Pencil2D vs Animation Desk

Struggling to choose between Pencil2D and Animation Desk? Both products offer unique advantages, making it a tough decision.

Pencil2D is a Photos & Graphics solution with tags like 2d-animation, handdrawn-animation, free-animation-software, opensource-animation.

It boasts features such as Vector and raster drawing tools, Onion skinning, Intuitive timeline for animation, Ability to create cutout animations, Support for layers and frames, Import and export images, Record audio alongside animations, Customizable keyboard shortcuts, Drawing symmetry tool, Color palette management and pros including Free and open source, Easy to use interface, Good for beginners, Active community support, Cross-platform availability.

On the other hand, Animation Desk is a Photos & Graphics product tagged with animation, 2d-animation, framebyframe-animation, beginner-animation.

Its standout features include Drawing tools like pencil, eraser, fill bucket, Onion skinning for animating frame by frame, Basic editing tools like flip, rotate, resize, Supports common image formats like PNG, JPG, GIF, Customizable canvas size, Onion skinning, Frame-by-frame animation, Basic sound and lip sync, and it shines with pros like Free and easy to use, Good for beginners, Simple interface, Cross-platform.

To help you make an informed decision, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison of these two products, delving into their features, pros, cons, pricing, and more. Get ready to explore the nuances that set them apart and determine which one is the perfect fit for your requirements.

Pencil2D

Pencil2D

Pencil2D is a free and open-source 2D animation software. It allows users to create traditional hand-drawn animation with an intuitive and easy to use interface. Pencil2D is available for Linux, Mac OS X and Windows.

Categories:
2d-animation handdrawn-animation free-animation-software opensource-animation

Pencil2D Features

  1. Vector and raster drawing tools
  2. Onion skinning
  3. Intuitive timeline for animation
  4. Ability to create cutout animations
  5. Support for layers and frames
  6. Import and export images
  7. Record audio alongside animations
  8. Customizable keyboard shortcuts
  9. Drawing symmetry tool
  10. Color palette management

Pricing

  • Free
  • Open Source

Pros

Free and open source

Easy to use interface

Good for beginners

Active community support

Cross-platform availability

Cons

Limited animation features compared to premium software

Occasional bugs and crashes

Lack of documentation

No native video export

Limited file format support


Animation Desk

Animation Desk

Animation Desk is a free 2D animation software for Windows. It provides a simple interface for creating frame-by-frame animations and basic editing tools. Good for beginners learning 2D animation.

Categories:
animation 2d-animation framebyframe-animation beginner-animation

Animation Desk Features

  1. Drawing tools like pencil, eraser, fill bucket
  2. Onion skinning for animating frame by frame
  3. Basic editing tools like flip, rotate, resize
  4. Supports common image formats like PNG, JPG, GIF
  5. Customizable canvas size
  6. Onion skinning
  7. Frame-by-frame animation
  8. Basic sound and lip sync

Pricing

  • Free

Pros

Free and easy to use

Good for beginners

Simple interface

Cross-platform

Cons

Limited features compared to paid software

No vector or bone animation

Lacks timeline for complex projects

Cannot export video directly