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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Google Hangouts (Classic)

    Score8.3 out of 10
    N/AThe 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.N/A

    Whereby

    Score9.9 out of 10
    N/ANorwegian company appear.in offers their flagship video conferencing platform to small teams, both in a free edition hosting up to 4 guests simultaneously in a session or a paid edition that supports up to 12 simultaneous meeting guests, among other features.

    $0

    per user

    Pricing
    Google Hangouts (Classic)Whereby
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    Free
    $0
    per user
    Pro
    $9.99
    per user
    Business
    $59.99 and up
    per user/room
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Google Hangouts (Classic)Whereby
    Free Trial
    NoYes
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoYes
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details——
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    Google Hangouts (Classic)Whereby
    Considered Both Products
    Discontinued Products
    Chose Google Hangouts (Classic)
    I would say Zoom and GoToMeeting are still the best in this space. Whereby is also a great free alternative that you can have up to four people on a call. Google Hangouts is great if your company is using Google Apps because of the integration that it has with the documents.
    Incentivized
    Chose Google Hangouts (Classic)
    Google Hangouts is a good and reliable option of online meeting software, but we use Google Meet too, who has more functionalities and, in general, better performance. Besides that, we've already used and use sometimes other options, like Appear.in (now Whereby) that has an …
    Incentivized
    Chose Google Hangouts (Classic)
    I like Google Hangouts more than Appear, Skype, and Zoom. While Appear is lighter and easier, it's also more limited. Skype is too slow and clunky, plus I have to install the program. And Zoom is complicated, you have to install a program, and it doesn't always work well with …
    Incentivized
    Whereby
    Chose Whereby
    Whereby offers better features and is easier to use than both Zoom and Google Hangouts.
    Incentivized
    Chose Whereby
    You're able to create unique links for people to join and use words and phrases in the link for the invite. I think that helps you with branding yourself as a company. On Google Hangouts we're not able to do something like this, which is why I appreciate Whereby and being able …
    Incentivized
    Chose Whereby
    I don't know that it is an apples-to-apples comparison because in most other cases I used these platforms alongside Whereby. The best direct comparison would be Google Hangouts. With Whereby, I think the video and audio are superior, the UX is superior, and it's just a better …
    Incentivized
    Chose Whereby
    Whereby allows you to see everyone instead of just the last few people to talk. It also has no software to download and install. It works on any device that can access a website.
    Incentivized
    Chose Whereby
    appear.in was the least expensive alternative at the time my company used it. It included the right set of features for what we needed.
    Incentivized
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    83%
    Would buy again
    44 Answers
    93%
    Would buy again
    13 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    98%
    Delivers good value for the price
    46 Answers
    100%
    Delivers good value for the price
    14 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    89%
    Happy with the feature set
    47 Answers
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    14 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    91%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    31 Answers
    92%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    11 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    98%
    Implementation went as expected
    41 Answers
    100%
    Implementation went as expected
    13 Answers
    Features
    Google Hangouts (Classic)Whereby
    Cloud PBX
    Comparison of Cloud PBX features of Google Hangouts (Classic) and Whereby
    Feature
    Google Hangouts (Classic)
    6.3
    57 Ratings
    23% below category average
    Whereby
    -
    Ratings
    Hosted PBX6.915 Ratings00 Ratings
    Multi-level Interactive Voice Response (IVR)7.725 Ratings00 Ratings
    User templates5.022 Ratings00 Ratings
    Call reports9.034 Ratings00 Ratings
    Directory of employee names3.045 Ratings00 Ratings
    Call Management
    Comparison of Call Management features of Google Hangouts (Classic) and Whereby
    Feature
    Google Hangouts (Classic)
    8.0
    66 Ratings
    3% below category average
    Whereby
    -
    Ratings
    Answering rules8.033 Ratings00 Ratings
    Call recording7.937 Ratings00 Ratings
    Call park7.018 Ratings00 Ratings
    Call screening9.036 Ratings00 Ratings
    Message alerts8.058 Ratings00 Ratings
    VoIP system collaboration
    Comparison of VoIP system collaboration features of Google Hangouts (Classic) and Whereby
    Feature
    Google Hangouts (Classic)
    8.6
    84 Ratings
    8% above category average
    Whereby
    -
    Ratings
    Video conferencing9.079 Ratings00 Ratings
    Audio conferencing9.079 Ratings00 Ratings
    Video screen sharing7.148 Ratings00 Ratings
    Instant messaging9.052 Ratings00 Ratings
    Mobile apps
    Comparison of Mobile apps features of Google Hangouts (Classic) and Whereby
    Feature
    Google Hangouts (Classic)
    8.0
    85 Ratings
    2% above category average
    Whereby
    -
    Ratings
    Mobile app for iOS8.173 Ratings00 Ratings
    Mobile app for Android8.071 Ratings00 Ratings
    Performance & Compatibility of Online Events Software
    Comparison of Performance & Compatibility of Online Events Software features of Google Hangouts (Classic) and Whereby
    Feature
    Google Hangouts (Classic)
    -
    Ratings
    Whereby
    7.8
    14 Ratings
    1% below category average
    High quality audio00 Ratings9.014 Ratings
    High quality video00 Ratings9.014 Ratings
    Low bandwidth requirements00 Ratings8.012 Ratings
    Mobile support00 Ratings5.011 Ratings
    Screen Sharing
    Comparison of Screen Sharing features of Google Hangouts (Classic) and Whereby
    Feature
    Google Hangouts (Classic)
    -
    Ratings
    Whereby
    8.0
    13 Ratings
    1% above category average
    Desktop sharing00 Ratings8.013 Ratings
    Whiteboards00 Ratings8.04 Ratings
    Online Meetings / Events
    Comparison of Online Meetings / Events features of Google Hangouts (Classic) and Whereby
    Feature
    Google Hangouts (Classic)
    -
    Ratings
    Whereby
    9.4
    13 Ratings
    14% above category average
    Calendar integration00 Ratings9.94 Ratings
    Meeting initiation00 Ratings9.010 Ratings
    Integrates with social media00 Ratings9.72 Ratings
    Record meetings / events00 Ratings9.07 Ratings
    Slideshows00 Ratings9.35 Ratings
    Online Events Collaboration
    Comparison of Online Events Collaboration features of Google Hangouts (Classic) and Whereby
    Feature
    Google Hangouts (Classic)
    -
    Ratings
    Whereby
    8.3
    9 Ratings
    3% above category average
    Live chat00 Ratings9.09 Ratings
    Audience polling00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
    Q&A00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Online Events Security
    Comparison of Online Events Security features of Google Hangouts (Classic) and Whereby
    Feature
    Google Hangouts (Classic)
    -
    Ratings
    Whereby
    6.9
    11 Ratings
    16% below category average
    User authentication00 Ratings8.86 Ratings
    Participant roles & permissions00 Ratings5.09 Ratings
    Confidential attendee list00 Ratings7.04 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    Google Hangouts (Classic)Whereby
    Small Businesses
    CallFire
    Score9.7 out of 10
    ClickMeeting
    Score9.5 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Fuze
    Score8.2 out of 10
    JioMeet
    Score9.8 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Cisco Unified Communications Manager (Call Manager)
    Score8.3 out of 10
    Webex Meetings
    Score8.7 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    Google Hangouts (Classic)Whereby
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.0
    (91 ratings)
    9.0
    (15 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    10.0
    (2 ratings)
    Usability
    8.0
    (7 ratings)
    10.0
    (2 ratings)
    Support Rating
    8.0
    (36 ratings)
    5.1
    (9 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Google Hangouts (Classic)Whereby
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Discontinued Products
    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.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Whereby
    If you cannot use another more common solution on the market or are looking for an alternative to the known solutions, it is a great alternative. If you have other tools already, and just want to test [them], that's fine, but I think the better-known ones have a better chance of using, knowing, and the learning curve will be shorter.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Discontinued Products
    • Google Hangouts (Classic) is embedded within Gmail's scheduler, so setting up the link is as quick as a click of the button. It's a one-step process.
    • Google Hangouts (Classic) is user-friendly and [has] features to share screens easily.
    • Google Hangouts (Classic) is much easier to use than its competitors.
    • Google Hangouts (Classic) have [a] good connection time and there are few glitches.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Whereby
    • Easy to use: The app is very, very easy to use. Literally just create a chat room (input a name) and access it to chat.
    • Call/video quality: I've experienced better call quality on appear.in than in almost all other chat and video conferencing services out there.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Discontinued Products
    • 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.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Whereby
    • The paid version may have dial-in. But I have always used the free version. Dial-in is typically required for an "official" multi-purpose teleconference platform.
    • I did have some trouble with larger groups (5+) when it was Appear.in but almost always use it for small 1-on-1 or 3 person meetings.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Discontinued Products
    No answers on this topic
    Whereby
    We are using a larger tool suite that already includes video conferencing instead of our older approach of using different apps from different vendors. appear.in has a simple but great set of features but its pricing scheme is not as scalable as we really need in a 500+ employee company.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Usability
    Discontinued Products
    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
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Whereby
    Very easy to use, technical and non-technical colleagues have used it with no instructions needed. That says all about the app and services.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    Discontinued Products
    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.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Whereby
    Never had to contact support, so we cannot give a rating for their overall support. When we noticed the audio was not always great quality, we simply educated our users to mute the mic and use the in-room conference phone which is connected via a dedicated VOIP link and had much better voice quality. The video performance varied by locations network speed and found it got much worse when the room size increased to over 4 connections.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    Discontinued Products
    No answers on this topic
    Whereby
    After a recommendation from a partner, as the system is very easy to use, we simply start.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    Discontinued Products
    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.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Whereby
    I find Zoom more complicated to use and harder to use because a lot of people do not like having to download things to their computers or devices and Whereby is so easy to get connected with . I like that Zoom offers larger rooms, but at this point the cost is not worth the extra expense.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Discontinued Products
    • 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.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Whereby
    • In general, any sort of online collaborations saves a lot on your budget. The meetings are rather more on time and can be efficient and short.
    • Easy to drop-by and have a small talk with clients/teammates within COVID era.
    • The URL makes you look fancy instead of a random hash.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    Whereby Screenshots

    Screenshot of Easy video meetings in your browser. No downloads, no login.Screenshot of Up to 50 participants in Townhall rooms.Screenshot of Record, save, and share meetings.