USB stick or digital signage software? An honest comparison
A slideshow from a USB stick costs nothing and is fine for some screens. Here's when it's enough, when it starts costing you time, and what changes with signage software.
Almost every TV has a USB port and will happily loop photos and videos from a stick. So why pay for software? Sometimes you shouldn't. Here's an honest look at where the stick is perfectly fine and where it quietly starts to cost you.
When a USB stick is all you need
Keep the stick if all of these are true:
- You have one screen, or a couple
- What's on it rarely changes: a brand video in a showroom, say, that runs for months
- The screen is easy to reach, and someone doesn't mind updating it
- You don't need different things at different times of day
If that's you, the stick is the right answer. Really.
Where it starts to hurt
The trouble starts when things change often, or when there's more than one screen.
Every change is a trip. A new price means exporting the files, copying them onto the stick, walking to the TV, swapping it over and checking it worked. With two branches, that's two trips. With ten screens, it's an afternoon.
It doesn't know what time it is. A stick plays the same loop at 8 in the morning and 8 at night, so the breakfast offer is still up at dinner.
You can't see it from where you are. Is the other branch still showing last month's offer? You won't know until someone goes to look, or a customer mentions it.
Old content hangs around. The offer that ended on Sunday stays up until somebody remembers to take it off.
TVs are fussy. Some TVs only play certain file types from USB, and some don't start the slideshow again by themselves after a power cut.
What changes with signage software
| USB stick | Signage software such as VizzBox | |
|---|---|---|
| Changing what's on screen | Copy files, visit each screen | Change it once from your desk; screens pick it up within a minute |
| Different content by time or day | No | Schedules by date, day of the week and time of day |
| Several branches | One trip per screen | Group screens and update them all at once |
| Knowing it's working | Go and look | See from your desk which screens are online and what each is playing |
| After a power cut | Depends on the TV | The Android player starts by itself and carries on |
| Internet | Not needed | Needed to receive changes; plays what it has stored when offline |
| Layout | One full-screen loop | Zones: a menu, an offer, a ticker, a clock, the weather |
| Cost | The price of a stick | A monthly fee per screen, after a free trial |
The middle ground
You don't have to move everything at once. Most people start with the one screen whose content changes most, usually the menu board or the window offer, and leave the showroom video on its stick. If the software earns its place on that one screen, move the others over later. If it doesn't, you've lost nothing.
Four questions to ask yourself
- How often do I change what's on my screens? More than about once a month tips things towards software.
- How many screens, and how many places are they in?
- Does anything depend on the time of day, like menus, opening hours or offers?
- Would I know if one of my screens went blank this afternoon?
If you answered "often", "more than one", "yes" and "no", a stick is probably costing you more than it seems.
Try it on one screen
VizzBox has a 15-day trial on up to three screens, with no card to enter. You can use the TV you already have; our guide to turning any TV into a digital sign shows how. Or look at a finished one first: the live demo is a real screen from our demo café, playing right now.