Top 4 Video Meeting Applications

As working from home increases in popularity, job holders, project managers, and freelancers have to join meetings for submitting reports and conducting strategic discussions or brainstorming sessions. There are many apps to choose from. How to find the best one? Here, we are going to discuss the 4 best conferencing apps that we’ve found.

Skype

Skype is a service that allows users to make free video calls to other Skype accounts. Free instant messages and file sharing are also allowed. You can have a group meeting with your colleagues and present anything through the screen-sharing feature. 

This makes it much simpler to conduct discussions, create individual impacts, and deliver information in a more memorable manner. It has a recording feature that can be used for recording meetings whenever you are having a call. For the free version, recordings are available for up to 30 days.

Availability: Desktop computer and Mobile.

Pros:

• Screen sharing option
• Installation is quite simple
• Affordable paid subscriptions
• Secure calling experience
• Virtual backgrounds
• Live captions (transcriptions/subtitles)

Cons:

• On Skype, sound quality is determined by the bandwidth
• Background noise can be heard relatively clearly
• The live captions quality is not amazing

Where to get Skype: https://www.skype.com/en/get-skype/ 

Zoom

Zoom is a cloud-based videoconferencing service. It is designed for businesses to operate remotely and provides a wide range of services to meet the demands of every organization. The features include video and audio conferencing, collaboration, chat, and webinars. With more than 20 000 businesses using the service, Zoom has become incredibly popular within the corporate sector. The platform also facilitates the integration of social media, such as Zoom Live on Facebook. If you have a company with a few employees, Zoom will meet all of your communication needs.

Availability: Desktop computer and Mobile.

Pros: 

• Shareable links to a meeting can be provided and people can join with ease (you need Zoom already installed for this)
• Allows Large Audiences in a meeting (up to 100 people in the free version)
• Your meetings and webinars can be streamed on Facebook
• Supports Google Calendar
• The free version is suitable for small and medium business
• Easy to use
• Screen sharing option
• Unlimited meetings, even in the free version
• Video recordings

Cons:

• Although you can host unlimited meetings, the free version lets you host up to 40 minutes per meeting. 
• Lack of Comment Control
• No HD video option in the free version (supports only 720p)
• Recording resolutions may be inconsistent 

Where to Download: https://zoom.us/support/download 

Slack

Slack is a communication app for business. Slack makes it simple to contact your coworkers. It was created to make working for your entire team simpler and more efficient, but there are a few things to keep in mind as you research the platform. You'll be able to choose the ideal method for conveying your desired message more easily if you fully comprehend the advantages and disadvantages of Slack.

Availability: Desktop computer and Mobile.

Pros:

• For each customer, you might set up Slack channels to which all staff members contributing to the project have access.
• Your data within the platform is always protected
• It makes it simple to share information and work together in real-time. This is an excellent solution for situations where you want a quick answer about a deadline.
• It's simple to discuss off-topic material with coworkers. 
• Easy to use

Cons:

• Your communications will no longer be available after 14 days. Therefore, you should take important notes from the communications.
• Minimum file storage. You get the space you pay for. For the free version, you will get 5GB for your entire workplace.
• Notifications. Slack has a tendency to ping you with notifications after notifications throughout the day. I may get annoyed sometimes.

Where to Download Slack:

• Windows: https://slack.com/downloads/windows 
• Mac: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/slack-for-desktop/id803453959?mt=12
• Android: https://slack.com/downloads/android
• iOS: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/slack/id618783545 

Google Meet

Using this app is as easy as getting it. You can just go to https://meet.google.com/?pli=1 and create a meeting link, then share the link or the code with your colleagues. Your colleagues can join with their browser version — no need for them to download anything. 

Availability: Available for computer and mobile.

Pros:

• Ability to invite up to 100 participants
• 60 minutes per meeting at no cost
• Integrates flawlessly with other Google Workspace products
• Ability to start a meeting instantly
• Screen Sharing

Cons:

• Session recording functionality only works with the computer
• Video quality depends on the bandwidth, however, works well with poor connections

Where to get Google Meet: https://meet.google.com/ 

Conclusion:

It can be a little challenging to determine the best one, but depending on your needs, you may start whichever you think fits. Personally, I prefer Skype and Zoom.