What is Awesome Screenshot?
Awesome Screenshot is an extension for Google Chrome browsers. This amazing tool can fulfill any requirements for capturing, editing, and annotating screenshots. Plus, your screenshots with this tool can be shared easily with others.
Awesome Screenshot is a very well-received screen-capturing tool since it has surpassed over 3.5 million users all over the world. Its current version 1.0.7 extension offers quite a few features, which include taking and editing screenshots, adding comments/annotations, blurring out sensitive/unnecessary information, and, of course, sharing across a large number of platforms. The best thing about this tool is that you don’t have to leave your browser whenever you wish to take a screenshot, because it is an extension for Google Chrome.
You can try out this extension for yourself by downloading it for free from Chrome Web Store or from the Awesome Screenshot website.
How to Install Awesome Screenshot?
Downloading and installing this extension is quite simple and straightforward. When you visit the Chrome Web Store, you could search for ‘Awesome Screenshot.’ However, if you visit the Awesome Screenshot website, you will find their link to Chrome Web Store.
By clicking on the link, you will be redirected to its extension page on Chrome Web Store. You could click on the title or the ‘Add to Chrome’ link to download.
The app extension should download in a couple of seconds. However, before the download begins, you would see a new window pop up, asking for your confirmation to add the app extension to your Chrome browser and whether you wish for the download to begin. Simply click ‘Add Extension’ to allow the download to begin.
Once the download has completed, a new extension will appear in your web browser denoted by the Awesome Screenshot icon. You will also see a pop-up notification, which will confirm that the app extension has been added to Chrome. Clicking on the Awesome Screenshot icon will make its menu bar appear.
You could also choose to access the Awesome Screenshot app from your Start menu if you don’t want to use it as a browser extension. This will bring up a very easy-to-understand user interface on your desktop.
Uses of Awesome Screenshot
Awesome Screenshot offers several easy-to-understand functions to its users. These include:
- Capturing and editing your screen to make interactive screenshots
- Producing how-to videos for your tutorials
- Recording gameplay
- Capturing error messages or program issues to report them
- Capturing webinars, conferences, or online courses
- Sharing quick screenshots with personal notes or annotations
To sum it all up, Awesome Screenshot can help you capture, edit, and record anything on your desktop screen for whatever purpose suits your needs.
How to Use Awesome Screenshot (Quick Tutorial)
Up till now, you might have noticed that the Awesome Screenshot does not require any real setup, which is a plus point. Now, when you’re ready to take your first screenshot, you will have to click on the icon. The first thing you see will be a simple menu that is divided into 2 sections – ‘screenshot’ and ‘record.’ Let’s begin with the screenshot section:
Screenshots
You will see a list of options to choose from, and each of them is quite self-explanatory. The ‘Capture Visible Part of Page’ option allows you to take a screenshot of whatever browser window you are currently viewing. When you click on this option or use its key shortcut (Ctrl+Shift+V), a new window opens automatically with the screenshot. This window will be the editing window, which will allow you to further edit your screenshots.
The ‘Capture Selected Area’ option lets you select which part of your current screen you would like to take a screenshot of (shown below). Once you click on capture, you will be led to the same editing window where you can proceed by making your annotations or edits.
If you click on ‘Capture Entire Page,’ the extension will capture a screenshot of the web page you’re on without everything else on your desktop. This will include everything that supports both vertical and horizontal scrolling and will automatically lead you to the editing window.
Similarly, if you use the ‘Select a Local Image’ option, a new window will prompt you to either drag and drop an image or browse through your files to open one manually for further edits.
Finally, you could also choose the ‘Capture Desktop’ option to either capture your entire screen or a particular application window.
Edits
Once you have captured a screenshot, a new tab will be opened, which will offer you a number of editing tools and options.
These will include:
- Crop
- Pen
- Ellipse and Rectangle
- Line and Arrow
- Text/Annotations tool with a variety of font size and styles
- Highlight
- Blur
Other than these tools, the Awesome Screenshot editor will allow you to adjust the color and thickness of the arrow, ellipse, rectangle, highlighter, and text tools.
Screen Recordings
Awesome Screenshot allows up to 5 minutes of free screen recording if you choose to save them on local disk and 20 free videos on cloud storage. However, if you are looking for unlimited local video recording, you will have to upgrade to their Basic package. For an additional cloud recording, you can upgrade to their Professional or Team package.
These features will let you record your screen in a very convenient way. You could either record your desktop, a particular tab, your webcam, or everything simultaneously.
Once you are done recording in your free account, you will have the option to upload your video on YouTube or Google Drive. You can even upload it to Awesome Screenshot so you can share a link to your video. Finally, you can also download your screen recording in a WebM format.
Awesome Screenshot Comparison and Alternatives
Snagit is another very comprehensive screenshot and recording tool, which is why we thought a comparative overview with Awesome Screenshot stands to reason. We also included Windows’ own Snipping tool to help you understand why you need a new extension in the first place.
| Awesome Screenshot | Snagit | Snipping Tool |
| Can captures still images as well as screen records with system audio and microphone input | Can captures still images as well as screen records with system audio and microphone input | Only capture still shots |
| You can edit and annotate the captured shots and share it across a host of platforms. | You can edit and annotate the captured shots and share it across a host of platforms. | Can highlight and use a free-hand marking on the still images and can only share captured through an email. |
| – | Offers GIF conversion of screen recordings. | – |
| – | Can grab the text in an editable form. | – |
| Can capture both horizontally and vertically scrolling windows. | Can capture both horizontally and vertically scrolling windows. | – |
| Very user-friendly UI and easy-to-understand. | The video capturing feature may be a bit confusing for some. | Quite straightforward – but due to limited options. |
In our comparison, Snagit seems to come on top with a couple of extra features. Even though this is the case, Awesome Screenshot could be a better solution for users who prefer a less complex and straightforward tool. For more options, however, Snagit is definitely the way to go.
Pricing of Awesome Screenshot
While Awesome Screenshot is quite like any freemium application, it offers very limited free access. For a free trial, you will only have access to 30 images and basic annotation tools. For premium features, you can upgrade to one of the following:
- Basic
- Professional
- Team
Basic: The basic package costs $2/month, and it grants access to advanced annotation tools with unlimited features except for free cloud video access.
Professional: The professional package costs $6/month and grants unlimited access to cloud video recording and unlimited instant sharing. While both the free and basic packages include access to Google Drive, Dropbox, and Box drive, the professional package includes collaborative support from Slack, Trello, Asana, Gift Hub, and Jira Software.
Team: The team package has features from the professional package but for teams of 5 to 30 users. It is priced at $20 per 5 users and includes options for 5, 10, 15, 20, and 30 member teams.
Summary
Awesome Screenshot is a great screen capturing tool and very simple to understand and use. It can be used for both personal and professional use. You can learn how to use the whole extension in under 10 minutes, which is what makes it so user-friendly. However, the real fun begins when you opt for their premium packages.
With the help of Trello, Slack, and Asana, Awesome Screenshot allows users to share their screenshots and feedback in real-time, and they have come a long way from their initial release version.
| Price | ★★★★ |
| Ease of Use | ★★★★★ |
| Features | ★★★★ |
| Overall | ★★★★ |
