Highfive (discontinued) vs. Skype for Business / Lync (discontinued)

The free version I would absolutely recommend, we've had some great use out of it for the past few years. Presenting, sharing screen, the conference line and some other features are all free. If we did need more analytics and more features, perhaps making it easier for the potential customer to share screen, we might re-start the search and we'd potentially rate UberConference lower, but for the free version it's been great for us.

Incentivized

Skype for Business, now part of Microsoft Teams is a remote/virtual team collaboration tool must have...especially if you already use Microsoft tools. Of course, since it now part of an MS 365 subscription, it really doesn't make sense to use anything else. It is easy to use and just works. I'm not sure how anyone who works with digital files/documents and needs to work with other people doing similar work can be effective without such a tool. Of course, there are a number of alternatives like Zoom or Webex, but why pay or use another separate tool if you don't need to. :-)

Incentivized

• I appreciate being able to select a local phone number: it adds credibility and convenience for in-market clients/prospects.
• I like being able to customize the hold music. One of our employees wrote and produced custom hold music for Anvil, which generates discussion and engagement as an ice-breaker.
• The screen sharing is easy-to-use and is far more reliable than in the past. Prospects and clients do not have to download any app to make it work properly.

Incentivized

• Instant messaging to anyone who we know only by name/email. Even if they're offline, they get the message in missed convos and a notification automatically goes to them via Outlook mail. All conversations are saved and accessible via Outlook.
• Video and voice calls are a norm in the WFH scenario, and an average employee has around 4-5 calls a day. Skype gives notifications for upcoming meetings, allows easy scheduling via outlook calendar, and its audio/video quality [is] reasonably good compared to the amount of data it consumes.
• Status availabilities - in the WFH scenario, you could be off for lunch, out of office, busy, sharing screens - and might not want to be disturbed. Skype allows you to do that, and in case you're off, ensures that you know that you have missed messages.
• Screen sharing - we have to share screens at least once or twice a day with a coworker when working on some issues/features, and Skype easily lets us do that. One of the best things about Skype is that the screen can be shared without being on a video/voice call - which is of immense advantage because oftentimes, you could prefer sharing the screen, while it [is] too noisy to talk.

• Can be very laggy - I have been part of screen share conferences where the connection keeps dropping.
• Call quality is not always the best.
• Limited functionality - this cannot be your all-in-one go-to conferencing solution because there are no video call capabilities.

Incentivized

• Connection issues can be hard to diagnose when they come up(as some knowledge of server information may be needed to reestablish as the connection troubleshooting options on the sky are not as user-friendly as the rest of the platform.
• Some issues setting up camera/sound could use more info on troubleshooting options with playback sound, video, etc.
• Statuses sometimes are unreliable and do not display correctly .

Incentivized

UberConference is more expensive than some of its competitors and we have not found a real advantage to using UberConference over certain less-expensive applications. UberConference charges per month per organizer and those costs add up quickly, so we will be moving forward with a more budget-friendly option in the coming months.

Incentivized

The software is simple to install and configure. It is rather simple to explain for correct use. It is possible to profile users for the different functions offered. It is integrated quite completely with Outlook and with Active Directory security. It performs all communication functions well with one or more interlocutors and the possibility of granting control of your computer is convenient.

Incentivized

The interface is intuitive and stupidly simple, no complicated sub-menus or configuration settings. Easy to create a meeting space and then have others join with a link or dial-in PIN on the free tier. On the paid tier it's even easier with PIN-less joining and automatic reminder calls to get participants to join.

Incentivized

Very easy to use. Even though Microsoft Teams has a lot of features and integrations, as a user I feel completely comfortable on finding what I need, getting information about the app extensions and using them. It's a very comprehensive tool, intuitive design and does not make me feel tired to be using it. I am glad with the current experience.

I haven't needed support for the most part, which is a positive for Highfive. It's intuitive and most features are straightforward to use. In the one instance that I did contact them, it took them longer then expected to respond, but they were able to answer my question once they did.

Incentivized

I have only had to reach out to the Support team at Skype for Business once with an issue, and I was pleasantly surprised and encouraged by the quickness and thoroughness of their response. The wait time was short and my question was dealt with politely and clearly, so I would say the support team has it together.

Incentivized

Skpe for business is utilized company wide in regards to my company. Everyone not only uses it, but uses it often. It is an effective way of communicating. It also integrates very nicely with outlook and all conversation history is pushed to a folder within the outlook system. We also have it so that if someone misses a message, they are sent an email reminder saying that there is a message that went unread.

Incentivized

Uberconference is by far more reliable and has a better quality of service than the other providers in this space. I have never had a dropped call with Uberconference (unlike Skype and Hangouts). I do think they need to do more marketing because fewer people know about them than others and sometimes people decline to use the service so we have to use one of the other platforms to connect.

Incentivized

For the below reason I will always choose this app over its competitors: Better audio and video quality, Little to no disconnections or freezing when on a call/video conference Integrates well with mailbox/ calendar/ one drive, and SharePoint is easy to use

• Our teams use this every day. It makes it easy to meet with clients and share a screen and display analytics.
• Some of my clients thought that they need to register first to be able to contact me. It's bad that they are not notified in any way that it's enough just to enter its names and that's it.

Incentivized

• Skype for Business has enabled a migration in part away from fixed line telephony and introduced the user to mobile working with a headset which cannot be overstated as being a game changer.
• Being able to schedule Skype for Business meetings through Outlook has meant meetings with colleagues without a meeting room has been a great enabler.

Incentivized