In this present world, the need of Video Conferencing and Online Meetings are the need of the hour. The spread of the pandemic Covid 19 has increased the demand of Cloud based Online Meeting tools. Online Meetings tools help us to setup a meeting using a computer or mobile with net connection, sitting at home, office, outdoors, anywhere in the world. There is no need to travel for attending a meeting. It saves huge amounts for corporate houses in travelling and hotel expenses. Webinars can be conducted instead of seminars with a large number of people as attendees. Here the participants can join from anywhere in the world and the organizers can save money with no need to rent seminar halls or convention centers. We can also use these tools for training and for online classes at school, colleges and other educational institutions.
We are discussing about some popular tools used for cloud based Video Conferencing.
Zoom
It is a very popular tool used for Video conferencing, Webinars and Online Meetings. We have to register at their website to start using the application. Registration is free for personal use, but with limited connectivity.
Free: 100 participant limit, maximum duration of a meeting is 40 minutes, if participants are more than two. No recording is possible.
Pro: 100 participants and no limit in meeting duration. We can schedule meetings and also record them on cloud as MP4 video. You can also have add-ons like large meetings, webinars etc where more people can participate.
Business and Enterprise: Can have 300 and 500 participants respectively and no limit in meeting duration. We get more cloud space for recordings. There are also several add-ons and customization available. For business and enterprise you need to purchase a specified number or licenses.
Zoom is easy to use and has user friendly interface. Zoom app is available to download from their website for PC and in App store/Play Store for iOS and Android. Only the host need to have a Zoom account. You can share the computer/mobile screen to participants. It also has a whiteboard where we can write using a mouse or using a tablet and stylus. There is option to mute and block video of participants, if needed. Also the list of participants is presented in nice grid format. It also has meeting reports and analytics.
Website: zoom.us
Webex
It is a popular tool used for Video conferencing, Webinars and Online Meetings from Cisco. It requires you to register at their website to start using the application. Registration is free for personal use with limited connectivity.
Free: 100 participant limit, maximum duration of a meeting is 60 minutes. No recording is possible.
Personal/Small Business: 1000 participants and no limit in meeting duration. We can schedule meetings and also record them on cloud as MP4 video.
Power user: 1000 participants, no limit in meeting duration. More cloud space for recordings. Several add-ons and customization available. For power users there are different modes like Meeting, Training, Events and Support. In Training and Events we have more control over the attendees.
Webex has a professional and robust interface. You can share the computer, mobile screen to participants. It also has a whiteboard where we can write using a mouse or using a tablet and stylus. There is option to mute and block video of participants if needed. It also has meeting reports and detailed analytics. You have more control over the participants and can assign different roles to them. Webex also has option to stream video through their app, so that we can show the participants short videos. In some modesm the users need to register before joining a meet. The app is available for PC and for iOS and Android platforms.
Website: webex.com
Google Meet
A popular Video conferencing tool from Google. Any user with a gmail account can start using it. Registration is free for personal use with limited connectivity.
Free: 100 participant limit, maximum duration of a meeting is 60 minutes (until Sep 30, 2020). All participants must have a google account to join meeting.
GSuite Edition: 250 participants and no limit in meeting duration. We can schedule meetings and also record them on Google drive. You can also have webinars etc where more people can participate. A google live stream can have up to 100,000 view only participants. The options of Meet depends upon the GSuite edition you have like Basic, Business, Enterprise and Education. At present, the Education version is free as a gesture from Google to promote Education at times of the Covid pandemic.
Meet is easy to use and even works seamlessly from browsers like Google Chrome. You can share the computer/mobile screen to participants. It has a whiteboard where we can write using a mouse or using a tablet and stylus. The list of participants is presented in grid format. We can view reports and other analytics using GSuite Report Tools. GSuite users can host meetings where the participants need not have a google account to join. The app is available for iOS and Android platforms and in PC we can use a browser like Google Chrome.
Website: meet.google.com
Microsoft Teams
A good Video conferencing tool from Microsoft. It requires you to register at their website to start using the application. Registration is free for personal use. It has good features and is more secure but is not much popular.
Free: Cannot host video calls, 2GB space for collaboration, options for group chat etc.
Basic: 250 participants and no limit in meeting duration. We can schedule meetings and also record them on Onedrive. Includes web versions of Office 365 tools and 1 TB of Onedrive storage.
Enterprise: Up to 10000 participants in online events. We can schedule meetings and also record them on Onedrive. Includes web and desktop versions of Office 365 tools and unlimited storage.
Teams can be integrated with many tools. You can share the computer/mobile screen to participants. It also has a whiteboard where we can write using a mouse or using a tablet and stylus. You have good control over the participants. It also has meeting reports and analytics. The app is available for PC and for iOS and Android platforms and also works from browsers.
Website: microsoft.com
Source and Credits: Zoom Video Communications, Cisco Webex, Google, Microsoft.
Related Article: Video Conferencing – Do’s and Don’ts
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