And suddenly the coronavirus forced you to work from home. And your children starting classes at the tutoring school via video conference. But what are the freebies? programs who offer video conferencing and what features do they have?
The coronavirus and pandemic created new conditions in both work and learning. If you find yourself working from home quickly you will realize that you will no longer have direct interaction in your work with other people. Video conferencing can help you talk face to face with those you care about, even through a screen.
Fortunately, there are many free video conferencing apps that you can use for free to connect. Let's go see them.
Google Hangouts
Supports: Up to 10 participants for unlimited duration.
If you have a Google Account then you have access to Google Hangouts. For free Gmail and G Suite Basic customers, Google Hangouts lets up to 10 people chat on one video call. The service also supports simultaneous voice chat and allows users to attend a conference via email or a shared link.
In response to the coronavirus crisis, Google has eased some restrictions for all G Suite and G Suite for Education customers, regardless of level. Customers can now make teleconferences with up to 250 participants by July 1, 2020.
Other business-level features available to all G Suite customers include the ability to stream up to 100.000 viewers in a domain and the ability to record and save appointments directly to Google Drive.
You can use Google Hangouts in most web browsers or through Google Hangouts for iPhone and Android.
CISCO Webex Meetings
Supports: Up to 100 participants for an unlimited duration.
CISCO is a name commonly associated with expensive online hardware products. Webex is the free solution for a corporate web conference.
Organize up to 100 participants in a single call, for as long as you want. There are no limits to the number of calls you can connect and in addition you have 1 GB of cloud storage with your free account. Conferences include features such as screen sharing, video recording, and file sharing.
Webex allows users in up to 52 countries to use a single phone to attend any conference. Participants who wish to use their cameras have the choice of website, desktop applications or mobile applications for iPhone and Android (with their own screen sharing capabilities).
Zoom Meetings
Supports: Up to 100 participants for 40 minutes.
Zoom is a complete video conferencing suite aimed at business users. Free account users can host video conferences for up to 100 participants, but conferences of 3 or more members are limited to 40 minutes.
You can upgrade by entering a payment plan to remove these restrictions or simply keep your sessions up to 40 minutes. There is no limit to the number of meetings you can host, so once the 40 minutes are up you can host a new call with the same people.
Zoom allows participants to participate through the web, proprietary applications, browser extensions, and mobile devices using iPhone and Android applications. Free users can also record video or audio locally on their device and share screens with other conference participants.
Skype or Whatsapp
Supports: Up to 50 participants for an unlimited duration.
Skype is a popular VoIP application that most users will have heard by now. It is suitable for video conferencing for small groups of up to 50 people (including the host), free of charge. The company launched the expanded video calling feature in April 2019, improving the previous limit of 25.
The main disadvantage of using Skype, is that each participant must register and download Skype with some property, whether it is a desktop or mobile application.
Skype includes a useful cloud-based call recording feature that any Skype member can turn on call. This will notify other participants that the call is being recorded and allows users to save and share the recording for up to 30 days.
Freeconference
Supports: Up to five video participants and 1000 audio participants for an unlimited duration.
Contrary to what the name implies, FreeConference is not exactly a free service. It is a premium service with a decent free option that can be useful in some cases. For video conferencing, FreeConference only supports up to 5 participants in the free tier.
What makes FreeConference interesting is its support for up to 1000 audio participants. The service has the ability for video calls without software, allowing most users to connect to a simple browser.
FreeConference also offers mobile applications for iPhone and Android, which are open to free users. Unfortunately, it is not possible to record the call unless you are willing to upgrade to a paid package.
Jitsi
Supports: An "unlimited" number of participants for an unlimited duration.
Jitsi is a 100% free and open source service, with an amazing set of features. You can choose between using the hosted version of Jitsi at meet.jit.si or you can download and host your own video conferencing solution for complete flexibility.
The main thing with Jitsi is that its free service does not require any kind of registration, nor does it require you to download any software. the presses are made through the browser, stating a name and then sharing the link that will be created to the users who want to participate in the video conference.
The theoretically "unlimited" number of participants is remarkable. The service supports subscribers by phone, all you have to do is dial a number in the US. The service supports screen sharing and has mobile applications for iPhone and Android.
Για να καταγράψετε τη συνδιάσκεψή σας στο Jitsi, μπορείτε να μεταβείτε στο YouTube και μετά να περάσετε τον σύνδεσμο (ιδιωτικό ή μη) ή απλά να κάνετε λήψη του αρχείου για φύλαξη. Δεν υπάρχουν επίπεδα premium για το Jitsi και η τηλεδιάσκεψη παραμένει δωρεάν.
Keep working remotely
Video conferencing is a powerful tool for businesses, students, pupils and groups who want to stay connected over long distances and have been prevented from doing so by the coronavirus. It's also a great way to stay in touch with friends and classmates on a daily basis.
Until the coronavirus pandemic is over, stay home, safe but connected.
