With half of humanity currently in lockdown due to the spread of COVID-19, people are turning to video chat apps to stay in touch with their loved ones. Thankfully, there is all kinds of software out there to meet your needs.
Some apps might be better suited to employees working from home, while others are perfect for staying in touch with friends. Here’s what you need to know.
The best video chat apps for social distancing
Zoom
Zoom is perfect for both business and pleasure. In addition to video and audio conferencing, it also has chat and webinar features, and you can use it across several devices.
You can host up to 100 participants on the free version and will be able to organise an unlimited amount of one-to-one meetings. The free tier, unfortunately, places a 40-minute restriction on group meetings.
Skype
Trusted Skype has been around for years and is available on iOS, Android, Mac and Windows. The Microsoft-owned chat app offers video and audio calling, as well as a text-based messaging feature.
It’s easy to use and you can invite up to 50 people on one call. Furthermore, you’d be able to record, save and share all your video calls. It has subtitles too. Who doesn’t love subtitles?
House Party
Gamers, this one is for us. Houseparty is a video chat app which was developed by Epic Games. It allows you to play popular trivia games with your friends as well.
The app’s user base boomed in March and has since become the go-to chat app for millions of users. It’s available on iOS, Android, MacOS and Chrome.
Google Duo
Google Duo is Android’s answer to Apple’s FaceTime. The video chat app is easy to use and is available across multiple platforms and Android devices.
It works like a normal chat app as well, in the sense that you’d be able to record and send videos to your contacts even when they’re offline. It’s available on iOS as well, so you can truly connect to everyone.
The only downside is that Google Duo limits groups to eight people or less.
Discord
Discord is another popular app with gamers and is mostly used for its text features; however, many are unaware that the app supports video chat as well.
Because it allows for streaming in the app itself, it’s the perfect app for playing games with friends. Simply stream one user’s screen content to the rest of the group and voila, everyone gets in on the fun.
