What is our primary use case?
We primarily use the solution to create and arrange a number of requests, including requests for expenses, requests for leave, requests for documents, etc. Depending on the type of business, we can customize the request application.
How has it helped my organization?
In our organization, PowerApps is used to manage internal requests for expenses, leaves, documents, company resources. One connects to the application, enter the details of the requests and the request flows directly to the appropriate approvers. Less paperwork and more efficient management of the requests.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable aspect of the solution is the fact it is highly customizable. All types of forms can be created to collect information, pictures, and files. With PowerApps, you can connect your application to a wide variety of databases and applications where your data lives to read or write to it. If a connector doesn't exist, it's also possible to create a custom one.
With a plan starting at 10 USD, it makes it very affordable for anyone to create a low-code, no-code application. Very little costs are needed to run the solution. Furthermore, PowerApps has a community plan for free, and usually offer a trial period of about 2 months. Plenty of time and potential to learn, discover and develop.
The solution has a large community, so it's quite easy to find tutorials, how-to, and help.
PowerApps is part of the PowerPlatform from Microsoft, with Flow, or Power BI and enhances the possibilities to collect data, to automate processes, and to create rich and visually appealing data visualizations.
What needs improvement?
The solution is evolving very fast and every month new features are introduced. Sometimes it's difficult to catch up with all the evolution that's happening. I had to focus on Power BI for a while and left PowerApps at the side for a couple of months and when I came back, it had changed its interface and moved components around.
Some connectors are not very easy to use and sometimes they lack proper documentation.
There should be better connectivity with other applications. I tried connecting with IBM and it brings errors at each refresh. The PostgreSQL connector is useless as it doesn't work. There's a lot of research needed and you often need to download extra drivers or equivalent components that end up not working well.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using the solution for a year now.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is very stable. There are a few issues with the environment, where we would have needed to create a new one. This would have been a problem if we had a lot of data. However, but I haven't faced any stability issues.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Scalability is okay, but they recently changed the pricing. Depending on what we do and what we use it for, the pricing is a bit confusing now. They're also offering a bit of a delay on the adjusted pricing for those who have a certain subscription, so I'm still figuring out what that means for us.
How are customer service and technical support?
Technical support is very fast, with answers within 24 hours. Most of the time they either call directly or send an email. I've found them very good and they are helpful. They try to give a solution and offer direct service.
I've had experience with IBM and it was a bit more difficult to find the right solution and obtain results. As with some other PRN providers, I was expecting a slower turnaround, so this has been a nice surprise. Microsoft and PowerApps have been very good.
How was the initial setup?
The solution is very easy to set up. Deployment is almost instantaneous. It's on the cloud, so you connect the logins and it's ready to go. You don't have to download it onto any device.
What about the implementation team?
I handled the implementation myself.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The pricing is pretty good. Right now, I'm paying for a two or three-month trial that is priced well. This trial period gives a company time to try an application, develop it, test it, and decide as to whether they will go ahead and pay for a modular plan.
I find their pricing quite affordable.
What other advice do I have?
We use the cloud deployment model. I'm a consultant; I work mainly with other companies.
Already with what exists, the solution is quite good and we can do quite a lot. I don't think too much can be improved.
I'd advise others to make sure they have good parameters and documentation before they get started. It's a good idea to follow the tutorial at the beginning. There are a lot of things about the solution that are good to understand beforehand, including how the different components work.
I'd rate the solution ten out of ten. For me, it has worked very well.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.