![]() ![]() It will ask for your e-mail address and then send you a confirmation e-mail, with a link to click on, you then create a password and you’re good to go. The apps for phones and tablets will be found in the app stores. You can download the Zoom app to your computer on this link. That person can then send a link to the other participants in the call, who when they click on the link on the computer, tablet or phone will be automatically connected to the call. The biggest advantage of Zoom over Skype is that only one of the participants needs to have downloaded the app and registered. While the rest of the stockmarket has been going down the pan, Zoom’s shareprice has gone through the roof, on the back of millions of new downloads of the app. Perhaps the biggest beneficiary of the current crisis has been video-conferencing service Zoom. So if your Mum in Australia has given up on computers, use Skype to call her mobile or landline. Calls from Skype to mobiles cost the same wherever in the world the mobiles are, at a fraction of the per-minute cost of using a landline or mobile. The downside is that the other participants have to have already downloaded and registered with Skype before you can connect with them, and then you really need to have the their Skypenames to find them - just using the search function will usually bring up lots of alternatives, and then will require guesswork to make sure you’re not calling the wrong person.Īnother really useful feature of Skype is that you can put some money onto your Skype credit, and then use it to make very cheap calls to landlines and mobiles around the world. The video and audio quality is good, and you can add multiple people to a call, though the process can be a little clunky. One of the big advantages of Skype is the huge installed base - most people with PC’s or laptops running Windows will have Skype or can easily get it. You then can make a video call anywhere in the world by double-clicking on a name in your address book, and the connection will be automatic when they answer. You can allow Skype to search your contacts list in Outlook as a quick way of populating your Skype address book. Once you’ve connected with someone you can add them to your address book so next time you just click on their name. You need to create a Skypename, which is your unique username which you then share with other users to give them the quickest way of finding and connecting with you. It is now owned by Microsoft, and often comes bundled with Office software, but if you don’t already have it you can download it here. Skype is the granddaddy of video-conferencing applications, having been created in Scandinavia in 2003 and revolutionising communications over the web in the process. ![]() Video takes up a lot of bandwidth, so if you’re just on the cellular network call quality won’t be good and you’ll also use up a lot of your monthly data. Whichever service you are using, it also helps a lot if you are connected to WiFi when you start the call. ![]() If you are connecting through a phone or tablet, obviously these have cameras, microphones and speakers built in, but again using headphones with a microphone will significantly enhance sound quality for you and other participants. For speaking and listening, USB headphones with a microphone are a real asset. If these aren’t built in, you can attach them. If you want to video conference from a computer, then it will need to have a camera, microphone and speakers as a minimum. So the service you use will depend in part on the device you have to hand and what service the person/people you want to connect with have. WhatsApp only works on phones, while FaceTime only operates on Apple computers, phones and iPads. Skype, Zoom and Google Hangouts work on PC’s, Macs, phones and tablets. All the main video-conferencing services are free to use, so the main differences between them are how you connect with people and which devices they work on.
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