Our Comparison of BI Tools
There are many different tools for BI on the market today, and they each have their own strengths and weaknesses. At InetSoft, we did our own analysis in which we compared our flagship BI software, Style Intelligence, against eight other prominent BI tools across eleven different criteria. Vendors in each category were rated from one to ten, ten being the best possible score. Here's what we determined:
|
Vendor
|
Dashboards
|
Reporting
|
Visual Analysis
|
Data Mashup
|
In-Memory
|
Mobile
|
| IBM (Cognos) |
7
|
7
|
4
|
3
|
6
|
6
|
| iDashboards |
7
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
2
|
4
|
| InetSoft |
10
|
10
|
8
|
10
|
5
|
7
|
| Microsoft |
6
|
6
|
3
|
2
|
2
|
3
|
| MicroStrategy |
9
|
9
|
6
|
5
|
10
|
10
|
| Oracle (Hyperion) |
6
|
6
|
3
|
3
|
4
|
4
|
| QlikTech |
7
|
1
|
6
|
5
|
10
|
10
|
| SAP (BusinessObjects) |
8
|
5
|
7
|
4
|
8
|
8
|
| Tableau |
6
|
1
|
10
|
6
|
6
|
4
|
|
Vendor
|
Self-Service
|
Visual Appeal
|
Deployment Speed
|
OEM-friendly
|
Pricing
|
| IBM (Cognos) |
3
|
3
|
2
|
2
|
1
|
| iDashboards |
3
|
4
|
7
|
2
|
10
|
| InetSoft |
10
|
9
|
10
|
10
|
10
|
| Microsoft |
4
|
5
|
7
|
3
|
9
|
| MicroStrategy |
4
|
6
|
4
|
4
|
4
|
| Oracle (Hyperion) |
3
|
3
|
3
|
3
|
1
|
| QlikTech |
5
|
8
|
10
|
3
|
7
|
| SAP (BusinessObjects) |
3
|
7
|
3
|
3
|
2
|
| Tableau |
3
|
10
|
10
|
3
|
8
|
Where InetSoft Stands Apart
Dashboards
As analysis become more complicated, being able to show data in an intuitive, visual fashion is more important than ever. With StyleBI, you can easily create eye-popping dashboards for more effective reports and presentations.
Versatile Data Mashup
When performing analyses with StyleBI, you won't find yourself being limited by the type of data sources that you can mashup. InetSoft's easy-to-use drag-and-drop format combines disparate data sources in real-time, for more complete and comprehensive analysis.
If you've been thinking about data warehousing, but are concerned about the large cost associated with it, you may find that versatile data mashup is an attractive alternative.
Deployment Speed and Ease of Use
Effective BI Tools help you to respond effectively to conditions which are often rapidly changing. You don't want your organization to miss out on valuable opportunities while you wait for your BI program to be installed and deployed.
StyleBI can be deployed in an afternoon, and learned quickly by employees of diverse backgrounds.
Affordability
InetSoft provides flexibly priced BI solutions for organizations of all sizes. Excellent BI at a lower cost equals a greater return on your company's investment.
How Do InetSoft and MicroStrategy Compare in Terms of Production Reporting Functionalilty?
InetSoft and MicroStrategy are both renowned providers of business intelligence (BI) and analytics solutions, each offering unique features and capabilities. When comparing their production reporting functionality, several factors come into play:
- Ease of Use and Flexibility:
- InetSoft: InetSoft's reporting tools are known for their intuitive interface and user-friendly design, making it easy for business users to create and customize production reports without extensive technical knowledge. The platform offers flexibility in data visualization and formatting options, allowing users to tailor reports to their specific requirements.
- MicroStrategy: MicroStrategy provides a comprehensive set of reporting tools with a focus on enterprise-grade functionality and scalability. While powerful, the platform may have a steeper learning curve for non-technical users due to its robust feature set and advanced capabilities. However, once mastered, MicroStrategy offers extensive customization options and flexibility in report design.
- Data Connectivity and Integration:
- InetSoft: InetSoft offers connectivity to a wide range of data sources, including relational databases, OLAP cubes, flat files, and web services. The platform supports seamless integration with various data repositories, enabling users to access and analyze data from disparate sources within their production reports.
- MicroStrategy: MicroStrategy excels in data connectivity and integration capabilities, offering native connectors to popular databases, data warehouses, cloud platforms, and big data sources. The platform's unified metadata layer provides a single point of access to all enterprise data assets, simplifying data discovery and analysis for users.
- Scalability and Performance:
- InetSoft: InetSoft's reporting solution is suitable for organizations of all sizes, offering scalability to accommodate growing data volumes and user populations. The platform is designed to deliver responsive performance, even when handling complex queries and large datasets, ensuring timely access to critical business information.
- MicroStrategy: MicroStrategy is known for its scalability and performance capabilities, capable of handling massive datasets and supporting thousands of concurrent users. The platform's in-memory analytics engine and intelligent caching mechanisms optimize query performance and ensure rapid response times for interactive reporting and analysis.
- Advanced Analytics and Insights:
- InetSoft: InetSoft's reporting tools provide basic to intermediate analytics capabilities, including drill-down, filtering, and aggregation functions. While suitable for standard production reporting needs, the platform may lack some of the advanced analytics features offered by other solutions.
- MicroStrategy: MicroStrategy offers advanced analytics capabilities, including predictive analytics, data mining, and geospatial analysis, empowering users to uncover actionable insights from their data. The platform's integration with R and Python allows for advanced statistical modeling and machine learning algorithms to be incorporated into production reports.
- Mobile and Self-Service Reporting:
- InetSoft: InetSoft offers mobile-friendly reporting capabilities, allowing users to access and interact with production reports on smartphones and tablets. The platform supports self-service reporting, enabling business users to create, modify, and share reports independently.
- MicroStrategy: MicroStrategy provides robust mobile BI capabilities, with native apps for iOS and Android devices that offer offline access, interactive dashboards, and mobile-optimized reporting. The platform's self-service reporting tools empower users to explore data, create ad-hoc reports, and collaborate with colleagues on mobile devices.
 |
“Flexible product with great training and support. The product has been very useful for quickly creating dashboards and data views. Support and training has always been available to us and quick to respond.
- George R, Information Technology Specialist at Sonepar USA |
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