TOP-SHELF.de review for Smart Product Filter & Search

Sept. 25, 2024

We recently attempted to migrate from USF's "AI Search Filter" to Globo's Search & Filter app, hoping for a seamless integration. Unfortunately, we encountered several significant issues that severely hindered the app's functionality and delayed our launch timeline. Key Issues: Grouping Functionality Failures: The grouping feature did not work as expected. Despite configuring it to display only one value, all options were displayed instead. This bug was discovered early in the process and set the tone for further issues, contributing to significant delays. Collection Titles Not Displayed: Collection titles, which were correctly set in customization, did not appear in the UI’s search tree. This issue persisted even after the support team claimed it was resolved, suggesting a lack of adequate testing. Missing Entire Search Tree: At one point, the entire collection tree disappeared from the search page, rendering the filter non-functional. Despite repeated follow-ups, it took days to receive any priority from the support team, and even then, the issue remained unresolved despite claims to the contrary. Miscommunication and Delayed Resolution: Communication with Globo’s support was frustrating. We were repeatedly assured that issues had been resolved, only to find that many problems persisted. For example, only 3 out of 15 categories were visible after the team claimed the problem was fixed, reflecting a recurring pattern of miscommunication and false assurances. Inconsistent Performance: The app’s performance was erratic, with filters that worked one day disappearing the next. This inconsistency severely disrupted our workflow. One particular issue was with filters based on variant metafields, which vanished over the weekend after previously functioning without problems. Localization Challenges: The app does not support the translation of custom labels for merged values, which made it difficult to localize filters. The suggested workaround of using third-party translation apps like Langify is not a satisfactory solution for an app marketed as a full-featured filtering system. Final Nail in the Coffin: As other users have pointed out, the app’s performance is undeniably subpar. While our legacy filter app added just 180 KB to our theme payload, Globo's Search & Filter app bloated the payload by an additional 1.6 MB. This excessive increase in payload size significantly slowed down our site's performance, and ultimately, this was the final nail in the coffin for us. Conclusion: Despite its promising features, the Globo Search & Filter app suffers from critical performance issues, unreliable support, and poor optimization. The combination of persistent bugs, slow site performance, and ineffective communication from the support team makes this app difficult to recommend. Unfortunately, it has fallen far short of our expectations, and we will be reverting to our previous solution.