Monstroid 2 WordPress Theme Review
My review of the first version of Monstroid was popular enough to warrant a review of the Monstroid 2 WordPress theme, which was recently released by Template Monster. I’ll have to admit that my review of the first version of this theme had me a little skeptical about where they were going with this. I’m pleased to say that the couple of years since they developed the first one, has given them time to make vast improvements. I’m going to cover a few highlights about the Monstroid 2 WordPress theme.
Speed
Monstroid 2 doesn’t seem as bloated as the first one. The whole process is more streamlined and takes less time to set up. You’ll see in the video, that in the first run through I was able to install the demo data in just a couple of minutes. This is a huge improvement over the first version of this theme. Installing the demo data was much easier this time, because the entire process is more streamlined. It’s simpler to do, and you don’t have as many options to choose from. All it boils down to is reading carefully and choosing the right option that fits your needs.
Stability
Monstroid 2 seems to be much more stable than the previous version. This is surprising, considering it has a page builder in the backend. Sometimes, these page builders can cause your browser to crash, or it can cause other issues. Occasionally, I would get an error or some sort of pick up in the first version when installing demo data or working in the backend. There seem to be too many parts and pieces to the previous version. However, Monstroid 2 seems to be much more integrated as a solid WordPress theme. Monstroid 2 is not some sort of Frankenstein monstrosity like its predecessor.
Skins
After a quick install, the Monstroid 2 WordPress theme gives you several options between different skins, depending on the type of website you’re trying to build. If you have a general idea of what type of website your wanting to build, you can use one of these skins as a base for your website. This makes it much easier to visualize your website as a whole, enabling you to plug in images and text as needed. This makes the construction process of building your website quicker and easier.
Modular page builder
Page builders are becoming a staple of any serious word press theme framework. Monstroid 2 is no different. They added a much more robust page builder, which enables you to create any layout you can imagine. You can plug in different modules and customize your layout and design. Each module has its own settings, which enable you to customize the look and feel of that section. Instead of custom coding each section, or struggling with CSS and selectors, you can refine things like margin and padding inside of each module. This gives you complete control over spacing and the overall look and feel of your website. This takes a lot of the struggle out of the construction process of building your website.
The modules also enable you to add features to specific sections of any page. The premade page templates provided in the demo data make it easy for you to customize and edit different layouts. You have many different layouts to choose from, but if you want to customize a specific section it is easy to do with the modules in the backend. You can customize things like the number of columns, as well as specialized layouts with varying widths.
Details
As people always say, the devil is in the details. This is especially true with any sort of WordPress theme that bills itself as a multiuse theme. Monstroid 2 enables you to add extra little details that people love, like hover effects and animations. People love it when they hover over an icon or a graphic, and it does something like change colors or shape. Having elements slide in as you scroll down the page is definitely a nice feature. It’s also fully controllable from the back end of your website. This enables you to create your own custom experience for anyone visiting your website.
Added features
The ability to create a booking calendar for your clients is something that is very useful. A lot of my clients provide services, where they schedule blocks of time for their customers. Enabling your customers to go online and schedule an appointment with you on your website, makes it extremely convenient. It also makes sure that you don’t miss out on opportunities. It makes it really easy, when your customers condone your website and book an hour of your time without having to make a phone call or talk to someone.
There are also several other plug-ins integrated with Monstroid 2. You can create a restaurant menu, add an events calendar, integrate social media, and more.
My verdict
The first version of Monstroid and the Monstroid 2 WordPress theme aren’t even in the same categories. Monstroid 2 is much quicker, and packed with much more features than its predecessor. Another thing I really like is the GPL license, which costs a couple of bucks extra, but is well worth it to be able to install Monstroid 2 on as many websites as you want. This really maximizes the bang for your buck. When you need to build a website quickly, I’m definitely going to add The Monstroid 2 WordPress theme to my arsenal. In the coming weeks, I plan on putting Monstroid 2 through its paces, to see how it holds up when building different client websites.
Did you watch the video? Would you think about Monstroid 2? Do you think it would be a solid choice for your website? Please leave your thoughts in the comment section below.
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