Tech giant Google Inc. has launched Duo, a one-on-one video calling app targeted at the smartphone users.
Advertisement
Like FaceTime for iPhones, Duo only requires a person’s phone number to connect as against many other services that require both participants to have account logins to use their video-calling options.
Duo is extremely easy to set up and start using – all you have to do is verify your phone number and grant the app access to your contacts and camera.
Simplicity of use is the main focus with Duo, according to a Google blog post on Tuesday. Luckily for you, there’s an APK file available to download right away, but first, let us give you a brief rundown of the application itself. Knock Knock makes video calling more spontaneous and welcoming, helping you connect with the person before you even pick up.
Duo, which is positioned to rival Apple’s FaceTime, is available to iOS and Android users. Unlike Apple’s FaceTime, Duo works across Android and iOS devices.
Duo is however lean on features, since it can not do group calling, video effects or text chat.
“Hangouts is generally neglected and mismanaged, but pushing users away from Hangouts and toward a less fully featured product doesn’t feel like a good answer”, a review today in Ars Technica noted.
Critically, Google designed Duo so that it works well even on slower networks.
End-to-end encryption built into the system should appeal to consumers concerned about privacy. With the market already saturated with similar services, it will be interesting to see whether Google will be able to get this one to stick.
Advertisement
Google has been offering video calling through its Hangout feature for several years, but the internet company is now tailoring that service for business meetings. A user could also begin a call on Wi-Fi and walk out the door, switching to cellular data, without the quality of the call being impacted.
