I would like to ask what is the best?

[rodsal23]

Hi guys, I would just like to ask what is the best FREE animation software to animate VECTOR DESIGNS that will NOT affect its resolution? I tried sketchbook pro and I was NOT satisfied with the result.

[Alfred]

2 hours ago, rodsal23 said:

I tried sketchbook pro and I was NOT satisfied with the result.

It’s what you personally find satisfactory that matters, isn’t it? Rather than asking what someone else thinks is the best, why not try them out for yourself? If they’re free to try, the only cost to you is time and effort.

[Paul Mc]

It depends on your target platform/format. There are no vector video codecs that I'm aware of. Flash was probably the only one that had a good take up but has fallen out of use. SVG supports animation, after a fashion, if you supplement it with some JavaScript but you will need some coding skills to get the best out of it as well as a good understanding of the SVG file structure. The canvas features of HTML5 have possibilities for web animation but again JavaScript skills are necessary.

I've had a similar need in the past where a client wanted a 4K version of an animation and also copies for posting on social media, or extracted stills for a website, that don't need to be the same resolution or quality. In that case I just target the highest resolution and then re-encode for the lower ones. 

Regarding free software my experience is with InkScape and Blender. Both have their strengths. My preference would be Blender as it includes the VSE (Video Sequence Editor) that allows you to compile frames and then encode them to MP4 or other codecs for final output.

 

[Alfred]

42 minutes ago, Paul Mc said:

The canvas features of HTML5 have possibilities for web animation but again JavaScript skills are necessary.

CSS/CSS3 animation doesn’t require any JavaScript at all.

https://www.w3schools.com/css/css3_animations.asp

[Paul Mc]

@Alfred Ah, yes, I'd forgotten about that. I've never used it. That might be an option too. 

[v_kyr]

You can give Synfig Studio a tryout and see if it offers what you are after.

[Alfred]

36 minutes ago, v_kyr said:

You can give Synfig Studio a tryout and see if it offers what you are after.

Synfig Studio gets my vote, for what it’s worth. The vector tweening and the bone system are impressive features for a free, cross-platform application.