When comparing Animation Desk vs Adobe XD, the Slant community recommends Adobe XD for most people. In the question“What are the best tools for prototyping mobile interactions/animations?” Adobe XD is ranked 4th while Animation Desk is ranked 19th. The most important reason people chose Adobe XD is:
It's easy to be productive immediately with XD but it also includes a demo so that you can learn about some of the more powerful features.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Quick sketch
Great for light sketches, and some drafting for your animation.
Pro Free to use
Some features may require purchases but the app free as is, and works fine.
Pro Works on different platforms
It supports almost every major platforms, so working on iOS, Android, and Windows devices is not a problem.
Pro Photoshop compatible
Supports PSD file import/export, can export your draft to Photoshop easily for further works.
Pro Easy to use interface
It's easy to be productive immediately with XD but it also includes a demo so that you can learn about some of the more powerful features.
Pro Cross platform
It's available on both macOS and Windows.
Pro Repeat grid is a timesaver
Creating a list of items is simple with "repeat grid." Just create one and use repeat grid to duplicate that item vertically or horizontally. Then drag and drop text or images to create unique entries for each repeated item.
Pro UI Kits are available for iOS, Material Design, and more
Includes:
- iOS
- Google Material Design
- Windows UWP
- Wireframes
Pro Share online and gather feedback
Allows mockups to be pushed to the web where collaborators can try the mockup and leave feedback.
Pro Interactive mockups
XD allows you to wire any object to any destination page so that clicking a button asset will take you to a page that you specify.
Mockups can also simulate a scrolling page or window.
Cons
Con Android version is not as extensive as the iOS version
Some of the options that are present in the iOS version of Animation Desk Cloud aren't integrated in the Android application. For example, features such frame labeling isn't available.
Con Doesn't include any mobile prototyping specific features
Con iOS free cloud version has no sound options
Con No tools for animation
It is possible to create transitions, but this feature is very limited.
Con Only good for mockups
XD is not a multi-purpose tool like Sketch. It is not a good tool for logos, icons, or other design assets.