Thank you for the news!
I already gave it a try, and it works. Well, been using it for years, so one would expect that. But this was on the very recently released Windows 8.1, which I realize isn't officially supported for conversions.
Admittedly, I had to do some minor workarounds, installing Converter 5.5 on an older ThinkPad T61p running Windows 8.1 Pro 64 bit. I then created a job to convert that physical laptop into a new VM, running on my ESXi 5.5 host. Took only about ~20 minutes for the actual conversion job to complete, very impressive speed.
Folks on Windows 7 and Windows 8 shouldn't hesitate to dive in and give it a try, with quirks or the need for workarounds are less likely.
Here's the article I just published, with some screenshots and more details:
Firsthand experience VMware vCenter Converter Standalone 5.5
TinkerTry.com/converter55