Google was left out by consumers during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown and they preferred apps like Houseparty and Zoom for video calling their colleagues, family, and friends. So, the company worked on improving its video calling service Google Meet to increase the conference call limit and it is now bringing Google Meet right inside the Gmail app.
Google has integrated Google Meet inside its Gmail app for Android and iOS. With the updated app, you can join Google Meet video conference calls when anyone sends you a link via an email. Before today, when you clicked on a Google Meet link in Gmail, it took you to the Google Meet app through deep linking. Now, you won’t need to install the Google Meet app at all as the service is integrated into the Gmail app.
The app is also getting a dedicated tab for Google Meet at the bottom of the app. This tab will show you all your Google Meet meetings in Google Calendar. It will also allow you to start a meeting, share a link to the meeting with others, and you can even schedule meetings. This feature is not available right now and it will roll out to people in the coming weeks. If you don’t want this intruding tab inside your Gmail app, you can disable it, too.
Google is trying to create a close integration between Gmail and Google Meet as these services go hand in hand for all types of users, or at least for those who are invested in Google’s platforms. More than taking off people’s burden of switching between two separate apps, it looks like Google wants more people to know that Google Meet exists and to gain more users for its video calling service.
The internet services giant has already rolled out the integration of Google Meet into Gmail on its web app. Google, like Facebook and Microsoft, is chasing Zoom’s incredible success. The company recently rolled out a tile-like layout where you can see up to 16 participants. Zoom, on the other hand, shows up to 25 participants concurrently. If you’re not a G Suite member, you can use Google Meet for free for up to 60 minutes.
Facebook has been improving its video calling chops over the past few months, and it released a feature called Rooms, which is now integrated into Facebook, Facebook Messenger, Instagram, Portal, and it is coming soon to WhatsApp.
