Skype vs. Google video conferencing – who wins the battle?
If you were given the freedom to choose, would you rather use Skype video conferencing or would you rather go for Google video conferencing instead? Well, those who have been using Skype for one-on-one video chats may choose it over the other without batting an eyelash. After all, the clarity of its audio and video components is quite superior compared to other video chat applications.
However, those who have been encountering issues regarding Skype will most likely try other video chat applications, such as Google Chat videos and the new Google+ Hangouts. So, which of these two is really the better choice? To answer this question, let's try to compare them side by side.
Comparing the Features
Video conferencing has been connecting people all over the world for quite some time now. It has been keeping families and friends close despite the distance that stands between them. It is also now being used by businesses as a cost-effective alternative to face-to-face meetings [3].
Knowing the importance of keeping in touch, which video chat application should you use? To help you make a more informed decision, you may want to see how these two applications stack up against each other.
Number of Participants
With the new Google+ Hangouts, you can invite up to nine people to video chat with you without encountering any problems. The best part is that you can do it for free! With Skype, you need to upgrade to the paid Premium level before you can do group video chats. However, some people still find it difficult to do more than one-on-one video chats even with a paid subscription. So, in this department, Google clearly wins the battle.
Available Apps
Skype allows you to send files and share your screen with the person you are chatting with. With Google+ Hangouts, you have a wide variety of apps to play around with. It comes integrated with Google Docs so you can share your files and documents, write notes using a shared whiteboard and use Cacoo to create and share diagrams with your team. It even lets you visit your Facebook page, watch YouTube and play games with your friends while video chatting.
Setup and Maintenance Requirements
If you want to use Skype, you need to download the application, install it into your computer and perform regular updates. With Google, you don't need to do any of these. All you'll ever need is an Internet connection, a browser and a Google+ account, and you are pretty much set.