Google Duo : Application Review; What does this new video call app have in store for us?

OnlineSearch.net
Jul 29, 2017 · 5 min read
Google Duo : Application Review; What does this new video call app have in store for us?
Google Duo : Application Review; What does this new video call app have in store for us?

Video calls have been making our lives easier for a long time now; from Skype to FaceTime, video call applications have made the world a smaller place. They help you with meetings, interviews, calling your family and friends and a lot more. Last year, Google joined in the race and announced its own app; Google Duo.

google duo
google duo

Google Duo is a video chat mobile application, available on PlayStore and iTunes. Developed by Google, it is available for the Android and iOS market. It was announced at Google’s developer conference on May 18, 2016, and enforced its world-wide release in August, 2016. It has been designed, as positioned by Google, to be ‘simple, reliable and fun so that you never miss a moment.’

What does Google say about it?
“Video calling is the next best thing to being with someone in person, but too often it can be a frustrating or complicated experience. You shouldn’t have to worry about whether your call will connect, or if your friend is using the same type of device as you are. It’s no wonder that nearly half of us never make video calls on mobile*.
Google Duo — a simple 1-to-1 video calling app available for Android and iOS. Duo takes the complexity out of video calling, so that you can be together in the moment wherever you are.”

The app was updated in July 2017 with a few bug fixes and product improvement and since Google has been trying to reach its audience. It has over 100,000,000–500,000,000 downloads already and has been rated 4.5/5 stars by its users.

Features offered by Google Duo

Simple Interface
Google has always believed in keeping it simple and sleek. Duo’s interface is commendable and really easy to understand. To start with it, you just have to use your phone number and you will directly be connected to the people in your phone’s contact list. You will not require a separate account for the registration, you can simply sign up in a few step using your number. About making calls, well, it’s just a single tap away.

When you open the app, you see a full, screen-wide image of yourself from the front camera of your smart phone. Along with it, there is an icon that you can touch to invite someone to a video call. The menu button only gives you an access to help and settings options, which also have only a handful of preferences to set. This feature of simplicity is first and foremost aspect to look for in any app and Google has done a good job in it.

Reliability and Speed
Nobody likes disturbances and call drops. Nobody likes to wait while their call is getting connected either. Google has built Duo to perform with great speed and reliability. Calls through Google Duo connect pretty quickly and manage to stay put even with a not so sturdy internet connection. The call quality adjusts in accordance with the network conditions. For instance, if the bandwidth is limited, the resolution of the video will be reduced. This feature might not be very novel but one cannot deny the fact that it is significant. Also, if your data connection is not providing a good speed, Google Duo itself switches between Wi-Fi and mobile data without dropping your call.

A more Human Oriented Design
Google Duo has a Knock Knock feature which enables you to see a live video of your caller even before you answer it. This gives you an idea of what they’re up to and why they want to chat. It’s wonderful how technology has enabled more use of humane features, relating to daily lives in products. This might not come forth as a very important feature but it works pretty well for the subconscious mind which tends to act upon your privacy concerns. Knock Knock makes your video calls more natural and inviting, helping you connect with the person even before you choose to answer their call. We say it’s a great move by Google; it brings a human touch to video calling.

If you’re not comfortable with this feature, Google Duo gives you an option to disable it as well. You can opt to disable this feature; allow your correspondents to see you through the video only once they accept your call and vice versa. Although if you choose to do this, it applies to all of your contacts in your phone and you cannot apply a filter for a few contacts.

Privacy and Security
Google Duo provides you with an end-to-end encryption. This means that no other people than the ones involved in a video call will have any access to your conversation or video. Technically speaking, no one can intercept your calls or private data during the calls, not even the government or server of Google.

Duo app has a well-built carrier that will guarantee its success in the market. Unlike any other app in the market that has to fight its way through platforms, Duo is pretty much playing home. The most popular UI itself, Android, is from Google. We can see Duo as a native app in recent releases of Android-2.8 Android 3.0 Honeycomb (API 11) too, which will secure its place and ensure it succeeds.

Download Google Duo for Android
Download Google Duo for iOS

From what we’ve analyzed, Google’s new strategy is to move away from integrating several aspects into one single unified app to building one app to perform individually, with great quality and high effectiveness. Although many users would prefer to have everything within one single app, it would come along with the risk of being too bulky or difficult to use on a mobile device. Google wants to claim the market, and Duo could be the start of it. More like, there is an app for everything and you may choose as per your requirements.

We hope you found this informative. If you’ve any suggestion, please mention in the comments below. We believe you would also like our article on Top 10 Android App Development Softwares and Top 5 Entrepreneur Social Networks you are missing out on.

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