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reviewer1023108 - PeerSpot reviewer
General Manager at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Real User
A generally uncomplicated installation, but stability fairs at only 70 percent
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution is not that difficult to install, although this will vary with the experience of the person responsible for its installation."
  • "I find the solution to be 70 percent stable."

What needs improvement?

I would rate the stability of Microsoft BI at 70 percent. 

While the solution is scalable, it certainly has its limitations.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I find the solution to be 70 percent stable. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Although the solution comes with limitations, it is scalable. 

How are customer service and support?

Technical support is not that bad, fairing in the average range. 

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Microsoft Power BI
January 2025
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How was the initial setup?

The solution is not that difficult to install, although this will vary with the experience of the person responsible for its installation. 

What about the implementation team?

There are five people responsible for the deployment, their roles comprising a mixed bag, some of them being managers. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Our customers definitely incur a licensing fee. 

The only other cost, besides the licensing fee, would be to cover support. 

What other advice do I have?

There are only three customers using the solution at present. 

I always offer more than one solution and the person must choose which he feels best suits his needs. All solutions have plusses and minuses and these should be carefully weighed before one decides which one to go with. Once the client has settled on a solution, this is what I will go with. We are talking about Microsoft store. Generally speaking, our clients prefer to make use of Microsoft. 

I rate Microsoft BI as a seven out of ten. 

This rating is based on what we have observed about the solution thus far, although it may be amended over the next few months as we become more acquainted with it. 

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Technical Manager at a computer software company with 201-500 employees
Real User
User-friendly, feature-rich, and easy to implement but there is no column-level security
Pros and Cons
  • "This product has a lot of features and most of them are user-friendly."
  • "There is no column-level security in Microsoft BI, and this is a feature that most of our customers are looking for. That is something that should be implemented."

What is our primary use case?

We are a solution provider and Microsoft BI is one of the products that we implement for our customers.

What is most valuable?

Microsoft BI is easy to implement, as it is a web-based product that doesn't need to be installed.

This product has a lot of features and most of them are user-friendly.

The visualizations are pretty easy to create. In fact, if you want to create anything new, it is pretty easy to do.

The reporting capability is good.

What needs improvement?

There is no column-level security in Microsoft BI, and this is a feature that most of our customers are looking for. That is something that should be implemented.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working with Microsoft BI for between six and seven years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

This is a stable product.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Microsoft BI is scalable.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We also use Oracle BI.

How was the initial setup?

The implementation process is pretty easy.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Both cost-wise and implementation-wise, this product is a good choice.

What other advice do I have?

This product is good in terms of cost, it is pretty easy to implement, and I can recommend it for those features and the reporting.

Overall, the product is good but there are a few limitations.

I would rate this solution a seven out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: implementer
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Microsoft Power BI
January 2025
Learn what your peers think about Microsoft Power BI. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: January 2025.
831,071 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Lead Business Analyst at a media company with 501-1,000 employees
Real User
Data visualization tool which has an extensive number of features including offering user defined charts
Pros and Cons
  • "Power BI allows you to create user defined charts which is really useful."
  • "The UI is the main improvement that could be made. Specifically, there is something called DAX, in Power BI, which is complicated compared to calculated fields used in Tableau."

What is our primary use case?

We use this data visualization tool for the business to understand data in a graphical manner. It is similar to Tableau, a tool also used for data visualization. A tool like this is used mostly by the leadership team to make decisions. 

What is most valuable?

Power BI allows you to create user-defined charts which is really useful. 

The Power Query button in the power tabs is a unique selling point and is very useful.

What needs improvement?

The UI is the main improvement that could be made. Specifically, there is something called DAX, in Power BI, which is complicated compared to calculated fields used in Tableau. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for six months. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

This is a stable solution. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

This is a scalable solution. We have 500 users. 

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was easy. 

What other advice do I have?

The main difference between Power BI and Tableau is the cost. Power BI is much cheaper. Tableau is the best BI tool that I've worked on and is easier for developers to work with. However, there are many things that can be done in Power BI which can't be done in Tableau.

If you're starting working with Power BI, then I would suggest first getting experience with the free version of Tableau to understand and learn about data visualization. From there, moving to Power BI will be much easier as the tools are so similar. 

I would rate it a nine out of ten. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Technology Solutions Professional at OrchidaSoft
Real User
Has good implementation features
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution is easy to set up and implement."
  • "I would like to see a change in the premium capacity."

What is most valuable?

Defining the most valuable features would take a long time. While I cannot point to a specific feature, I feel the solution provides a full range of implementation capabilities. This allows for integration and modeling, for carrying out good transformations within the same platform, as well as visualization. There are not many products included inside and one can start from scratch. 

In respect of the customer, one can quickly implement phases. A person can start out with creating his data set on a miniscule amount of the client's work and, working solely with a sales team, make it agile, only involving three or four dashboards. At this point, completion is possible and progress may be made to the next one very quickly. We like the solution's ease of use, functionality range and ability to be quickly implemented. 

What needs improvement?

I would like to see a change in the premium capacity. It is very costly, particularly for the Egyptian market, amounting to $5,000 per month. Perhaps in the Gulf this would work well. The data flow should be enhanced from OnPrem-Gateways, which we find to be somewhat complicated and which does not always work. Regional pricing is the main issue. 

The stability is okay, although there can sometimes be an issue with the connection when it comes to data OnPrem and the need to manage gateway communication and do troubleshooting. In brief, there are certain issues with OnPrem stability. 

'Although we feel the solution to be a dream, it would be great to see everything on Power BI services, obviating the need for Power BI desktop. I hope to see such Power BI implementation. 

I feel like we don't have a very powerful ELT or ETL tool when it comes to power and data cleansing. The solution compares unfavorably with such products as Informatica in this regard.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Microsoft BI for two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability is okay, although there are occasional connectivity problems when it comes to managed gateway communication of data OnPrem and troubleshooting. The OnPrem stability should be addressed. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

While the stability is okay, there is an occasional need to add extra products, such as those involving Azure data analysis and Azure Analytics Services. 

Big data would require the involvement of different products, Microsoft sign ups, for example. While we did not go for this, our technical teams are trying to get up to speed to have big data rediness. 

I feel like the solution has a comparatively inferior ELT or ETL tool when it comes to power and data cleansing and compares unfavorably with Informatica. There is occasionally a need to involve other solutions, such as Informatica and Alteryx. 

How are customer service and support?

While we have not made much use of Microsoft support, I did previously work with Microsoft's premier support and found it to be very good, overall. 

How was the initial setup?

The solution is easy to set up and implement. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The premium capacity is very costly in respect of the market in Egypt, amounting to $5,000 monthly. The regional pricing should be addressed. 

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

The solution has an edge over others in its quick implementation. It is also very helpful to consider Microsoft data platform on Azure. Doing a combination with Microsoft data plaform will give one a great edge over, say, Tableau. 

The combining of Power BI with Microsoft data platform on Azure provides one increased familiarity. We are talking about a great ecosystem. 

The solution is comparatively inferior to those offered by other companies in respect of the ETL and ELT as these relate to power and data cleansing. It is not the best. 

What other advice do I have?

My advice to someone looking to implement Power BI for his own organization would be to take things step by step. He should initially refrain from taking on big projects, instead focusing on agility, starting with the most requisite dashboards, working on them and garnering experience. The person will improve from one time to the next. One should familiarize himself with the details and how to move data and big data. He should not remain stuck waiting for the implementation of a big project. 

I rate Microsoft BI as an eight out of ten. 

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
reviewer1650804 - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Data Engineer at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Easy to use, quick report generating, and simple installation
Pros and Cons
  • "Microsoft BI was very helpful for me because I had a huge variety of connections. It is very convenient to build reports, even if somebody has no experience using BI tools or data visualizations. Additionally, the performance is very good when generating reports."

    What is our primary use case?

    I used Microsoft BI to develop reports and then deployed them into Microsoft BI web.

    What is most valuable?

    Microsoft BI was very helpful for me because I had a huge variety of connections. It is very convenient to build reports, even if somebody has no experience using BI tools or data visualizations. Additionally, the performance is very good when generating reports.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using Microsoft BI for approximately three months.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    The stability of the solution has been good.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    The solution is scalable.

    We have approximately 100 people in my organization using the solution and they are mostly managers.

    We used the solution on a daily basis, we were using it extensively.

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    I have used Tableau previously.

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup was very easy to complete and it took approximately 30 minutes.

    What about the implementation team?

    We did the implementation of the solution using two technicians.

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    The current licensing model that Microsoft BI has is expensive. My customers have told me the cost is approximately $20 per user and this can get expensive fast. There should be a one-time purchase option if the customer has a lot of users.

    What other advice do I have?

    I rate Microsoft BI a nine out of ten.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    On-premises
    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Consultant at a consultancy with 11-50 employees
    Consultant
    Valuable dashboard and automated reporting features but should have better integration with RPA and Tableau platforms
    Pros and Cons
    • "There was a lot of manual work involved with Excel, whereas once we moved on to Microsoft Power BI, it was a cleaner dashboard and it was faster too."
    • "I think because I'm moving more into RPA, I'd definitely like to see integration across the RPA, Power BI, or Tableau platforms, because that integration could then make automation and mundane reporting much faster."

    What is our primary use case?

    The primary use case was mainly to create dashboards and present them for reporting purposes. We use Microsoft Power BI to create dashboards, provide insights, and use its various analytical and insight functions to send to either the departmental manager or the general manager of marketing and sales or retail ops.

    How has it helped my organization?

    In short, we had to create sales reports. The sales reports needed to be emailed to the different sales managers all across New Zealand. The Excel file data had to be filtered manually, whereas, in Power BI, you can set restrictions. For example, if you have North, South, East and West branches, you can set corresponding restrictions, while allowing the national sales manager to view the entire data without having to do a lot of filtering, because of the restrictions involved.

    It is time-saving for the person who creates the report and also a lot of that is automated, whereas with Excel you've got to keep working on it and keep filtering it all the time.

    What is most valuable?

    Our most valuable features are the dashboard and the reporting feature because, before that, our organization used to only use Excel. There was a lot of manual work involved with Excel, whereas once we moved on to Microsoft Power BI, it was a cleaner dashboard and it was faster too. The end user also had an opportunity to alter the reporting as per requirements with Power BI.

    What needs improvement?

    I haven't experienced any issues with it right now, so I can't really advise on that part.

    I think because I'm moving more into RPA, I'd definitely like to see integration across the RPA, Power BI, or Tableau platforms because that integration could then make automation and mundane reporting much faster.

    You'll always require some more complex reports that the analyst could work on, but the very standard sales reports could then be automated very quickly using Power BI and RPA together.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I've been using this solution for one year.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    Stability is pretty good. I've been using other services from Microsoft and the support also has been really good so it's a very stable platform and the support services are excellent.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    I've been using it for a year and it's only across my single department so I've not yet had to scale it to a very large level.

    Across my department, there are two users. Across other departments at my company, there are many more. Most users are commercial or insights analysts.

    Across our organization, Power BI is not extensively used, although I'm not privy to every department and their plans. I think it's being used moderately, but could be used more.

    How are customer service and technical support?

    In terms of Microsoft Power BI, if there was ever a query, you can find support online. There's a lot of help available but what I generally meant was I have been using Microsoft Office products through the Office 365 subscription business and the support of Microsoft Office, in general, has always been really good. They usually come back on the very same day and try and solve the problem. This is not something I've experienced with other platforms in the past.

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    We hadn't previously used another solution. We were just using Excel and decided to go to a much better platform.

    How was the initial setup?

    The setup was straightforward for me because as part of an organization, I didn't have to set it up myself. It was set up via the organization, through the IT department, so it was pretty straightforward.

    What about the implementation team?

    I adopted it in my team, but it was already being implemented across other parts of the company. I just brought it into my department, so I wouldn't be able to tell the time frame for the actual implementation strategy. For my team alone, it probably took me around two months or so.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    The other departments in my company were using Power BI, so it would not make sense to get another solution when they already had Power BI in other parts of the organization.

    What other advice do I have?

    Microsoft Power BI is definitely a good product and Microsoft has a good integration of a good suite of products across the range. I think if you take UI parts recent release, for example, I'm not sure that does it with Power BI but it definitely integrates it across the Microsoft Office activities, so I think it's only a matter of time before a majority of the Microsoft Office products start integrating with UI parts. That would take analysis, reporting, and automation to the next level and we could free up time for the general reporter.

    I would rate this solution as seven out of ten because it's easy to use and there is a lot of support online. I think Microsoft Office itself has a lot of support being provided. In addition, I like its features and it's growing much faster than some of the other analytical tools out there, although it started off later.

    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    IT Specialist at a wholesaler/distributor with 1-10 employees
    Real User
    There is a lot of help and documentation on the Internet
    Pros and Cons
    • "There is a lot of help and documentation on the Internet, so no special training is needed to use the source code."
    • "The reporting part of Microsoft BI is rather limited compared to other reporting tools."

    How has it helped my organization?

    • It is free. 
    • SSAS and SSRS work great together. 
    • There is a lot of help and documentation on the Internet, so no special training is needed to use the source code.

    What is most valuable?

    It has the most secured database that I have ever used, which is the most important part of Microsoft BI.

    What needs improvement?

    The reporting part of Microsoft BI is rather limited compared to other reporting tools.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    Less than one year.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    It works perfectly so far.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    The information which we are working on is not that deep.

    How are customer service and technical support?

    We use information from the Internet everyday.

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    We previously used iFrame.

    We did long studies about which tool to use in our company. We decided to use Microsoft BI because it was a complete product, and it is easier and cheaper than others.

    How was the initial setup?

    In the beginning, it was a rather complex because all the documents are in English. If it is in French, it was really complex, so then we would have to read the English documents. That was the most difficult thing here. It made the product difficult to use, because of the language, so Microsoft did provide help.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    In the beginning, we were about to choose Pentaho because it is an open source suite. The problem is that beyond the enterprise version of Pentaho, it is more expensive than Microsoft. We would always need to rely on an expert of Pentaho, instead of finding solutions on the Internet, and that was the reason why we did not choose it.

    What other advice do I have?

    Most important criteria when selecting a vendor:

    • Price
    • Ability to go on the Internet and locate support information.
    • Secure product
    • Easy interface to use.
    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Bidirect377 - PeerSpot reviewer
    Manager at a logistics company with 501-1,000 employees
    Real User
    Provides accurate data and easy navigation
    Pros and Cons
    • "They should add mobile access."

      What is our primary use case?

      Using it, I receive financial information from the financial department.

      How has it helped my organization?

      It gives us accurate data and an easy way to navigate.

      What is most valuable?

      I get the information I need easily, and it's easy to read.

      What needs improvement?

      They should add mobile access.

      For how long have I used the solution?

      More than five years.

      What do I think about the stability of the solution?

      Stability is okay.

      What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

      For me it's okay, I don't have any issues with scalability.

      Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

      The decision to use Microsoft BI was made by the financial department.

      What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

      I don't have any advice as I am not in a position to recommend it. I am just an end-user, I do not develop, I do not maintain it.

      Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
      PeerSpot user
      Buyer's Guide
      Download our free Microsoft Power BI Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
      Updated: January 2025
      Buyer's Guide
      Download our free Microsoft Power BI Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.