Blog
January 7, 2021
Which plan is best for you?
How many licenses should you get?
What training do you need?
These are important questions for anyone serious about upgrading digital quality with support from Perfecto. Answers (as you would expect) vary remarkably from one customer to another.
To help you, I’ve gathered the top considerations based on my experience working closely with soon-to-be customers as they figure out the most sensible package for their testing reality.
While cost is certainly a consideration for you package, I always urge teams to visit this topic with value in mind. How much less will I spend on time, resources, bug fixes, etc.?
OK, let’s talk cloud first.
Should You Go For Public Cloud or Private Cloud?
Perfecto offers both public (devices shared by multiple companies/users) and private cloud options for web and mobile app testing.
The public cloud gives shared access to a predetermined pool of real and virtual devices (list here). The devices in the private cloud are yours and yours alone.
Public Cloud
Public clouds devices are shared among customers, then wiped clean for the next user. In order to make sure everyone can access the devices they need, a time limit is in place.
Pros
- Fast, easy entry point for improving quality.
- Smaller investment than the private cloud.
- Better security and scalability than on-premises tech.
Who Picks Public Cloud?
Organizations large and small take advantage of the public cloud. However, it’s typically selected by:
- Orgs without stringent security needs & protocols.
- Teams beginning with cloud-based testing.
- Teams looking for a more robust alternative to common device labs.
Private Cloud
Perfecto private cloud plan offers dedicated devices for individual teams to test against. Unlike the public cloud, you choose which devices and browsers you want. Devices can be allocated to teams as needed and there are no time limits. Within the private cloud, your organization has full control over the devices and security, including VPN and whitelisting.
Pros
- No time limits on devices. Dedicated devices give you 24/7 device availability for your organization, so you never have to worry about devices being in-use when you need them.
- Advanced testing capabilities. For example, Perfecto’s private clouds come with access to cellular service, allowing you to do real user simulation testing, Fingerprint/FaceID enrollment, SIM cards, and test your app under varying network conditions.
Who Picks Private Cloud?
Dedicated devices are the preferred testing method for certain industries needing to meet strict security protocols, such as banking and financial services.
Private cloud packages also come with advanced features and unlimited scaling. The private cloud offering is perfect for organizations seeking full control over the devices, value the private security that can be applied to this type of cloud, or are looking to scale test automation.
Dedicated devices give you 24/7 device availability for your organization, so you never have to worry about devices being in-use when you need them.
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How Many Parallel Tests Should You Buy?
Perfecto currently offers three kinds of packages: Live, Automated, or Enterprise. While you can run unlimited tests with any of them, you’ll need to determine how many parallel tests you need to buy.
To understand which you should get and/or how much of each you need, you should consider this basic question: how many devices do you need access to at the same time for any given test?
Perfecto licensing is based on concurrency — whether you’re doing automated testing, manual testing, or both.
Live Plan
Consider how many devices need to be used by manual testers at once.
If you have 30 testers, but know that only 10 phones need to be used at the same time, you would buy 10 parallel from the Live package.
Automate Plan
Consider concurrency needed across manual & automated testing practices.
Let’s say you’ve decided to speed up your testing with automation and want to execute the same test against a combination of 8 different browsers and mobile devices.
Then you would buy 8 parallel of the Automate package.
If you’re doing a combination of manual and automated testing, you’ll simply add it all up with some attention as to WHEN you need the devices.
If we combine the above examples (30 manual testers needing 10 devices and automation testing on 8 browsers/devices concurrently) into a single organization, we see that we need 18 parallel of the Automate plan.
If 18 parallel seems like too much for now, you can always factor in timing. For example, could you run your automated regression suites in parallel overnight on the same 10 devices that your manual testers need during the day. In that case, you’d likely buy 10 parallel.
There are many ways to slice it, but some simple math will get you in the ballpark of pricing with Perfecto.
Please reach out to our team with any pricing questions.
Do You Need Training or Professional Services?
At Perfecto, we’re more than our technology. It’s our people and expertise that customers value and rely on most.
Should you add training and services to you plan?
That depends.
A better question: What are you goals and what’s in the way of realizing them?
If you’re just getting started and want to hit the ground automating, consider the Blueprint Foundation Service. You’ll get ten fully functional, CI-ready automated test cases, designed by our experts to fit your testing context.
If, on the other hand, you need more robust, holistic, and intensive assistance, consider the Black Belt Program. You get access to a Perfecto automation expert who works closely with your team to incorporate long-lasting best practices.
If you want to jumpstart your onboarding and get everyone up to speed on Perfecto, consider our Perfecto University courses. Whether self-serve online or hosted by a virtual or in-person instructor, you can get everyone up to speed.
The point here is this: whatever you goals are (from the most basic to the most ambitious), with Perfecto you always have a partner who has been there and is willing to bring best practices.
Bottom Line
Public or private cloud. Number of parallel tests. Professional services. These are the three main factors to consider when figuring out what your investment in Perfecto might look like. Some of these decisions may be cut and dry to you. Others may be gray areas. That’s OK! The goal for us at Perfecto is to get you exactly what you need to get the most value out of your testing efforts.
Have questions on pricing or packages? Reach out to our team today.