Not sure if NeoFinder is the right tool for you?
Download
the current NeoFinder for Mac, and at least one competing product, and compare for yourself!
Here is a list of questions that will help you get the best tool for your task.
Some of the questions may not apply to your requirements, but they are a great start for your evaluation.
General
Is the app also available for iPhone or iPad?
(NeoFinder is currently the only app of its kind that you can also use on iOS! Keep your NeoFinder catalogs with you at any time, and search them wherever you are!)
Cataloging
Can the app catalog multiple disks in the background, saving you a lot of time? Or is it blocked while cataloging?
(NeoFinder catalogs
multiple
disks in parallel in the background, and allows you to keep working)
Can the app update existing catalogs?
(NeoFinder can do that, of course, but surprisingly, many competitors cannot. Updating is needed when a cataloged disk gets new files or other changes)
Does the app catalog the metadata and photo/video/audio thumbnails you need?
(NeoFinder supports a huge list of photo, movie, and other document formats, as well as many audio formats. EXIF, IPTC, XMP, ID3? It is all there for you in NeoFinder!)
Will the app catalog Audio-CDs?
(NeoFinder sure does, getting the track titles from CD-Text, MusicBrainz, or the Finder for you)
Will the app display meta info in a clear and structured way?
(NeoFinder gives you EXIF, IPTC, XMP and others in a nice and useful Inspector display. Others simply dump unstructured arrays of cryptic data on you...)
How big will the database become for a cataloged disk?
(NeoFinder creates very compact database files, even with thumbnails, while others create huge database files that are very hard to back up)
Can the software share catalogs in a network? Maybe with a Windows app as well?
(NeoFinder can of course do both, together with abeMeda for Windows)
Can the software also catalog just folders, instead of entire disks?
(NeoFinder can of course do that for you)
Importing
Can the software import existing catalogs of other apps with no problem?
(NeoFinder sure can, it imports
many foreign catalog or export files for a quick start: PreRoll Post CSV LTO catalogs, DiskLibrary,
Extensis Portfolio,
Disk Recall, DiskWizard, Iomega FindIt, Portents DiskTracker (1.x and 2.x), Catalogue, CatFinder, "Neometric" Catalog , Broken Cross Disk Manager (Windows, XML), Advanced Disk Catalog (ADC for Windows, XML), iView MediaPro and Microsoft Expression Media (XML), WhereIsIt from Windows (XML), DiskCatalogMaker (Text Export), Cache-A XML files, TOLIS Group BRU Text Protocols, Yoyotta CSV reports, SuperCat for Windows, Delicious Library XML, "Media Catalog" (CSV export files)
Searching
Does the app has a QuickFind feature, searching all fields at once?
(NeoFinder does, of course)
Does the app also have a Find window for specific queries?
(NeoFinder offers up to 16 separate query params, and gives you all metadata fields for specific searches, too)
Can the Find operation in the app be initiated by AppleScript?
(NeoFinder has a AppleScript implementation)
Does the app allow you to search for Duplicates?
(NeoFinder does, of course!)
Can the Find query be initiated by URLs?
(NeoFinder supports a wide array of helpful Find related URLs, allowing you to attach queries to other data)
Can you search all meta data fields?
(NeoFinder offers clearly structured find queries for all metadata fields, no need to type in field names or other weird stuff)
Does the software offer a GPS search for your photos?
(NeoFinder does, it is integrated in the map)
Can the software store Find Queries, aka Smart Folders?
(NeoFinder has Smart Folders)
Can the software search the Spotlight database, too?
(NeoFinder of course can...)
Help and Support
Does the app come with an extensive Users Guide?
(NeoFinder has an online
Users Guide
, explaining all the abilities of the software)
Are there free video tutorials to help you use the app?
(NeoFinder comes with
free video tutorials
)
Can you email the support?
(NeoFinder support can be reached at
support@neofinder.de
)
Can you phone the support?
(NeoFinder support can be
reached by phone
as well, of course)
Is the software localized in your language?
(NeoFinder comes in
English, German, Japanese, French, Italian, Swedish, Spanish and Dutch
)
Purchasing
Do you know the name and postal address of the developer of the app?
(Full contact information of the NeoFinder development team
here
)
How long is the developer already working on disk cataloging?
(The NeoFinder team has more than 21 years of experience in the market!)
How many updates have been available since the initial release of the software?
(NeoFinder has offered a huge
number of updates
since the initial release in 1996)
What people said who switched to NeoFinder:
"I have only used NeoFinder for a few hours but I had to write and tell you how amazing it is and it’s EXACTLY what I was looking for, and more. The additional features and ability to see metadata about the audio files is sure to be a big help as I use it more. The main reason I need the app is so I know what hard drive to find and mount to load an old project because I don’t want to keep all 10 (and counting) hard drives mounted 24/7 and search around when needed.
Also, the iOS version is the icing on the cake because if I’m traveling and somebody asks about an old file, I can quickly search the iOS app and verify that I have the file and can send it later."
Justin P , Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
"I needed something that actually worked, and NeoFinder knocks it out of the park for under fifty bucks."
David Gerwitz ,
ZDNet
, USA
"I am very impressed with how you continue improve this software over the years. I have offline data archives going back 12+ years, and have several occasions to pull old data for clients. NeoFinder makes this task painless, I consider it an indispensable tool for my design business. "
Mark T. , Colorado, USA
"I love NeoFinder. Having worked in Documentaries for a long time, this is the first time I've been blown away by your app. When shooting Docs, it's really easy to amass tons of footage and finding all of the footage, even though I am organized, was still a monumental task. Right now I am working with about 30 drives and what NeoFinder does in a flash, I used to do by using Excel and Print Window. Thank you, Thank you for creating this. I LOVE it!"
Deborah D. , Boston, USA
"I wish I had known about NeoFinder much sooner. It would have saved me a lot of time and money wasted on slow catalogers that "lock out" the user during the scanning process. NeoFinder is so fast and customizable. It is perfect for cataloging not just disk contents and media, but as my Hard Disk Inventory cataloger, as well. Even with all the extras turned off, DiskCatalogMaker can take up to an hour to scan a large disk. NeoFinder took only a few minutes, and I could still use the software while it was scanning. Not only that, and this is most important, the other software does NOT save during nor immediately after scanning. Any error and DiskCatalogMaker would crash and all the work would be lost. DiskTracker chokes on large volumes of 2TB or larger."
Doug Ch., Virginia, USA
"I've been a long time user of NeoFinder/CD Finder (15 years?), and it is one of the few pieces of software I own that I know I can rely on and therefore part of my critical arsenal. It always works and keeps getting better and better. NeoFinder stays ahead of the pack in terms of features, reliability and OS compatibility. What more could one ask for. I wish Apple and Adobe had the same integrity and approach to their products."
Bryce B. London
"We have been using NeoFinder in our studio for almost 2 years now and love it. Thanks for making such a user friendly and powerful piece of software. We have cataloged over 150TB of media and almost 8 million files."
Andrew M. , Nebraska, USA
"We have been using a combination of NeoFinder and abeMeda, both with server licenses, to catalog several hundred hard drives, all quite successfully. Our combined catalogs are over 7GB, covering a library size of 723TB of which 478TB is actual files (21M of them). So that's good!"
Chris P., New York, USA
"My Mac technician drew my attention to the new NeoFinder and I have downloaded the trial version. Of course it lives up to the high standards of the previous versions and with Geotagging and auto update, its a beautifully thing ... It is the best way to find files when you have many drives and hundreds of thousands of files."
Neil P, Wellington, New Zealand
"Thanks to Norbert for an elegant program - I am impressed with the import facility for our 440 Catalogue files and the well crafted applescripts."
Diana M., USA
"I have already started setting up our catalog list in your software and I can already feel the tremendous amount of time we will save, as it will greatly organize our way of handling archives. THANK YOU SO MUCH TO YOU AND ALL THE NeoFinder TEAM!!"
Gaël F., Montreal, Canada
"Your's is a great program. Really useful and powerful..."
Rober M., Spain