Google Chat Review: Google’s Hangout Rebranded as Google Chat

Google Hangouts just lately rebranded as Google Chat, which suggests Google’s ambition to replace Slack because the world’s main office communication software hasn’t diminished. Hangouts needed a rebrand after killing off the once-loved Gchat in 2017 with out ever replicating its popularity. Google Hangouts remains to be available to personal customers, but business users have already migrated onto Google Chat.

The new Google Chat brand is one aspect of Google’s total GSuite rebrand as Google Workspace, first alluded to in Spring 2020 with changes to Hangouts. The rebrand is likely meant to seize Google a bigger slice of the remote working market.

In this Google Chat review, we’ll assess whether this 1:1 and group messaging app is among the many greatest on-line collaboration tools available today, so you possibly can decide if this is the precise office communications application for your team.

Google Chat: Plans and pricing

Every Google Workspace user, on any pricing tier, has access to Google Chat. The Basic and Enterprise variations of GSuite have been rebranded as the Business Starter ($6.00 person/mo) and Business Standard ($12.00 person/mo), respectively. Each are marketed towards businesses with under 300 staff members. The Business Standard plan improves upon the Business Starter package, with 67 occasions extra cloud storage and larger meeting sizes accommodated. Google doesn’t entice businesses to subscribe with a first offering of free office software; you’ll should pay, or you can’t entry Google Workspace.

The Business Plus package ($18.00 person/mo) is a brand new plan, geared toward small-to-medium-sized businesses that require bigger team meetings and enhanced cybersecurity. Giant organizations with complex cloud computing needs must contact Google’s sales department to get a quote for the Enterprise Plan.

Google Chat: Features

The newly launched Google Chat comes with recent features that should improve staff productivity.

Groups collaborating on tasks will love that they don’t have to leave their chat window to create a new doc and share it with teammates.

Groups working together on a Google Workspace file can talk with all file editors in a chat by merely clicking the messaging button in the prime right nook.

Take the exhausting work out of scheduling meetings with Google Workspace’s Meet bot. If you want to schedule a gathering with all members of a chat channel current, the Meet bot will check everybody’s calendar, find essentially the most applicable time, and send an invite in Chat.

Google applies its search expertise to office communication with a search tool to get better critical information from earlier messages within Chat channels.

Google Chat: Interface and in use

Anybody who has used instant messaging applications before will find Google Chat simple. Dashboard windows on the cloud and cell are clear, white, and functional, as we’ve come to expect from Google merchandise.

The names of channels and team members are displayed on the left-hand facet of the cloud utility so you can immediately find who you need to speak to. The niftiest feature on the interface must be the message bar, which allows you to add emojis (a necessity) and files from Google Drive, schedule meetings, and create documents, with only a click on.

Google Chat: Support

Google Workspace users have access to support through their admin console. They must first head to the assistance window and select to contact help. After a session with a Google customer service consultant, you’ll be given a phone quantity or email address, relying on the severity of the problem.

Google Chat: Security

ISO certified and enterprise grade, Google Chat uses transport encryption to encrypt all communications and content as these move between Google’s data centers. Google insists that its transport encryption is enough safety except for all these engaged in “espionage or illegal activities.”

Workspace admins can archive, export, and search all data from Chat to evaluate communications for indications of insider threats. Admins can decide if they need to allow two-factor authentication for customers. They will also remotely restrict entry to the account from unknown units, to guard against insider threats.

Google Chat, like the entirety of Google’s enterprise services, is run from the same IT infrastructure as Google’s search engine, in its data facilities. These data centers are protected from acts of bodily vandalism with metallic detectors, perimeter fencing, and workers’ entry cards.

The competition

Unlike Google Workspace, Slack’s first pricing tier is free, which may be enough for some small organizations. Slack allows unlimited users to be added to a channel on the free plan and 10 free integrations with different applications, but you can solely conduct 1:1 calls. Despite the restrictions, being able to “strive before you buy” incentives many organizations to choose Slack over Google Chat.

You must choose on Slack whether your communication channels are public or private, whereas on Google they’re routinely private, so that you don’t should be so conscientious of ensuring privateness measures are in place. Messaging formatting choices are instantly obtainable on Slack chat, however are fairly hard to find on Google’s equivalent.

Microsoft Teams’ chat application and Google Chat are solely analogous in that they’re each enterprise communications platforms built-in with productivity software. They share comparable features and facilitate simultaneous collaboration on tasks that use their productivity suites. Nevertheless, a technique Microsoft improves on Google is by allowing organizations to customize their chat application to replicate their branding.

Final verdict

Google Chat’s new features are attractive enough that teams using Google’s productivity software might abandon Slack to boost effectiveness. Full integration with all Google Workspace purposes permits enterprise users to automate trivial tasks you’d otherwise waste precious time on, like scheduling meetings, which is very attractive.

However, if your group is dedicated to Microsoft applications, Google Chat alone isn’t a strong enough alternative to Microsoft Teams to entice you away. Google Chat serves its purpose and works well with Google Workspace, however isn’t a revolution in instant messaging.