Roundme (https://round.me/) is a very popular Virtual Tour software, and it has been there for 5-6 years. This platform’s intuitive interfaces help make Virtual Tour easier, and it seems like the proudest feature of this Virtual Tour software. However, is this still a good choice for 2021?
The free account comes with lots of limitations that might make you irritating.
Roundme’s free account only allows users to upload 15 panoramas every week, with a maximum resolution of 10,000 x 5,000 (px) and a maximum size of 15Mb. This allowed quality can not meet standards for professionals and is very limited compared to another new platform like Panoee. Of course, due to this restriction, you don’t need multi-resolution, so they don’t put it on the list.
Limited Hotspot type & action make the Virtual Tour less interactive.
Roundme supports 3 types of Hotspot (guiding, information & sound) with very limited customization, which is barely enough for basic Virtual Tours but not if viewers want more informative, more interactive. What if users want to change the icons or colour of the Hotspot, or they want to show more images, video, media in different ways? Roundme seems like this platform is good enough to show the panorama but not interactive Virtual Tours.
…and to keep everything super simple for users
We have to admit that Roundme has one of the most intuitive interfaces among other platforms, and they keep it super easy for users to create Virtual Tours. There are not many configurations or customization on View Control or Scene Config. To make this a platform for the community, Roundme added the world map & comment features. Still, it also makes the Virtual Tour less private, less analytical tracking, and users can not customize the overall look and feel of the Virtual Tours.
Good pricing, but not the best
Roundme charges for hosting service at $13/month, compared to $20/month of Kuula.co; besides that, Roundme also has add-on services that ask users to pay more for Pro embed ($15/Tour/lifetime), Privacy & Whitelist ($10/Tour/lifetime) and Custom Map ($5/Tour/lifetime). There might be users who need to use such services, but I don’t think they are attractive enough. Most importantly, all of the above listings have been there for few years without changing or upgrading, which is not a signal of a well-growing platform.
Looking for an alternative?
Panoee never wants to compete with Roundme, but we want to help customers create more interactive & high-quality Virtual Tours. Roundme can stay one of the best communities for 360 players who want to upload a few panoramas and occasionally share with few friends.
Panoee comes with features to help 360 Photographers add multiple types of Hotspots, customize the appearance of Virtual Tours, manage the experience of viewers, and finally publish the Virtual Tours in many ways. Panoee is designed to be an essential tool for Professionals, but even the 360 players can utilize this Virtual Tour software at no cost because Panoee doesn’t charge for hosting.
