Video conferencing has become a way of life for a lot of companies right now whose people are working from home. Zoom is probably the most popular right now but we’re all aware of the various security issues it is facing right now. If your company is using G Suite or if you want to have a free trial, they actually have a pretty good service you can use. Its was formerly called Hangouts Meet but is now officially Google Meet. The latest update brings a new tiled gallery view that will be familiar to Zoom users.
Even if 100 to 250 people can join in on one video conference, previously only four people can be on the screen at a time. Now the latest update will bring users a tiled gallery view where up to 16 people can be on the screen together. It’s a far cry from the 49 people that Zoom can allow but it’s a pretty good number for times when all the participants need to see more people on the screen, whether it’s a seminar, a brainstorming, a project briefing, etc.
The tiled layout will adjust to show which are the active speakers. And if there are more than 16 people in the call, you’ll see an option to open the list of participants so you can still see who else is in the meeting with you. This feature was actually already announced earlier this month but now we finally see it rolling out gradually to users. By end of April, all Google Meet users should have the tiled layout. It’s currently available in the web version only.
Another new feature is present a Chrome tab. You will be able to present higher-quality video with audio content when you’re in a video conference. Everyone in the meeting will be able to see and hear the video that is being shared, including gifs, animations, and other media. Since presenters can now present with a tab rather than a window, they can have more control and minimize other distractions as well.
The update also brings better video quality for those who are in dim lighting and the ability to filter out background noise. The present a Chrome tab feature is now rolling out while the other improvements will be coming later this year.
