FlexClip approached us to review them a few months ago and we told them we did not have a use for their product because we were using a competitor, Viddyoze.  However, since then we had a corporate client ask for details on something with more features but less complexity than a full desktop product like Camtasia, so we dug into FlexClip.com and this is what we found.

FlexClip Tutorial & Review Video:

What is FlexClip?

FlexClip is a short video creation tool that offers more features than most of its competitors while not overwhelming the user with options.

As the name implies, it is best used for short videos ranging from a few seconds, like a YouTube intro, to a 20 minute corporate sales pitch.

flexclip Review and Demonstration storyboard view

The company claims 7 million users although it strangely claims only 1 million video downloads.

Does FlexClip Run on the Desktop or In the Browser?

Technically FlexClip does offer an app you can install on your desktop but that is just a web-app that keeps you connected and working through their cloud service.

Put simply FlexClip is SaaS (Software As A Service) meaning that it runs primarily through your browser and you do not have to worry about upgrades or new feature downloads.

What Makes FlexClip Different From Other Video Tools

Flexclip differentiates itself from other cloud direct competitors in four ways:

  1. it has an enormous template library to get you started fast
  2. it has an enormous media library which includes:
    1. VIDEO: everything from digital landscapes, to live action video, to animations and iconography.
    2. AUDIO: thousands of clips, songs and background audio tracks
  3. FlexClip has both an easy to use screen recording and a webcam recording feature
  4. it has a new “timeline” editor which offers much more granular features than its competitors

Do I Need Video Editing Skills To Use FlexClip?

No; FlexClip has more features than its competitors but it is still easy enough for a beginner to use.

Is FlexClip a Full Feature Video Editing Tool?

Not yet.  This Hong Kong based company started in just 2016 but its product is clearly out of the startup phase.  FlexClip is a polished finished product… well, nothing digital is ever finished, but for making short videos, you will be hard pressed to find a bug or a missing feature that causes you real grief.

flexclip Review and DemonstrationThey have recently provided a TIMELINE editor that allows for much more granularity of control than their default editor.  After using it for a few days we can say that it is impressive for a cloud app at this price.

We think it is fair to say that FlexClip is at least twice as feature rich as the old Microsoft Movie Maker free app but still has enough tools to satisfy intermediate level, desktop video editing needs like  those provided in CyberLink’s PowerDirector or TechSmith’s Camtasia.

What are FlexClip’s Limitations?

Limitations is a relative word, meaning that in software there are always new features you could legitimately ask for, but that does not mean the current product is lacking.

It is important to see the intentional limitations they have put on their different packages, so be sure so skim through our WHAT DOES FLEXCLIP COST segment below.

The most notable deficiency is the logo placement.  FlexClip templates allow you to easily add a logo that may bounce or slide or fade in, but it does not allow you to place your logo ON an active object which is moving (i.e. a walking robot, a waving flag, or a moving rubics cube).  We think many users will not care about this feature, but we really want it.

It has all the usual transitions and overlays you would expect and we particularly liked the new “timeline” editor but that editor is new and lacks features its serious desktop brethren have.  In particular, it offers just two video and one audio tracks.

This is a common limitation among entry level video tools and you can construe this as a positive because it keeps the complexity manageable for beginners. That being said, we would REALLY like to see it offer multi-track editing.

It also did not (yet?) allow us to apply transitions to things like text or graphics, so we were not able to get those elements to to fade in and out.

Strangely, FlexClip does not support Microsoft Edge, which is 12% of the broswer market.  We say “strangely” because their preferred browser is Chrome, and MS Edge is Chromium.  After a quick chat with their support group, we expect they will add Edge shortly as losing 12% of the market, especially the corporate space which does like Edge, is a big slice of the pie.

As for their very large media library, it is not big enough.  There is always going to be a need for more clips.  For instance, we found that while it does offer an animated SUBSCRIBE button for YouTube, it does not have an animated thumbs up for YouTube.  In fairness, it does have an animated blue thumbs up for Facebook, but that is not what we wanted.

What Does FlexClip Cost?

This is a good question and one you should likely start with before even playing with the product.  After all if it is $10,000, you are just wasting your time.  Fortunately it is not that expensive:

FREE BASIC PLUS BUSINESS
$ 0 /mo USD $6 /mo USD $10 /mo USD $20 /mo
$72 /yr $120 /yr $240 /yr
480p SD downloads 720p HD downloads 1080p Full-HD downloads 1080p Full-HD downloads
1 stock video per project 1 stock video per project 5 stock videos per project Unlimited stock videos per project
Maximum 12 projects Save unlimited projects online Save unlimited projects online Save unlimited projects online
Video length up to 1 min Video length up to 3 mins Video length up to 10 mins Video length up to 30 mins
 FlexClip Advert 10 GB Cloud Space 30 GB Cloud Space 100 GB Cloud Space

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The free version is unusable for most because it prepends a FlexClip promo video to your video.

The FlexClip Basic version is aptly named because it only allows you to use ONE of their stock videos from the library and it only allows 720p video to be output.  Those two limitations will kill it for most people.

Most users will want either the PLUS or BUSINESS packages to avoid frustration.

It is worth noting that while we do not like subscription services generally, that model does make sense for online video tools like FlexClip because they need to constantly expand their offering with new media, transitions and features.

We believe FlexClip offers a lifetime / one-time purchase but we do not know the pricing for that service.

FlexClip Overall

FlexClip is a solid short video creation and editing tool that has an abundance of features and media to build impressive content.  Both beginners and intermediate video users will be happy with this product.

 


Disclosure

FlexClip did provide a license for us to complete this review but no money.  However, I hope you can see we did not sway our review in their favor.  Our integrity still intact and this is an honest review.


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