With the most recent release of Power BI Desktop / Services and removal of dependencies on Excel, we have lost several features and functionality. However, the gains and improvements far outweigh the losses. We gained funnel charts, gauges, donut charts, filled maps, treemaps, waterfall charts, dual axis line and column charts, area charts, custom titles, custom colors, etc.
Really, we need to compare Power BI Services & Desktop with Power Pivot and Power View for both Excel and SharePoint. I will attempt to list all known limitations of the current iteration of Power BI and tie them to Power BI support improvement suggestions: https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi
As improvements and updates are made to the Power BI Desktop and Services, we will update and try to keep track of the lost features as we gain them back in future releases.
Below is a table of a comprehensive (hopefully exhaustive) list of Power BI lost features in the current iteration, a short description of the feature/functionality, a link to a site that outlines the feature/functionality, and a link to the improvement suggestion on the Power BI site (if applicable). We will likely enter in suggestions for those that do not have one (n/a below).
| # | Feature | Description | Link | Improvement Forum Link | Added in Release |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Adjusting Column Width | Adjusting column width in a table is possible but upon refresh or attempting to resize another column, the column width is auto-adjusted to the length of the data within the column. | n/a | n/a | |
| 2 | Animated Bubble Charts | To view changes in data over time, you can add a time dimension to scatter and bubble charts, with a ‘play’ axis. Select the bubble or scatter chart and drag a field with time values to the Play Axis box. This adds a ‘play’ button and time line to the bottom of the chart. When you click the play button, the bubbles travel, grow, and shrink to show how the values change based on the play axis. You can pause at any point to study the data in more detail. When you can click a bubble on the chart, you can see its history in the trail the bubble has followed over time. | https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Bubble-and-scatter-charts-in-Power-View-bae4a433-afae-46eb-9a28-2fe09abb2a8d | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/6848219-add-animated-play-axis-on-the-bubble-chart | |
| 3 | Arrange / Bring Forward / Bring to Front / Send Backward / Send to Back | Items in the view can overlap or completely cover each other. For example, you could inset a smaller chart on a larger one. To enhance the design experience, you can bring objects forward or all the way to the front, or backward or to the back. | https://support.office.com/en-ca/article/Power-View-design-tips-3f949db8-c7cf-4ec8-880c-bb9e396c9fb9#__toc382581312 | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/6932400-add-alignment-positioning-and-sizing-controls-for | |
| 4 | Background Colors (of overall report, do have ability to change each visualization background colors) | Power View offers several different backgrounds, from solids to a variety of gradients. With the darker backgrounds the text changes to white and lighter shades of gray. | https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Format-Power-View-reports-d10715a4-0896-42aa-9e51-7eb15793479a | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/6450540-change-background-color-on-dashboard | |
| 5 | Binary Data Columns | Data-bound images are part of the data in your data model. For example, you could have photos of the employees in your company, or of your products. You can use these images in Power View in ways that make your report more meaningful and engaging: i.e. as the tabs in a tile container, in cards, or as the values in a slicer. You may need to set properties in Power Pivot so you can use images in Power View. Data-bound images may be internal or external to your data model. Their source makes a difference in how you can use them. | https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Images-in-Power-View-84e91b90-b1da-4913-83d6-beada5591fce | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/7340150-data-model-image-binary-support-in-reports | |
| 6 | Comments in Data Model | Previously, Power Pivot allowed comments to be added anywhere in the data model grid. Comments can only be added in Power BI v2 in the Measure/Column definition. | http://blog.crossjoin.co.uk/2013/05/15/comments-and-descriptions-in-dax/ | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/9423663-enhance-metadata-descriptions | |
| 7 | Data Definition Metadata | Power Pivot has the abilitty to add definitions to queries, columns, calculated fields, etc. | http://www.powerpivotpro.com/2014/03/automatically-create-data-dictionary-for-your-power-pivot-model/ | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/9423663-enhance-metadata-descriptions | |
| 8 | Default Field Sets | A default field set is a predefined list of fields that are automatically added to a Power View report view when you click the parent table in the report field list. You can create a default field set to eliminate redundant steps for reports that make heavy use of specific fields. | https://support.office.com/en-IN/article/Configure-default-field-set-for-Power-View-reports-dbebe684-c6d3-43c8-bd9d-6b39ae843995 | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/9208014-power-pivot-do-not-summarize-and-default-field | |
| 9 | Do Not Summarize | Often you’ll have values that are represented by numbers but what you really want is a count of how many times that particular number appears in your report. For example, years are numbers but rarely will you want to add up the years. In cases like this, change the default aggregation from SUM to Do Not Summarize. | https://support.office.com/en-au/article/Power-Pivot-reporting-properties-Setting-default-aggregations-6433cd4f-6669-4a72-aba0-91f5140a4f25 | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/9208014-power-pivot-do-not-summarize-and-default-field | |
| 10 | Download Model from Cloud to Desktop | Power BI was previously based on Power Pivot data models only so you were fully in charge of the data model. At this time, we are unable to download a data model (i.e. export to a pbix file and open in Power BI Desktop). | n/a | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/6856196-export-power-bi-report-in-a-pbix-file https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/7679961-download-dashboards-reports-to-a-pibx-file | |
| 12 | Hiding Tabs | Power View in Excel allows hiding Power View tabs. Power BI should allos tabs to be hidden in the case the designer would like to hide portions of the report. | n/a | n/a | |
| 13 | Hierarchies | A hierarchy is a list of columns that are considered a single item when used in a Pivot or Power View report. A hierarchy appears as a single object in the Field List. Hierarchies make it easier for users to select and navigate common paths of data when creating reports and pivot tables. | https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Hierarchies-in-Power-Pivot-002cf883-3b5f-497c-bfa1-ab2271cdb73b | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/9103420-add-custom-hierarchy-feature | |
| 14 | KPI(s) | You can add key performance indicators (KPIs) to your Power View report to show progress toward goals. | https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Key-performance-indicators-KPIs-in-Power-View-230d7f15-731e-47a5-9938-fa0f02e6b676 | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/8276622-create-kpi-in-designer-file | |
| 15 | Map Backgrounds | In Power View, you are able to modify the map background to road map, greyscale road map (default), reversed greyscale road map, aerial (satellite photo) map, or greyscale aerial map | n/a | n/a | |
| 16 | Matrix Levels | When you have a matrix with multiple fields in the rows or columns, you can set it to show levels, and that collapses the matrix to show only the top, or outermost, level. Double-clicking one value in that level expands the matrix to show the values under that one in the hierarchy. | https://support.office.com/en-ca/article/Add-drill-down-to-a-Power-View-chart-or-matrix-d67c5026-62f7-4766-9b22-3a8448c13ecd?ui=en-US&rs=en-CA&ad=CA | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/9325119-please-provide-way-to-remove-total-from-matrix-viu | |
| 17 | Metadata Search | Search is not available in the Field List. Instead, we’ve added a metadata search option to the Power Pivot window. In both Data and Diagram Views click Find on the Home tab of the Power Pivot window to search for metadata. Note that you’re not searching the data in individual cells, just the metadata of the table—for example, field names. | https://support.office.com/en-my/article/What-s-new-in-Power-Pivot-in-Microsoft-Excel-2013-930be6c5-e839-4860-8c74-8a5e2cba1279?ui=en-US&rs=en-MY&ad=MY | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/9423663-enhance-metadata-descriptions | |
| 18 | Multiples (Charts - Horizontal / Vertical) | Have you ever wanted to create a series of identical charts in Excel – same X and Y axes, but different values? Multiples are the perfect way to accomplish this. They are small repeating charts that make it easier to compare many different values at the same time. | https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Power-View-Multiples-Visualizations-848620c8-e3d0-483c-802e-2e07eb777e5a | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/7135315-multiple-y-axis-on-a-chart | |
| 19 | Named Ranges | Named Range using From Table in Power Query or using Excel.CurrentWorkbook in M; named ranges will be loaded as connection to external excel workbook. | https://support.powerbi.com/knowledgebase/articles/703422-import-excel-workbooks-into-power-bi-desktop | n/a | |
| 20 | Perspectives | One of the advantages of using the Power Pivot add-in to refine a Data Model is the ability to add perspectives. Perspectives provide custom views that you define for a particular user group or business scenario, making it easier to navigate large data sets. You can include any combination of tables, columns, and measures (including KPIs) in a perspective, and you can create multiple perspectives for various reporting constituencies in your organization. | https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Perspectives-in-Power-Pivot-43b4e178-3d89-486c-8acd-ebc63802fead | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/9283584-ability-to-connect-to-perspectives-stored-in-an-ex | |
| 21 | Pinned Filters (* Power View for SharePoint - SQL Server 2012 SP1 CU4 +) | By default, a view filter is “unpinned” and applies only to the current view, not to other views in the report. Clicking the toggle button “pins” the filter so that it appears – and your selection applies – on all views in the report. Clicking it again “unpins” the filter, reverting it to the current view only and removing it from other views. | http://blogs.msdn.com/b/sqlrsteamblog/archive/2013/12/09/pinned-filters-and-url-parameters-in-power-view.aspx | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/6557312-make-filters-that-can-apply-across-all-pages-in-a | |
| 22 | PowerPivot to SSRS connections | SSRS reports can be utilized as a data source in Power Pivot. | https://www.mssqltips.com/sqlservertip/2940/using-source-data-from-an-ssrs-report-in-powerpivot-for-excel/ | n/a | |
| 23 | Q&A Synonyms | To improve the Power BI Q&A experience, add synonyms to your data model in Power Pivot for Excel. Your users don’t know the names of the objects in your data model. Add synonyms for those tables, columns and fields so that when your users type natural language queries in Q&A, those queries are understood and the query results are relevant. | https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Add-synonyms-to-a-Power-Pivot-Excel-data-model-345f4f5b-5ec2-4998-bc46-a26bdc0810b6 | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/6728081-need-to-continue-support-global-synonyms | |
| 24 | Resizing Font | In Power View, you are able to change the font or font size for the whole sheet or change the font size for one visualization. | https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Format-Power-View-reports-d10715a4-0896-42aa-9e51-7eb15793479a#__toc370217961 | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/7045946-object-and-font-scaling | |
| 25 | Resizing Images | In Power View, you are able to resize an image properly. In Power BI Desktop, the image does not resize fully in correlation with the size of the visualization. | https://support.office.com/en-my/article/Images-in-Power-View-84e91b90-b1da-4913-83d6-beada5591fce?ui=en-US&rs=en-MY&ad=MY | n/a | |
| 26 | Single Select Slicer | In Power View, slicers switch to a single entitiy of the attribute upon selection (CTRL + adds multi-selection capabilities). In Power BI, slicers are multi-select check boxes and does not improve usability. Hopefully, there will be an option to create different types of slicers (i.e. radio, multi-select, drop down, etc.). | https://support.office.com/en-gb/article/Slicers-in-Power-View-8b3769a3-936e-45ba-85b4-f7f4f89d588b | n/a | |
| 27 | Table Behavior Settings | If you are using Power View, you can set table behavior properties to change the grouping behavior of detail rows and provides a better default placement of identifying information (such as names, photo IDs, or logo images) in tile containers, cards, and charts. | https://support.office.com/en-ie/article/Set-table-behavior-properties-for-Power-View-reports-c0e8c95e-5bb0-4bd8-a86c-6013301700ca?ui=en-US&rs=en-IE&ad=IE | n/a | |
| 28 | Themes | The 39 themes in Power View are the same as the themes in Excel. Each theme features coordinated colors and fonts. The theme is applied to the visualizations and text on your sheet; it does not replace a background image. | https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Format-Power-View-reports-d10715a4-0896-42aa-9e51-7eb15793479a#__choose_a_theme | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/6876783-color-theme-for-induvidual-power-view-sheets | |
| 29 | Tiles (Tile Slicers) | If you have to scroll a lot in your table visualizations to find the data you are looking for, you can use the tile feature in Power View to gain insights from your data much more quickly. Tiles act as navigation strips, with a single tile for each possible field value. When you click a tile, only data related to that field value is displayed. For example, in this workbook of Olympics data, each tile shows data a specific discipline. | https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Tiles-in-Power-View-62d69489-7888-4783-8c74-fcc079c7eed3 | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/9041956-tiles-need-to-work-in-power-bihttps://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/7162004-default-selected-slicer-or-tile-by-value-configura | |
| 30 | URL Filters / Parameters | Filters can also be specified in the URL when opening or creating a report - to get started open an existing report and add a new filter condition to the URL using the format &rf=[Table Name].[Field Name] eq 'Value' Multiple filters can be created by chaining together filter conditions. | http://blogs.msdn.com/b/sqlrsteamblog/archive/2013/12/09/pinned-filters-and-url-parameters-in-power-view.aspx | https://support.powerbi.com/forums/265200-power-bi/suggestions/6887060-pass-filters-in-url |
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