Recs.
Updated
Specs
Pros
Pro Tab support
ConEmu allows the user to create tabs (Win+W by default) for separate instances of the terminal window, allowing them to have both multiple shells and multiple instances of the same shell open. The user can also set up a startup directory for each tab and run each tab as a specific user or rights.
Pro Run simple GUI apps within a ConEmu tab
With -new_console and -cur_console switches you can run simple GUI apps in a ConEmu tab (or split).
Pro Transparent, Quake-style mode
You can set up ConEmu as a transparent, Quake-style console by following these instructions.
Cons
Con Layering of features per tab works with limited functionality
Can't do all of this, but it can theme colors per terminal:
Tab 1: I want it transparent, with a fixed background, with a certain color scheme, running powershell
Tab 2: Similar thing, but different bg, theme, and running posh as admin
Tab 3: Similar thing, but different bg, theme, and running cygwin
Con Bad scrolling support
The mouse wheel scroll doesn't transfer to terminal applications by default. It moves to the blank space instead of scrolling actual text content. This is especially true for ConEmu where there doesn't seem to be a way to make it work better.
Con It is slow
If you have a console process that outputs a lot, ConEmu will be the slowest option. Everything else will be faster. Even Terminus, which is, common, a packed web browser app. In my tests if ConEmu takes one unit of time, Terminus and Windows Terminal will be 0.6, FluentTerminal 0.35, Alacritty 0.3.
Con Screen scrapes from real console
ConEmu always runs the standard Windows console - ‘real console’, but it is hidden most of time.
This adds overhead, introduces another layer of complexity, and frequently creates irritating strange glitches (lost keys, messed up spacing) for heavy users.
Con No remote connections
A terminal emulator should emulate a terminal, i.e. a local input/output device to a remote computer. ConEmu can only run local processes in a window (albeit nicer than the local command shell window).