Apple Remote Desktop vs. Splashtop

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Apple Remote Desktop
Score 6.5 out of 10
N/A
Apple Remote Desktop (ARD), from Apple, is a remote administration tool for managing Apple computers running OS X across a network.N/A
Splashtop
Score 8.6 out of 10
N/A
Splashtop is a software solution for both remote access and remote support. Boasting 30+ million customers worldwide and users among both large and small organizations across the globe, Splashtop presents their solution as secure, high-performing, and fit to specific use-cases. Splashtop is ISO certified, SOC 2 and GDPR compliant. Splashtop Remote Access provides remote desktop connections for business professionals and teams to work from anywhere, using any device.…
$8.25
per month per user, billed annually
Pricing
Apple Remote DesktopSplashtop
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
Splashtop Remote Access Pro
$8.25
per month per user, billed annually
Splashtop Remote Access Performance
$13.00
per month per user, billed annually
Splashtop Remote Support Enterprise
Contact Sales
per month per concurrent technician, billed annually
Splashtop Remote Access Enterprise
Contact Sales
per month per user, billed annually
Splashtop On-Prem
Contact Sales
Splashtop Autonomous Endpoint Management (AEM)
Contact Sales
per month per endpoint, billed annually
Splashtop Remote Support SOS
Starting at $22.00
per month per concurrent technician, billed annually
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Apple Remote DesktopSplashtop
Free Trial
NoYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Apple Remote DesktopSplashtop
Features
Apple Remote DesktopSplashtop
Remote Administration
Comparison of Remote Administration features of Product A and Product B
Apple Remote Desktop
8.0
Ratings
2% below category average
Splashtop
7.8
Ratings
4% below category average
Screen sharing8.90 Ratings9.30 Ratings
File transfer9.00 Ratings9.00 Ratings
Instant message9.30 Ratings7.90 Ratings
Secure remote access with Smart Card authentication8.50 Ratings00 Ratings
Access to sleeping/powered-off computers7.20 Ratings3.00 Ratings
Over-the-Internet remote session9.00 Ratings9.30 Ratings
Initiate remote control from mobile7.00 Ratings7.60 Ratings
Remote management of servers & workstations8.40 Ratings9.00 Ratings
Remote Active Directory® management7.00 Ratings00 Ratings
Centralized management dashboard8.50 Ratings7.10 Ratings
Session record7.30 Ratings7.20 Ratings
Annotations7.00 Ratings9.00 Ratings
Monitoring and Alerts8.30 Ratings6.00 Ratings
Multi-platform remote control6.30 Ratings8.70 Ratings
User Ratings
Apple Remote DesktopSplashtop
Likelihood to Recommend
8.4
(0 ratings)
9.2
(0 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
10.0
(0 ratings)
9.5
(0 ratings)
Usability
9.0
(0 ratings)
8.5
(0 ratings)
Availability
-
(0 ratings)
9.8
(0 ratings)
Performance
-
(0 ratings)
9.8
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
10.0
(0 ratings)
9.6
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
10.0
(0 ratings)
8.3
(0 ratings)
Configurability
-
(0 ratings)
5.0
(0 ratings)
Ease of integration
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
-
(0 ratings)
9.8
(0 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
-
(0 ratings)
5.1
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Apple Remote DesktopSplashtop
Likelihood to Recommend
ARD for me is based on a LAN, but can be used over WAN via VPN, but the latency makes ARD a less ideal tool. There are other cross platform tools that can do what ARD does which to me add value when managing a mixed environment
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Well Suited for Remote users with PCs needing to login to specific remote PC's. It is less functional for remote users on Cell phones although Cell phone users can look on the remote PC to see if they need to logon from a desktop to conduct transactions
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Pros
  • Automator Actions: This is a very cool feature and cost saving as it reduces human effort by automating the workflow of tasks.
  • Curtain Mode: This lets you block your local user's view of the desktop while performing administrative tasks.
  • Spotlight Search: It can perform lightning fast searches on machines using the spotlight search feature of OS X and thus saves a lot of time.
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  • Unbelievable performance! It's so fast I tested a PC game through it just for fun, and it was incredible!
  • The increase in productivity throughout our organization has been notable. The flexibility of employees to occasionally work remotely, when needed, has been hugely beneficial.
  • Enterprise IT tools like One-to-Many actions has saved us a lot of time and headache in certain situations, such as deploying a basic MSI or script. SOS has been a saving grace for some employees to receive remote IT support in emergency situations, as well.
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Cons
  • It's onsite only without setting up a VPN or some other form of remote network access.
  • It can be a little slow sometimes when compared to local access.
  • It seems to be a neglected product by Apple and not continually developed.
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  • Splashtop had a functionality issue with a Mac OS upgrade recently that prevented remote access for about two weeks. I had to request tickets directly and they had known about the impending issue without a collaborative solution between them and Apple.
  • Better Beta testing for version upgrades is always needed. Software is constantly changing so these types of platforms need to be at the forefront of resolving interoperability issues with Mac, Windows, Linux, etc.
  • The tech support for the issue I experience could have been more proactive. I was providing my client's IT provider and Splashtop with updates on the bug issue, where it should have been the other way around.
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Likelihood to Renew
It is a fairly unique tool in the level of integration it has with Apple Desktop products. It definitely needs some engineering attention, and it should be expanded to the iOS arena. It is not perfect, but it is very useful and fills an otherwise fairly empty niche in the support toolkit realm. The built-in screen sharing app in macOS handles the direct screen control or viewing function fairly well, but it does not have all of the other mass control features that Apple Remote Desktop supplies.
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I believe that I will renew Splashtop without any problems in the coming years as eating stable costs without increases even in critical periods such as the Covid virus, Splashtop allows access to 25 unattended stations and has continuous updates and new features. It also allows resale to users with sub-accounts
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Usability
Once it is set up, it is quite straightforward to use. However, currently, it requires both a script to run to set up permissions and controls, AND a command from the MDM to authorize it to be active. The MDM management command is manual. This is not conducive to an automated workflow, and sometimes gets forgotten. Then, the endpoint is not contactable until someone realizes that the MDM command was not sent or was not successful.
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It's hard to find any significant faults with Splashtop. It offers a very responsive remote access experience with clear and simple interface. There's very little learning curve as it's toolbar mimics other popular remote access solutions graphical user interface. It's gives you access to your remote computer quickly and stays out of your way
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Reliability and Availability
No answers on this topic
I've never had any issues with it, nor any connectivity issues. They always say when they'll be maintaining the system and it's always in the odd hours, so nobody uses then. But I've never had any issues.
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Performance
No answers on this topic
Pages and servers load fast, normal speed. It doesn't lag or anything like that. I don't integrate it with anything else.
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Support Rating
I've never had to get support for ARD, so I can't give a real opinion.
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Splashtop has good customer support - they respond quickly and provide adequate solutions, but we honestly rarely find ourselves needing to reach out to them. The software is so easy to use and about as plug-and-play as it gets, so we generally don't run into an issue that does not have an immediate, obvious solution provided in the software.
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Implementation Rating
None, very easy to setup and install.
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It couldn't have been any easier to setup and I have had no issues with it since it was implemented. It's a great product and makes remotely connecting to another device so simple and quick. I can't recommend it enough
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Alternatives Considered
I would feel much more comfortable having one of these alternative solutions as our Remote Desktop management tools. Each has their drawbacks and expenses associated with them, but we simply have too large of a deployment to not be considering alternatives. If it is the only solution you can afford, it is OK to start here. I could see where this would have a return on investment, but it is really only suitable for a very small and localized scale. If employees are at all mobile, the duct taping of products necessary (VPN, distribution points, script repositories) would be very cumbersome.
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Splashtop Business Enterprise is actually easier to implement and get it up and running, all users have to do is download the standard or personalize file and run it, then share the code with you and you are all set to go, i like it because you can even do it from your phone if necessary
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Scalability
No answers on this topic
It's a product that allows us to work remotely and access our servers from anywhere in the world. Our team works from different parts of the world and it's a great tool for us.
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Return on Investment
  • Apple Remote Desktop has a positive return on investment because for the expense to the school, the value it brings to teachers is important. The return on improved student performance is very difficult to measure financially, but there is a definite return.
  • The overall objective of education is to increase student learning, ARD does that phenomenally. Parents see the tool used and are impressed at what the capabilities of the tool can do and how it impacts how active their students are as well as how well they can learn.
  • One negative impact is that teachers rely too much on this tool rather than on actually teaching sometimes.
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  • Since we cannot utilize an enterprise-level POS system, Splashtop bridges the data gap between our store locations and our headquarters. This is what enables us to function. Without remote terminal access, our business would be unable to operate. Period. I can't overstate this.
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ScreenShots

Splashtop Screenshots

Screenshot of Splashtop Streamer: Used to connect to and remote into computers.
Splashtop Business App: Used to connect from and remotely access other computers.Screenshot of Splashtop SOS - Accessed with a 9-digit session code, it can be customized with a brand, logo and text.Screenshot of a view of computer sessions.Screenshot of where users can transfer files and folders from local and remote computers during a session.Screenshot of Splashtop Remote Support Enterprise : On-demand support with service desk capabilities.Screenshot of a dashboard - This offers key insights on endpoint status, security metrics, and scheduled tasks.