Loom Screen Recorder – Is It The Best Screen Recording Tool Out There?

Have you ever tried to record your screen and ended up with a horrible, choppy video? We know the feeling, and it's frustrating when you can't get the recording to look like a good-quality video. But that's why we think the Loom screen recorder is a great cloud-based screen recording tool.

You've tried different screen recording tools; they all have quirks and drawbacks. Loom Screen Recorder is a tool that allows you to record your screen easily. It's excellent for creating tutorial videos, recording webinars, or walk-throughs. The best part is that it's super easy to use; you can start recording in just a few clicks.

The Loom software simultaneously captures your voice and video while utilizing your device's camera, screen, and microphone to record. Once the video is captured, it is available and shareable using a link. Users can share the link through social media, email, or even a chat application.

It's easy to use, fast, and reliable, and it has some great features. So, is Loom Screen Recorder the best tool out there? In this Loom review, we'll take a deeper look at Loom, what its capabilities are, how it works as well as who it is best for.

How To Use Loom

Recording with Loom is straightforward and takes a few steps. Fortunately, Loom's intuitive design allows it to run on a browser by implementing a Chrome or Firefox extension through a desktop app, Android app, or iOS app. Each forum has similar features, but some may vary depending on your platform.

Using Loom allows the user to screen record in a few different ways depending on the use case. For instance, Loom will enable you to record:

• Camera Only with Voice – This is great if you want to show your face while recording. A basic video capture method delivers your video and voice in the Loom.
• Screen Only with Voice – This is useful if you don't want to be in the video or if you're demonstrating how to use a particular application. This method will allow you to record while opening tabs and interacting with an application on the screen.
• Camera and Screen Together – This mode lets you show both your face and what's on your screen at the same time. This recording method is where Loom shines.

How To Use Loom – Creating a Recording

1. When you first open the program, a menu will allow you to accomplish different tasks. At this point, you can capture a video, screenshot something important, or choose the record option and record using the method discussed above. You can customize your recording by viewing it in Full Screen, Window, or Custom size.
2. Ensure that your camera and microphone device settings are set how you want them before beginning your recording.
3. Hit record and wait for the three-second countdown to commence; once the countdown is finished, the recording has started. While recording your content, you can change the size of your screen and camera view by making it full screen and even moving it wherever you need to while working. Fortunately, Loom is versatile enough that it allows you to add notes, draw on your screen, and even type out text that will appear on the video itself. In addition, Loom offers an assortment of features to make your recording process as smooth as possible.
4. During the recording process, if you need to pause your work, you can without skipping a beat. Then, once you're ready to begin again, unpause the recording and continue your work.
5. Once you're ready to end the recording, click the red stop button, and Loom will automatically take you to the website for video editing.

How To Use Loom – Editing a Video

Loom offers basic editing features that are available instantly on the website after you finish recording your content. The program provides basic features, nothing too advanced, but includes what you need to make a quality, edited final video. 

Thankfully, Loom makes it easy to edit a video and turn it into something you can use. Ideally, before editing, you can edit the name and description of your video if you so choose; however, it's not necessary.

When editing a video on Loom, customers can access five different options on the right side of the recording. As seen in the image above, these options handle various tasks such as cropping, speed, and trimming sections of the video.

• Transcription: Loom also offers a transcription service that can be extremely useful. This feature is fantastic if you want to create subtitles for your video or read along as you watch.
• Preferences: This is where you can change some of Loom's more general settings. You can disable notifications, set a hotkey, and even change the downloading options.
• Trim: One of the more valuable key features of Loom. This allows you to cut out any video sections you don't want or need.
• Call-To-Action: This feature is a great way to end your video presentation and send your audience where you want them to go. Users can select the shape or color of the button from the settings. This feature is ideal for users who wish to send their viewers to a specific website or product.
• Thumbnail: This feature allows you to choose what images or screenshots you want and upload them to appear when your video is shared with your audience.

Loom Screen Recorder is the perfect tool for team collaboration, especially in the editing phase. For example, if you need to collaborate on a project, but your teammates are remote, you can share and invite others to edit your video.

Loom Screen Recorder – Pros and Cons

More than 14 million users across 200,000 companies utilize Loom's services which is no surprise. The company strives to be the top screen recording company of choice even in the face of its competitors like Vidyard, CloudApp, and Screencastify.

Pros of Loom

• Ease of Use: Loom is an intuitive program that's easy to use and doesn't require a drastic learning curve. You can be up and running in no time and stay connected easily with your clients.
• Organization: Loom offers an easy way to organize and keep track of your files. You can tag or label each video and file it into a folder system for easy retrieval later. It also offers time-stamped comments making the timeline of a project easier to track.
• Editing is Easy: The editing feature on Loom is top-notch. You can quickly and easily edit your saved videos without any headaches on your browser. You can also install the desktop version and work on it. If you didn't get something right, you could retouch your work, no problem.
• Shareability: With Loom, you can easily share your link with whoever you want, whenever you want. You can share the link via email or social media or even embed the video link on your website for the whole world to see.
• Quality: The recordings made with Loom are crystal clear. The audio and video quality is fantastic, even when viewed on a large screen.
• Integration: With the ability to integrate with Google Chrome, Loom is a powerhouse tool. You can record your screen and webcam simultaneously, which is excellent for webinars or demonstrations. It even integrates seamlessly with Slack so that you can share your recordings with your team quickly.
• Free is Free: The free Loom option remains free if you use the service. According to the company's support page, your videos are accessible forever until you decide to delete them. If you want to try Loom Business, you can sign up for a free trial account for 14 days.

Cons of Loom

• The Transcript Feature:  While the transcript feature is excellent in theory, it's not always accurate. Sometimes the voice notes aren't authentic, and the transcript writing is entirely off, which can be frustrating.
• The Free Version: The free version of Loom only allows you to record for up to five minutes. You'll need to upgrade to the paid version if you want to record for longer.
• Screenshots: While the screenshots work well, it doesn't allow for markups or annotations, which can be limiting.
• Referral/Affiliate Program: Many users request access to a referral or affiliate program so they can work and recommend the product to others. Unfortunately, Loom runs its affiliate program through ShareASale.com
• Video Shapes: Other users have complained about Loom's lack of video shapes other than a circular lens.

Depending on your needs, Loom either works exceptionally well or has a few areas that need improvement. Overall, the pros outweigh the cons, and Loom still seems to be one of the best recording tools on the market. 

Loom Screen Recorder – Pricing

Loom's pricing is fair and includes a free screen recording option and a Business plan for $8 per creator per month billed annually. A free plan is a great option for those who want to test the platform or who have limited or basic video needs. The free plan comes with unlimited transcriptions, which is extremely valuable for web-based content. The Business plan adds custom branding, reporting features, the ability to embed links in the videos, as well as password protection.

Loom Screen Recorder Alternatives

By now, other companies have caught up to Loom's advances in the industry. So how does Loom compare to its competitors? The screen recording niche is flooded with various tools, each with its strengths and weaknesses; however, let's compare Loom to some well-known screen recorder applications.

• CloudApp:  4.6
• Vidyard: 4.5
• Screencastify: 4.5
• Loom: 4.6

To better compare these tools, we'll use a table to highlight the most important features when choosing a screen recording app.

Loom Alternatives Review

Compared to other alternatives, Loom's pricing is on the lower end and offers more desirable features. For example, while Vidyard provides a 14-day free trial, its Team-based pricing is out of reach for small businesses. 

Vidyard only accommodates a small video editing team of 5 users, which may limit companies' workflows. Vidyard's platform is also geared more towards creating and editing videos for powerful marketing CTAs rather than creating videos for multiple use cases.

How Loom Is Better Than The Alternatives

Overall, Loom is a versatile screen recording tool that offers flexible membership terms and features for whatever phase of development your startup is in currently.  Unlike other platforms, Loom offers a “Creator-Lite” membership, free membership without bells and whistles.

This tool's free tier offers more features than other companies' trial versions, which gives users a better idea of the service and if it will work for the company's needs. Other highlights of Loom's services include:

• Loom has a better interface that's easier to use.
• In addition, Loom has better organizational capabilities.
• Loom includes more top features that companies are looking for, such as Speech-to-Text Analysis or YouTube Uploading.
• Loom's video and audio quality are better overall, even with its more straightforward design and interface capabilities.

What Loom Could Improve Upon

There's no denying that Loom has made some incredible advances in the screen recording industry since its inception, but there's always room for improvement.

Some areas where Loom could improve its platform:

• Loom has some editing capabilities, but they are limited. It would be great to see more in-depth options for those who want to perfect the video.
• When recording video, there should be an option to blur out sensitive information to protect a business's privacy and privileged information.
• Build a landing page that displays all current and past shared videos. Being able to access this on-demand would speed up workflow tremendously.
• Users have mentioned that the screen recorder chrome extension is choppy, and buggy more often than it should be stabilizing this integration would improve the service.

Who Should Use the Loom Screen Recorder?

Creators & Individuals

Loom Screen Recorder is a versatile tool used by individuals in many industries. This screen recording tool is perfect for those who need to make quick how-to videos, product demonstrations, or video-recorded lectures. In addition, this is the best screen recording tool for you if you need low-production, good-quality videos in seconds.

Small Businesses

This tool is also suitable for small businesses, usually 1-50 employees, who need to make training videos; marketing content is also great for those who are not tech-savvy and need an easy-to-use screen recording tool. The Loom interface is user-friendly, so it is also an excellent tool for enterprises that need to create detailed product demonstrations or recorded lectures. 

Educators

Loom is also an ideal platform for educators to create quick and concise video lectures for students or those who need to share knowledge with colleagues quickly. Hiring Managers can use Loom to create video-recorded interviews with potential candidates.

How to Get the Most Out of This Powerful Tool

To get the most out of Loom, users should remember that they should only use the tool for what it was designed for and no other use cases beyond its design. For example, Loom is an asynchronous screen recording tool, meaning it doesn't record video and broadcast it or screen share like Zoom, which is a synchronous service and best for video conferencing. 

Easy Sharing

Essentially, Loom is designed to be used for quick and easy recordings that anyone can easily share with others. Users should take advantage of this by recording short, fast, how-to videos and presentations or leaving a video message instead of a full-fledged meeting. This allows users to stay productive and on task without devoting valuable working time to something that Loom can easily handle.

So, to get the most out of Loom, remember that it is best used for quick recordings, not in-depth video editing and top-notch video production.

Integrations

Loom also works best when utilizing its various integrations. As we mentioned, it has several integrations that can be extremely useful for users, including Google Hangouts, Gmail, Outlook, and Slack. By integrating Loom with the services, you already use, you can quickly start recording without ever having to leave your workflows. This makes Loom a potent and valuable tool for users who want to stay productive and efficient.

Education-Oriented Approach

Loom and Screencastify are often compared to each other, but ultimately both are fantastic tools to make videos and screen records. We found that while they may have some similarities, both services have several differences and characteristics that make them distinctive in their ways. 

Screencastify is more business-oriented, whereas Loom is education-oriented. The highlighter option for Screencastify may be a great selling point, but Loom offers a suite of screen recording power. You must determine your business needs before settling on a video editing product.

Loom Screen Recorder Review Wrap-up

The Loom Screen Recorder is quite a powerful tool in the hands of people who know how to use it across its many features and use cases. For a free tool that is cloud-based and doesn't need to be downloaded to be used, it exceeds expectations. There are a few system bugs we'd like to see solved but overall it will work for many who need simple to sophisticated video creation.

We recommend checking out Loom and creating a few test videos using the Chrome or Firefox extension before deciding if Loom is the best screen recording software for your requirements or if an alternative might be better.