canvas. You can also set the detailing level by adjusting the slider provided.

The undo option allows discarding the last made changes on the canvas. ‘Redo’ allows you to apply the undone changes again on the canvas.

More Options

In addition to the features we have discussed so far, the software provides a few more tools to edit the images. The image you see above shows the options we get under ‘more.’

It provides you various options like selection, blur, magic wand, simplify, pen, highlighter, and a few more. We shall elaborate on these features in detail.

The ‘selection’ allows you to select any portion of the image to snap it. You cannot implement this feature on merely the blank canvas. It requires an object or element on the canvas.

The software also allows blurring any selected portion of the image. The ‘blur’ option allows you to achieve this. You can adjust the intensity of the blurriness of the blurred portion through the slider provided.

Another option is ‘simplify,’ that allows you to simplify the image. Simplification involves removal of unnecessary elements from the image to achieve an image that shows only the required content. If you want to create an image showing some features of a product, you might not require showing various offers or deals of the product. Alternatively, if some content is present in more than one language in some image and you do not want more than one language in your image, you can cover or remove the unwanted content.

Simplification is required to increase the presentability of the image and to grab people’s attention directly on the main content of the image. You can do the simplification manually by selecting specific portions of the image, or you can also enable the ‘auto’ to simplify feature that allows the software to simplify automatically. You also have the option to retain the original image. If you wish to keep the original image for any purpose, the software allows you to do so. You can also preview the original image after simplification.

Magic wand and other tools

We saw how the simplification tool helps you to remove an unwanted portion of the image. ’Magic wand’ is another tool that allows you to select some portion of the image depending on the color. You can choose to snap the entire area of the selected color. This feature is useful in selecting background or any other elements of irregular shape.

Crop and Cut out are the following two tools in the list. The crop tool allows cropping a selected portion of the image. You can select a portion of the image and crop it. The cropped portion gets removed from the image permanently.

Cut out is a tool that is used to bring a cropping effect in the image. This tool does not remove any portion from the image but merely produces the effect of the image being cut or torn in various styles, either horizontally or vertically. The image below shows an image which is created using a cut out that is implemented horizontally.

We discussed the pre-defined shapes that the software provides us to draw. You cannot draw any other shape of your choice with those options. You can achieve this through ‘pen.’

Another option following the pen is ‘line.’ It allows you to draw lines on your image. You get various customizations. You get a dotted line, a thick line, a thin line and a few more. Further, you get customizations in color, size, thickness, opacity, and style of the line. If you want to create a curve with the line, you can enable the Bezier curve feature, that allows you to create a curve of any shape, size, and thickness.

Highlighter, eraser, step, and magnifier are furthermore editing options.

The highlighter is used to highlight some text to present it distinctly in the image. It is generally used to assemble people’s attention at some important content of the image.

The ‘step’ allows you to mark and rank elements in the image. You merely need to click the elements sequentially to mark them. The element you click first is marked one, then two and so on.

Besides, numbers, you can also mark the elements with alphabets, the similar method as with numbers is followed for the same.

The magnifier, as the name suggests, allows you to zoom an element or some portion of the image.

You may make some incorrect insertions while editing images. The eraser available in the software allows you to delete those insertions.

Not all the tools we discussed appear right in the toolbar of the software’s window. You can add a few of them to the toolbar to access them easily and quickly.  ‘Customize tools’ helps to achieve this. Through this option, you can add any number of tools to the toolbar, and they would appear there since then.

Similarly, if you do not want a tool there, you can remove the tool from the toolbar just selecting ‘remove from the toolbar’ that appears on right-click on the icon.

Effects and other properties

The way an image appears matters when you want to present it before the viewers.  Making images presentable is one of the principal purposes of editing.

‘Effects’ feature of the software allows you to add various effects to the image.

The image above shows the various effects that the software allows you to add to the image. As you can see the software allows to add effects regarding the border, Edges, Capture info, perspective, page curl, shadow, filters, color adjustment, color replacement, spotlight, and magnify.

The border feature allows you to edit the border of the image. You can choose various colors and thickness for the border of the image.

The border does not make any changes in edges of the image. It merely adds a kind of frame to the image. if you want to add some effects to the edge of the image, you can rely on ‘edges.’ It allows you to choose a style for the edge of the image. You can also change the size and color of the edge and the effects added to it.

If you use some image in a presentation or some tutorial, sometimes you are required to provide the information regarding the capturing or source of the image. The ‘capture info’ automatically adds the capture information to the current image, when you select it.  The information includes the name of the software, version information, information about the operating system, date and time of capturing.

You can change the view of the image as it appears on the canvas. ‘Perspective’ helps you in it. You can have a horizontal perspective or a vertical perspective of the image. You can adjust the degree of the perspective with the help of slider provided there.

The page curl option allows you add an effect of a folded page to the image. Like the perspective, you can adjust the degree of curl through the slider. There are no customizations with color and size.

The shadow, as the name suggests, produces a shadow effect in the image. You can manage it with the help of the provided slider. Moreover, you get customizations in color of the shadow of the image.

‘Filters’ are another way of adding effects to the image. it allows you to add various filters, like monochrome, grayscale to the images.

If you do not want to change the color of the image, instead want to make mere some changes in the existing colors, you can use the color adjustment feature. This feature allows you to change brightness, contrast, saturation of the colors present in the image. Also, you can make some changes in gamma and hue of the color.

If some color of the image does not suit you, and you want to replace it with some other color of your choice. Color replacement can help you in this.  You can choose the replacement of the color by manually selecting it or by entering the color code. You can also adjust the tolerance of the selected color that decides the extension of the color in the image. You get a slider to adjust the tolerance.

Though the name of the following option is ‘Spotlight and magnify,’ it provides no features of spotlight or highlight. However, it is rich in magnifying features. This option allows you to select a portion of the image to magnify. The magnified portion, naturally, zooms in the contents. You can also blur or dim other portions of the image except for the magnified portion.

Moreover, you can also adjust the position of the magnified portion on the canvas. If you want only the magnified portion as the image, you can achieve this also, by resizing the canvas.

We discussed ‘capture info’ feature that allows you to add information about the image. Another way of displaying the information about the source of the image is through the watermark. You can add a watermark to the image with the help of the watermark feature. The software allows you to choose some image or icon from the files that are stored on your computer. If you do not choose any image, the software, by default applies its official logo as the watermark.

Moreover, you can adjust the scale and depth of the applied watermark. You can also adjust the direction and position of the watermark at which it appears in the image.

The software provides a good number of effects as compared to other screen recording software. Some of them are innovative additions.  No constraint of version applies to these features. Almost every feature work with trial version efficiently.

Other properties

So far, we found out several features of the software. There are a few more features that ‘properties’ provides us. The software allows us to snap some portion of the image. You can choose some specific portion of the portion that you wish to snap; otherwise, you have a free snap that allows you to snap portion of any size and shape.

Snapping should not be confused with cropping. Unlike cropping, snapping a portion does not remove it from the image. You only get an exact copy of the snapped portion of the image.

Moreover, you can also blur and pixelate any portion of the image. You can also choose various intensities for that.

GIFs say it better

Images and videos are soon going to become obsolete. GIFs would replace them soon. The reason being their small sizes and increasing popularity, whether while exchanging messages, emails, or chats. Emoticons are a steady way of expressing your mood or something you want to share. GIFs are the mobile way for the same.

So far, we use emoticons, stickers, stamps, or other icons as alternatives of words. The introduction of GIFs was no less than a revolution. We remain confined to the previously available GIFs on websites or messaging apps till date, with Snagit Screen Capture, you can create your GIFs. You can record one or can also convert any of your videos into one of them.

When you open a video in the editor window, the software allows you to convert the entire video or some part of it to convert into a PNG file or a GIF. Not worth mentioning, the actions that appear in the video repeat themselves when converted into a GIF.

You also have the option to select any specific part of the video to convert it into GIF. You can see the GIF effect in that part, provided the selected portion shows some action. If there occurs no action in that portion of the video, it appears as an image or some frame of a video.  The shortest GIF you can have is of one second, and the longest can be of the maximum duration of the video.

You can view the created GIFs in the library of the software and can share them by various means that the software allows you.

We shall discuss these features in upcoming sections of the review.

Where to find your recordings?

To view your recorded files, you need to navigate through the library. The library of the editor allows you to view a list of the recorded files.

The software has different sections to store images, videos, and GIFs.  The separate storage of different kinds of the file makes it easier for the user to search and locate for the file that one wishes to view.

Moreover, the software also allows your files to sort in other different ways. You get all the files sorted according to year, platforms, and websites. You get a separate section for recently recorded files. Besides, you also get files that you recorded in the current year separately. If you created some file using some specific application of the computer, the software provides a different section for it. 

If you are not good at remembering things and forget the time of the created file, alternatively, if you are not sure about the application you used to create files, you can add tags to them. The software also sorts the files by the tags added to them.

Adding tags would make your search much more accessible. You would only require typing the name of the tag in the search section and the software would open the files that match best to the entered name.

Moreover, when you open some section of the files, the software enlists all the contents of that section, where you can also see the information regarding name, size, date at which the file was created or modified, type of the file, dimensions of the current file and tags, if added.

Unlike, much other screen-recording software, the software does not allow you to create any new folder or collection of your choice. The collections or sections that are available there by default are the only way of storing and accessing the files.

Moreover, there is no ‘favorites’ section in the software. It means, if there are some files that you open frequently or if you want to search some old file, then you need to search all the sections entirely. However, you have the alternative to add some tags in such file and make them quickly accessible, but that too would not solve the problem completely, as with time, that list too would include many files.

Sharing is fun!

After you create some image, video and edit them, you might wish to share them. You might like to share them personally with someone or with a group of people. Alternatively, you might also like to share them in a professional way, or with the entire world through some social media platform or any other website. If you do not like to share, merely save the files on your computer or any other device to access them quickly.

We discussed some of the sharing features in some previous sections of the review. We shall try to add something more to it.

The image above shows the various platforms through which you can share the files.

The file option allows you to save the current file on your computer. The option following it is FTP, through which you can share the file by sending it through an FTP server. You are required to enter the server name, remote path, and port number.

You can also paste the file, or more correctly the image on some other application of the computer by copying it on the clipboard.

If you want to enter some image of the file in some word document, you can directly paste it through the software. The software allows you to paste it in some new document file, or you can also paste it in some previously created file.

Similarly, you can also paste the file as an entry in an excel sheet. Saving it as a PowerPoint is also an alternative you have. OneNote is another way of saving your file.

If you want the file to remain safe and stored on some online platform or some website, you can go for Google Drive, TechSmith Relay, or Screencast.com.

If the file, you are dealing with is a video, the software also allows you to share it directly on YouTube.

Email, Dropbox, Camtasia are a few more platforms through which you can share the file. The software also allows you to print the image if you want to share a printed copy.

Before you decide

We have discussed all the features and functions of the software. At this point, we are left with a few different features of the software.

In this section, we shall discuss features like view and help.

The view feature that is present at the left corner of the software window allows you to have various views and a few customizations.

The view option allows you to select how the canvas appears on the screen. You can shrink it, zoom in, and can change the background color. It also provides direct access to some of the features of the software like effects and properties.

The help section of the software is indeed helpful. You get online tutorials about the software. You get a manual that helps you at the beginning with the software. You can access the link to buy the product or to enter the software key.

Moreover, you can get information about any updates or any other new products of TechSmith.

Conclusion

As a screen recording software, it is an up to the marking software.

Panoramic capture is a new addition and seems to be a move to invite users.

Other features, notably, magic wand, simplification, GIF creation, text grabbing would undoubtedly do much good for the software in the market.

The number of platforms it provides for sharing is entirely satisfactory. It is one of the few screen-recording software that provides this number of file-sharing platforms.

The lack of video editing features might become one of those things that can make people lose interest in the software. 

Some users might not cherish the need for separately downloading the editor. No one wants to download various software for the tasks they usually get in a single package.

There is nothing much to complain if it is seen merely as a simple screen recording and editing software, but a few improvements can allow it to welcome more users.