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RealTerm VS Serial Port Monitor

Compare RealTerm VS Serial Port Monitor and see what are their differences

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LibHunt tracks mentions of software libraries on relevant social networks. Based on that data, you can find the most popular projects and their alternatives. featured
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RealTerm logo RealTerm

RealTerm is a terminal program specially designed for capturing, controlling and debugging binary...

Serial Port Monitor logo Serial Port Monitor

The tool to test, log and analyze serial port data - RS232 sniffer software.
  • RealTerm Landing page
    Landing page //
    2019-02-24
  • Serial Port Monitor Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-02-25

RealTerm features and specs

  • Versatility
    RealTerm supports multiple communication protocols such as RS232, RS485, and USB, making it highly versatile for various serial communication projects.
  • Hexadecimal Display
    It allows users to display data in hexadecimal format, which is useful for debugging binary protocols and interpreting non-text data.
  • Scriptable and Automatable
    RealTerm can be controlled via scripting languages like Python, making it suitable for automated testing and repetitive tasks.
  • Advanced Terminal Features
    Features like capturing data to files, controlling modem lines, and manipulating baud rates provide advanced capabilities for power users.
  • Free and Open Source
    RealTerm is a free tool available under the GPL license, making it accessible to hobbyists and professionals without any cost.

Possible disadvantages of RealTerm

  • User Interface
    The user interface is considered outdated and can be overwhelming for new users, making the learning curve steep.
  • Windows Only
    RealTerm is only available for Windows, limiting its usability for users on other operating systems like Linux or macOS.
  • Limited Documentation
    The documentation is not very comprehensive, which can make troubleshooting and learning to use advanced features difficult.
  • Performance Issues
    RealTerm can sometimes exhibit performance issues such as lag or crashes, especially when handling large amounts of data.
  • No Active Development
    The project is not actively maintained, which means users may encounter bugs or security vulnerabilities that will not be fixed in future updates.

Serial Port Monitor features and specs

  • Real-time Monitoring
    Serial Port Monitor allows users to track serial port communication in real-time, enabling quick troubleshooting and analysis of data flow between devices.
  • Comprehensive Data Analysis
    Offers detailed data tracking and logging features, which help in performing in-depth analysis of serial port communications and debugging issues effectively.
  • User-friendly Interface
    The software interface is designed to be intuitive and easy to use, making it accessible for both beginners and advanced users.
  • Compatibility
    Supports various protocols and is compatible with different types of serial ports, allowing users to work with a wide range of devices.
  • Custom Filters
    Offers the ability to apply custom filters to the data stream, aiding in focusing on specific data packets and simplifying the analysis process.
  • Data Export
    Enables the export of captured data to different file formats for further analysis and reporting.

Possible disadvantages of Serial Port Monitor

  • Cost
    The software is not free and might be considered expensive for individual users or small businesses with limited budgets.
  • Learning Curve
    While the interface is user-friendly, there might still be a learning curve for users new to serial port monitoring and data analysis.
  • Resource Intensive
    Running the software, especially during extensive monitoring tasks, may require considerable system resources, potentially affecting the performance of older computers.
  • Windows Only
    Currently, the software is only available for Windows operating systems, limiting its usability for those using macOS or Linux without a virtual machine or dual boot setup.
  • Limited Support for New Protocols
    May not offer immediate support for the latest or more obscure communication protocols, requiring users to wait for updates.

Analysis of RealTerm

Overall verdict

  • RealTerm is considered a reliable and effective terminal program, especially for tasks that require detailed control over serial communications. While its interface might be somewhat complex for new users, its robust feature set is highly appreciated by those familiar with debugging and data analysis tasks.

Why this product is good

  • RealTerm is a high-performance terminal program designed for capturing, controlling, and debugging binary and other difficult data streams. Its features include support for various communication protocols, customizable display options, and powerful logging capabilities. These features make it particularly useful for developers and engineers working on embedded systems or needing to interact with hardware devices directly.

Recommended for

  • Electrical engineers working with serial communication interfaces
  • Developers needing to debug embedded systems
  • Professionals dealing with hardware device testing
  • Users requiring custom baud rates and communication settings

RealTerm videos

+ Add

Test TCP-IP to Serial ( ESP8266 - Realterm ) Arduino IDE : PDAControl

More videos:

  • Review - realterm frp bypass

Serial Port Monitor videos

No Serial Port Monitor videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

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Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to RealTerm and Serial Port Monitor)

RealTerm

Serial Port Monitor

SSH
73 73%
SSH
27% 27
Server Management
70 70%
Server Management
30% 30
Server Configuration And Automation
81 81%
Server Configuration And Automation
19% 19
Software Development
0 0%
Software Development
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare RealTerm and Serial Port Monitor

RealTerm Reviews

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Serial Port Monitor Reviews

  1. Michael Hebenstreit
    It simply worked

    I'm working on a BIOS for a Z80 computer. The only way to interface with the system is the serial interface. Unfortunately some features like the Xmodem support are very tricky to debug. There is no terminal software I have found that would log the complete communication between the remote device and the terminal software. I was already thinking about writing a minimal terminal software with this capability, but then I found Serial Port Monitor. AND IT WORKED OUT OF THE BOX. I had tried some similar software already but always met "cannot open port" issues. I know since X64 Windows serial port monitoring has become difficult - even Microsoft does not support their old Portman software anymore.

  2. Jesudas Victor
    Good serial port monitor for reverse-engineering

    I haven't found a good free tool that will emulate a port and record/replay comms. So I chose the commercial option. I heard a lot of good things about Serial Port Monitor, which is a software port emulator. You can "connect" a physical serial port through it, so that your software uses the (monitored) virtual port, and forwards all traffic to/from a physical port. Very simple and easy to use!

    👍 Pros:    Easy user interface|High quality
  3. Eric Flaherty
    · tester at Serial Port Monitor ·
    Great monitoring app

    Among all those COM-port monitoring apps I’ve ever test-driven, only Serial Port Monitor was both thoroughly reliable and simple to run. Plus, its interface is pretty self-explanatory, so I didn’t have to dig into some manuals to make the app work.

    🏁 Competitors: Advanced Serial Port Monitor
    👍 Pros:    Easy user interface|Easy to use|Good support

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, RealTerm seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 2 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

RealTerm mentions (2)

  • Identifying UART / Serial access
    Putty and Screen are are garbage for working with serial, especially when you don't know the specification. Use RealTerm https://realterm.sourceforge.io/. Source: about 2 years ago
  • How do graph output from a serial port when I don't know exactly what signal its sending?
    This is not really Labview stuff, but there's a nice little terminal program called Realterm I've been using whenever I need to decrypt unknown serial stuff. It's really nuts and bolts sort of a software and you can easily turn the message into binary or hexadecimal and flip all the control bits and all that neat stuff. Source: over 3 years ago

Serial Port Monitor mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Serial Port Monitor yet. Tracking of Serial Port Monitor recommendations started around Mar 2021.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing RealTerm and Serial Port Monitor, you can also consider the following products

Tera Term - Tera Term (Pro) is a free software terminal emulator (communication program) for MS-Windows.

Advanced Serial Port Monitor - This program allows you to check the flow of data through a computer's COM ports.

HTerm - HTerm is a terminal emulator for serial communication.

Listen32 - Listen32 tap into RS-232 transmit signals for monitoring bi-directional communications between two...

PuTTY - Popular free terminal application. Mostly used as an SSH client.

Bill Serial Port Monitor - Free Software to monitor (bi-directional) Serial Port communication RS232 between two devices, use...

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