Google Meet, the revolutionary video conferencing and chat platform

After being invite-only and quietly releasing an iOS app in February 2017, Google officially launched Meet in March 2011. The service was unveiled as a video conferencing app for up to 30 participants, described as a business-ready version of Hangouts. It launched with a web app, Android app, and iOS app in the sales enablement market.

What is Google Meet and how does it work?

In this article, we explain what Google Meet is and how it works.

Google Meet is Google’s video conferencing service. It's a great solution for individuals and businesses to connect via audio and video calls. It originated from Google Hangouts but has unique features. We'll explain how to create or join a Google Meet meeting.

Google Meet is a video conferencing service provided by Google. Initially available only to business customers, anyone can now use Google Meet for free. Google Meet is available on the web, Android smartphones and tablets, and iOS devices. Google Meet is mainly designed for organizing video meetings. However, the camera and microphone can be enabled separately, so it can be used for voice calls only if needed.

Create an ad hoc call to invite friends and family. You can enter the meeting code to join or send a clickable link. One advantage of Google Meet is that it doesn't require any desktop software installation. All call participants (hosts and attendees) just need a modern web browser.

What are the best features of Google Meet?

On the free plan, Google Meet supports meetings up to one hour, though this was extended to 24 hours until September 30, 2020.

You can create and join as many meetings as you want, so nothing stops you from starting a second meeting if you reach the time limit.

Up to 100 participants can join the same meeting. As the meeting organizer, you can mute others, which is helpful if your meetings get that large.

Google Meet does its best to filter out all non-voice background noise. It also has a live captioning feature that automatically captions what people say. This makes it more reliable and accessible.

You can also share your screen with all call participants. This can be a specific window or your entire desktop, and it also works on mobile.

Finally, Google states that "video conferencing is encrypted in transit" and that "our suite of security measures is constantly updated to provide extra protection." Enterprise-level security is available for business users, but the privacy settings are suitable for the average user.

How much does Google Meet cost?

Google Meet is free for everyone to create and join calls. All you need is a Google account (which you have if you use Gmail), and that's free too.

However, some Google Meet features are only available with a paid G Suite subscription. This costs €10/active user/month. G Suite is aimed at business users and is Google's suite of collaboration and productivity apps.

• Some extra features G Suite offers for Google Meet include:
• 300-hour meeting duration
• 250 meeting participants
• US or international phone numbers
• Meeting recordings saved to Google Drive
• 24/7 online support

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How to start a Google Meet call?

To start a Google Meet call on your computer, visit the Google Meet website. Click Start a new meeting. If you're not signed in, you'll be prompted to log in to your Google account.

You'll see the waiting room. Your browser will likely ask for permission for meet.google.com to access your microphone and webcam, so allow both. Use the preview area to get ready and click Join now to start the meeting.

A window appears with a link you can share so others can join the call. You can view it anytime by clicking Meeting details at the bottom left.

To start a Google Meet call on your phone or tablet, open the Google Meet app and tap New meeting. A pop-up will show the meeting invitation details. Tap Share to send it directly to someone in another app.

How to join a Google Meet call

There are two ways to join a Google Meet call:

1. Use a Google Meet invitation link

The first is to ask the meeting host to send you the invitation link.

Click the link on your desktop to automatically join the meeting. If you're not already signed in, you'll need to log in to your Google account, but if your host uses G Suite, this step isn't necessary.

On your mobile device or tablet with the Google Meet app installed, tap the link to launch the app and join the meeting.

2. Use a Google Meet meeting code

The second method is to ask the host for the meeting code. You can then enter it to join the meeting. On your desktop, go to the Google Meet website, enter the code in the Enter meeting code field, then click Join. On mobile and tablet, open the Google Meet app, tap Meeting code, fill in the fields, then tap Join meeting.