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⭕ Personal ✔️ Suite
This article explains in more detail how Connecter's Hybrid DAM approach compares with other popular DAM solutions to help you decide if it's the right product for your business. You can also refer to this Overview outlining, in short, the most critical points.
How does a typical Cloud DAM (Brandfolder, Bynder, etc.) work?
- The DAM only works with the assets you add and manage on its cloud infrastructure. It comes with a particular storage space size included in your subscription plan.
- From the DAM's web interface, you can browse and organize your assets into virtual categories like labels, collections, tags, etc..
- You can download the assets you want to use locally from the DAM's web interface.
- You can share assets with third parties via web links and APIs.
- Some cloud DAMs offer asset versioning.
- Aside from images and video, you can’t preview the assets that matter to your work: 3d models, material libraries, HDRI, Revit families, etc.
- There's no relation between the assets you create in the DAM by uploading your files and those that remain on your local file system.
How do Cloud-mapping (Dropbox, Drive, etc.) solutions usually work?
- It manages your assets both locally and on the cloud. The main point is that your local assets and folder structure are mapped and synced (instantly when connected to the internet) with the cloud storage. You can manage assets simultaneously on the local file system and via the cloud-mapping UI (typically web). All operations (creating, updating, deleting, etc.) are automatically synced between the cloud and the local file systems.
- You can dynamically make selected asset content available only on the cloud to free up local space.
- Some solutions offer asset versioning (e.g., updated asset content automatically replaces the current asset content).
- Aside from images and video, you can’t preview the assets that matter to your work: 3d models, material libraries, HDRI, Revit families, etc.
- You have only the standard folder structure to organize assets. Organizational tools like tags or categories, descriptions, ratings, and other metadata are absent.
How does Connecter's Hybrid DAM compare?
You decide what to add or remove from the Hybrid DAM
In contrast with the cloud DAMs and cloud-mapping solutions, you can add just any part of your assets library to the Hybrid DAM and add or remove assets at any time.
The cloud storage part of the Hybrid DAM feature only extends Connecter's core functionality to manage your assets directly on the local file system. Connecter's Hybrid DAM doesn't include a cloud storage space; it comes with your Connecter Suite plan at no additional cost.
Still, it integrates with the most popular cloud storage providers, so you can utilize the one your organization already uses or choose the one that fits your requirements.
Keep your assets' local files and cloud content connected
When you add an asset to the Hybrid DAM, Connecter stores its content and metadata in the cloud storage. But it also keeps the information about the asset's local content (the file on the file system) with its full path saved in the Workspace database.
With this hybrid storage approach, your local files and their content on the cloud are always connected in a fully integrated system that gives you maximum control.
Get a complete visual and metadata-rich experience
Unlike the other solutions, Connecter's Hybrid DAM also adds to the cloud previews of all asset types important to your creative work, making your 3d models, material libraries, HDRI, Revit families, etc., readily available for a visual and rich metadata browsing and searching experience.
Count on all the Connecter app's tools to manage your assets
You manage in Connecter the assets added to the Hybrid DAM like any other asset with Tags, Custom Properties, Ratings, Collections, or anything else. So you don't have to consider organizing the assets in the Hybrid DAM separately.
Other differentiation points you should consider
- Unlike the cloud DAMs, you locally sync (download) the content of the assets added to the Hybrid DAM only from Connecter.
When you download an asset content from the Hybrid DAM, however, you don't just save a file from the cloud somewhere on the disc like in the cloud DAMs, but Connecter stores the content directly in the asset's local system path because they’re always related.
If a team member deletes an asset, for example, with a single click, you can restore its local content by syncing it from the Hybrid DAM.
- Currently, there's no web app to browse, download or share with third parties what has been added to the Hybrid DAM. However, it’ll soon be possible with the upcoming update of the Web Catalogs app.
- By design, the Hybrid DAM doesn't have versioning, so it always keeps one version of the asset's content. That makes it easier and faster to use in many everyday use cases. For full-fledged versioning functionality, check out Connecter's Version Control system.
As explained, all solutions have their pros and cons. The Connecter's Hybrid DAM tries to combine the best of both other offerings, coupled with flexibility and cost-effectiveness, highlighted in the benefits of using a third-party assets storage solution with Connecter Hybrid DAM.