The classic version of Google Hangouts included messaging, voice, VoIP, and video call capabilities. It was replaced by the Hangouts Chat collaboration tool, and Google continues to support conferencing via the new Hangouts Meet.
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Webinato
Score5 out of 10
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Webinato is a webinar tool from omNovia Technologies, a provider of web conferencing software.
Had I completed this review a couple years ago, I would have given a rating of 9 or 10 as Hangouts (Classic) is an excellent product. However, now that Google Chat has succeeded Hangouts, I would not recommend that any new users begin using it where other more modern options are available. Android users who want an internet based instant messaging that also supports calling and video calling could benefit from using Hangouts (Classic) as Google Chat requires the user to also have Google Meet installed to make video calls and there is no voice only calling option.
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
I would like to see improved video support, so that saved videos can be sent back and forth via Hangouts more easily, without having to start a separate meet chat
More pronounced notifications of messages would be helpful; pop up notifications are good, but once there is one, additional messages do not pop up
Custom muting times would be great, so that if I am in a 90 minute Zoom meeting, I can set it for that time; right now, it is 1 hour or 2 hours. Easy to forget.
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
Aesthetics - in short, there are many competiting softwares and web platforms that have sharper visual qualities and more intuitive design. As the digital divide shrinks, users desire simple, easy-to-learn interfaces. More tech-savvy and higher production quality users will dig deeper for the more granular elements that omNovia supports so well. Also even more customizable webinar environments; perhaps more detailed themes.
Hand in hand with the UI renovaton, I'd suggest a company rebranding. Instead of appealing to the corporate environments, I think the technology and applications omNovia represent can have a much wider use case.
Mobile - going more mobile than omNovia already is. Products like Bambuser and Adobe Connect have a more integrated and intuitive mobile apps that simply out perform OmNovia.
Even though OmNovia offers great products, our recent account rep has been difficult to deal with. We are being charged for services we've never been charged for before. She is responsive and helpful but we were not aware of these additional charges when making our deal with our previous rep.
The tool is almost self-implemented. It is likely to be available in every pc or mobile device a user or potential user might have, and all you need to do is adding the company's account and you are done. Once you are setted up, you have almost all actual communication methods available in one tool
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. TR verified that a representative sample of customers was invited. More Info
Google Hangouts works great and does not require a lot of work to troubleshoot. Everything is simple and easy to use. Google provides all of the tools that one requires to utilize Google Hangouts and any information can be found in the built-in help tools. There is also a forum for users to report issues and typically, Google responds well and will try to work out any issues.
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
Google is the white cotton socks of the conferencing world. It’s a great ad-hoc tool, but not too much more. If you are not looking to spend money or operate completely on WiFi (without data charges), it’s a great free option as well. The benefit of being free and open is also the liability. It doesn’t have a great integration story with other corporate tools, but [it doesn’t have to] if you aren’t looking for that. All in all, it’s as helpful and ubiquitous as a public payphone…without the pay…and with a video capability.
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
Having an assortment of licenses at my disposal with different web platform products was key given the clients included embassies, consulates, universities, etc. all over the world in different bandwidth environments, with different media equipment available, etc. omNovia performed well for the users with moderate to high bandwidth and higher quality equipment. Low-bandwith users did use the audio chat function but preferred less intense platforms that allowed for video. Other products: Watchitoo, Adobe Connect, Google Hangout, WebEx, GoTo Meeting.
I believe it was part of the google suite that was purchased. It was worth the cost as it was cheaper. I believe it is now free, but also becoming deprecated. It is much better to use Teams, Discord, Telegram, etc. Google does not provide enough support or features to make using hangouts worth it these days.
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
in person networking since OmNovia allows for live events to be streamed. Without this ability we would only have regular webinars and would miss out on the networking opportunity.
