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Steam Chat
All
9
Experiences
Pros
8
Cons
1
Top
Pro
Easily one click invite
Now you can create and send links that will invite people directly into your group chat. Email, message, or text the link for them to join from the Steam Client or a web browser.
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Top
Con
Unstable
Better interface than the former Steam chat, but UI does not mean anything if voice chat does not work. If you won't use if for voice chat, especially for gaming, then it is good (like streaming etc.) but its voice chat is a bug nest.
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Pro
Supports mobile clients
Steam has a fully-featured mobile client support for Android and iOS, which makes it very easy to check in on the app and communicate while on the go.
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Top
Pro
Gets installed with Steam
When you are using someone else's computer for playing games Steam is normally installed
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Top
Pro
Modernized chat
Every chat on Steam is now multi-media friendly. Getting your point across is easier than ever, now that everyone can see your GIFs inline rather than a list of links. Paste a picture from the clipboard and upload it directly to the chat.
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Top
Pro
Add friends easily to chat
Want to bring someone into a conversation? Just drag and drop your friends from the Friends List to send them an invite.
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Top
Pro
Can be used in browser
All of these features have been built to work not only in the Steam client, but also on the web. So you can continue conversations when you have access to a web browser but you're not logged in to the Steam client.
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Pro
Servers
Put up a server instantly, add channels and invite!
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Top
Pro
Group friends by game & party
Your in-game friends are now grouped by the game they're playing, making it easier to join them, or to see which games are popular among friends. And see who's playing together. You can watch friends enter into a match and then emerge when their game is over. Be ready to dive in with them or to play when they're done.
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Experiences
Free
77
8
Element (formerly Riot)
All
16
Experiences
Pros
15
Specs
Top
Pro
Bridges to other networks
You're not confined within Element's or even Matrix garden, and you don't have to make users of other networks switch to Matrix.
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Top
Pro
Markdown support
Code snippets in chats can be highlighted with Markdown.
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Top
Pro
Simple interface
Element has a very simple interface, adding the ability for more inexperienced users to use it.
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Top
Pro
VOIP and Videoconferencing
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Top
Pro
Supports encryption
Element allows for fully encrypted text, voice, and video chatting.
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Top
Pro
Widgets support
Want to watch that flick at YouTube and discuss it at the same time? Have Grafana graphs stacked above your DevOps team chat? Collaboratively edit Google Docs and chat over without switching applications? This is possible with Element.
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Top
Pro
Decentralized
An open network for secure, decentralized communication.
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Top
Pro
Self-hosting and federated network
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Top
Pro
Libre/open source
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Top
Pro
Search
Search messages in your current room, or all the rooms you're in. Not subject to a message history limit like Slack.
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Top
Pro
Cross platform
Web browser Linux OS X Windows Android iOS
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Top
Pro
Large existing community
With public rooms for many people, and you can create your own and let people from the community join.
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Top
Pro
Etherpad real-time document collaboration
An easy to activate integration that allows multiple authors to edit a document simultaneously.
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Top
Pro
File Sharing
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Top
Pro
Supports text, voice, video
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Specs
Platforms:
MacOS, Windows, Linux, Android, Browser, iOS
License:
Apache License 2.0
Publisher:
New Vector Ltd
End-to-end encryption:
Yes (optional)
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Experiences
Free
792
103
Mumble
All
21
Experiences
Pros
17
Cons
3
Specs
Top
Pro
Code available to anyone to inspect or use, no spy- or adware
Mumble is available as a free download and source code is available on GitHub.
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Top
Con
A bit more difficult to set up than similar solutions
The process of generating and/or acquiring certificates can be time-consuming and a bit more complex than setting up a username/password authentication that's found in other clients. Similarly, setting up a server that includes configuring user permission system requires advanced technical knowledge.
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Top
Pro
Free and open-source server software
The server software Murmur is licensed under a free and open-source BSD-style license.
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Top
Con
Disconnect issues
Can have occasions of disconnect or users keep getting booted.
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Top
Pro
Can be used on a gamers preferred platform
Available on Windows, Linux, OS X, Android and iOS which allows for the user to choose what operating system works for them and still be able to use Mumble.
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Top
Con
Relatively poor voice quality
While Mumble's voice quality is fine, and you can understand what's being said, there is a noticeable difference between it and many other platforms.
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Top
Pro
Excellent voice quality
Since version 1.2.4, Mumble uses an audio codec named Opus that's specifically developed to provide low-latency voice communication over Internet. This means that there is no delay time, while audio still comes out clear.
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Top
Pro
Low latency and resource usage
Dedicated servers and low overhead allows Mumble to have the least delay between users speaking and others hearing their speech, which can be very important for fast paced games.
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Top
Pro
Push-to-Talk
A push-to-talk key allows you to only transmit audio when you want it. Others won't hear you chewing or your mom entering the room unless you want to.
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Top
Pro
Free to download and use as a client
Mumble is completely free, even hosting your own server.
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Top
Pro
Use of certificates offers more security and easy people management
Mumble uses certificates for user identification. A certificate can be generated by the user himself or issued by a third-party organization with organization certificates having 2 classes. A self-generated certificate is not tied to anything, a Class 1 certificate is tied to an e-mail address and a Class 2 certificate requires proof of identity. Depending on the server a different level of certification might be required.
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Pro
Server works on Raspberry Pi
Mumble server side is easy to setup and works smooth even on Raspberry Pi, which is pretty short on resources.
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Top
Pro
Easily overlay over game
An in-game overlay can be enabled to show users in the channel or users talking. Overlay can be disabled completely or on a per-game basis by going to Settings->Overlay. This allows for users to see their chat but not obstruct the game they are playing.
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Top
Pro
Sub-channels
By default, only users in the same channel can hear each other. Channels can be nested to better organize yourself according to what you want to be talking about.
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Top
Pro
Secure & encrypted
This encryption is mandatory and cannot be disabled. The so-called control channel, which transports your chat messages and other non-time critical information, is encrypted with TLS using 256 bit AES-SHA. The voice channel carrying speech and positional audio is encrypted with OCB-AES 128 bit.
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Top
Pro
Good audio normalization
Mumble includes great automatic volume adjustment functionality that can be used to prevent big volume changes while still allowing good communication.
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Top
Pro
Positional audio
Mumble supports positional audio for over 50 games, including versions of Call of Duty, Battlefield and Counter-Strike. This allows you to hear the audio from the direction of the player speaking, making gameplay more immersive and giving competitive players an edge. You can find a full list of supported games here.
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Top
Pro
Customizable UI
Version 1.3 introduced skins, allowing you to customize your UI, either on your own (tutorial here) or by using one of the skins found here.
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Top
Pro
Portable version on PortableApps
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Top
Pro
Server can be put on alternative firmware wireless routers
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Specs
End-to-end encryption:
Yes
Audio recording:
Yes
Secure:
Yes
Requires a Server:
Yes
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Experiences
Free
644
94
Blizzard Voice Chat
All
8
Experiences
Pros
4
Cons
4
Top
Con
Can only chat with friends and friends of friends
Though it might limit the amount of unwanted rude people in your chat, it does limit the functionality in some games, where chatting with randoms would be beneficial.
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Top
Pro
Built into the Battle.net app
As long as you have the Battle.net app, no extra software is required.
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Top
Con
Bad voice quality
The overall voice quality if very bad. The voice is kinda high-pitched and it adds some background noice to everyone, even when they're using a noice-canceler
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Top
Pro
Clean UI
It has a clean UI that continues the dark blue Blizzard theme.
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Top
Con
Disconnects every 5 to 10 minutes
I have to go back to my desktop to remember to invite my friends to the voice chat. Incredibly annoying.
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Top
Pro
hi
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Top
Con
Can only be used for Blizzard games
The voice chat can only be used for Blizzard games. Luckily, their games include World of Warcraft, Starcraft, Overwatch, Heartstone, Diablo and many others.
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Top
Pro
killer
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Experiences
118
26
TeamSpeak 3
All
24
Experiences
Pros
17
Cons
6
Specs
Top
Pro
A lot of features
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Top
Con
Mobile app costs money
TeamSpeak for mobile platforms costs $1.99 for Android devices in Google play store or $4.99 for devices that run iOS.
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Top
Pro
Fine-grained administration options
Allows for complex administrative structures, with lots of roles and many other features related to server administration.
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Top
Con
Requires to self-host, rent or use a public server
TeamSpeak cannot be used without a private server (meaning TeamSpeak themselves do not provide servers). This adds complexity to the setup and may simply be out of reach for many users. There are, however, several free public servers available, Teamspeak offers to rent one, and many games have dedicated servers available through their respective websites.
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Top
Pro
Advanced permissions
It has an advanced system to manage channel/server permissions.
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Top
Con
Outdated UI
The client itself feels really old, and even though there are custom huds, most of them don't feel modern.
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Top
Pro
Works on all main PC OS platforms
Available on Windows, Linux and OS X allows for a user to choose what best OS suits them and not have to worry if their game chat software will work.
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Top
Con
Proprietary software
It's not free.
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Top
Pro
Supports audio and text chat
TeamSpeak allows for both voice and text chat. this adds flexibility, and can clarify information if somebody has a very poor connection, or a very thick accent. It also allows players without a mic to communicate with the other players.
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Top
Con
No video communication
Currently there is no video chat for the app. While not essential for in-game communication, outside of the game it would help to strengthen online relationships with your gaming pals.
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Top
Pro
Widely used
Among most MMOs (massive multiplayer online games such as Guild Wars 2, or World of Warcraft) Teamspeak is widely used so it's likely other players already use it and won't need to download a new program. There are also many knowledge and help articles available online.
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Top
Con
Too easy to hack
Your server may become vulnerable if you give admin away and do not configure your server properly. Keeping a record of backups is important, if you broke something while editing the configuration or your server has become compromised due to negligence. You will then be able to spin up a new instance.
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Top
Pro
Voice Activation Detection while using Push-To-Talk
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Top
Pro
Echo reduction
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Top
Pro
Free for non-commercial use
As long as one is not using TeamSpeak for commercial services the app is free to use. This is great as most users will not be using it for commercial purposes (as long as you aren't making money off it you don't need to pay for it) such as gaming.
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Top
Pro
Unlimited nesting of channels
This allows for very granular organization.
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Top
Pro
Sound level tuning
You can tune everyone's sound output levels to meet your own personal preference in inbound volume. So to your ears nobody is too loud or too quiet.
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Top
Pro
Supports Encryption
Under "Edit Channel" --> "Advanced" --> theres a toggle button called "Voice Data Encrypted". Everything but file transfers is encrypted.
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Top
Pro
Plugin support
A wide range of plugins are available for those that want extra functionality, ranging from soundboards and overlays, to peripheral and application hooks.
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Top
Pro
Private hosting
You can host your own server.
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Top
Pro
TeamSpeak Sync
Signing up for a MyTeamSpeak account will allow you to synchronize your bookmarks, identities, hotkeys, whisper lists and channel subscriptions across all devices. MyTeamSpeak features will include addons synchronization, addons update management, and more.
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Top
Pro
Clean theme
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Top
Pro
No privacy nightmare
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Specs
End-to-end encryption:
yes (not by default)
Hosting options:
Hosted & self-hosted
Service integrations:
Yes
Screensharing:
No
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Experiences
Free
275
79
Discord
All
32
Experiences
Pros
22
Cons
9
Specs
Top
Pro
User friendly
Discord follows the same type of interface design popularised by Slack, which is extremely clean and attractive, and doesn't clutter the interface with unnecessary chrome and cruft.
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Top
Con
Proprietary software
Discord is closed-source, meaning their code isn't available for inspection or reproduction
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Top
Pro
Free for unlimited users
Unlimited amount of users.
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Top
Con
Based on Electron = eats a lot of ram
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Top
Pro
Can be used in browser
Users can invite others to join a Discord channel via a web link, which means no installation is required to use the software - which is one of the big typical barriers to entry for social software.
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Top
Con
Some functions cut out and available only with "Nitro" subscription
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Top
Pro
Good 1-click invite system
Discord allows inviting people to a specific channel with a link. Links can be set to expire. Low effort/passive invite mechanics.
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Top
Con
Developer's previous company was sued for privacy violations, among other things
See: http://classactionlawsuitsinthenews.com/class-action-lawsuit-complaints/openfeint-green-international-privacy-class-action-lawsuit-complaint/ https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement/cases-proceedings/closing-letters/openfeint-inc Discord's privacy policy also states that while they might not sell your data, a company they get sold to will quite possibly attain said data and thus may be in "more" shady hands.
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Top
Pro
Easy setup
You can quickly send invites to people and they can join in using the web client without having to create an account or install the app.
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Top
Con
No self-hosting avaliable
Discord is wholly hosted by Discord (the company), you cannot run private instances, and all servers are hosted on their infrastructure. For most people, this won't really impact their usage.
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Top
Pro
Has low-latency VoIP support
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Top
Con
Not a generic "team chat" tool
All the UI and the features are aimed specifically at communicating with your gaming team/clan.
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Top
Pro
Supports video and text communication
Behaves and looks like Slack for regular text channels, but with the ability to create voice channels as well
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Top
Con
Very unstable on Linux
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Top
Pro
Numerous controls for setting member roles.
Deny access, Deny write message, Allow read messages etc.
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Top
Con
Anti-privacy license terms
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Top
Pro
Ability to create bots
Discord provides an API for creating custom bots.
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Top
Con
Can change "Now Playing" status to something inappropriate
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Top
Pro
Open source bots and management tools
Discord has a wide variety of bots for things from airhorn noises to automated server management, to leveling systems for chat. The bot API is open and there are dedicated sites for finding bots.
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Top
Pro
Game integration
Discord shows which game each user is currently playing, which among other things helps users to form PUGs with minimal hassle.
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Top
Pro
Dark theme out of the box
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Pro
Familiar for Slack users
For those that are used to the way Slack (a similar chat client) works, Discord will be familiar in its use, which lowers the learning curve quite a bit for those that have switched or tried Slack before.
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Pro
Low effort invite mechanics
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Pro
Android app has push notifications
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Pro
Syntax highlighting and Markdown support
The support is limited but still exists. It's a killer feature for dev teams.
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Pro
DDoS mitigation
Discord prevents users from being DDoSed out of games.
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Pro
Targeting of roles
Targeting roles allows for quickly requesting someone from a group e.g. artist, moderator, etc.
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Pro
Ability to thread channels
Ability to create channel categories for channels to sit inside of.
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Pro
Friendly payment policy
Free account have no tangible restrictions. Premium account is just a way to say "thank you" to developers. And it work for all servers of discord (not as in slack). And it can be purchased by one who wants. In contrast to Slask, where all active members of the server should be "premium".
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Pro
Language localization
Have localization for many language, including Russian.
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Top
Pro
Does not allow NSFW related things to be posted unless in a NSFW channel
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Specs
Platforms:
Web, Windows, Linux, Mac, iOS, Android
Search:
Yes
Videoconferencing:
Yes
Audio recording:
No
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Experiences
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here
1446
474
Google Hangouts
All
18
Experiences
Pros
11
Cons
6
Specs
Top
Pro
Mobile support
Hangouts offers both an Android and iOS app so users can participate from nearly any mobile device in addition to his Desktop.
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Top
Con
Poor video call quality
Only goes up to 720p30 + low bitrate.
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Top
Pro
Screen sharing
Any user can share his screen (or only a specific desktop or window) while still continuing an audio conversation.
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Top
Con
Owned by Google
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Pro
Free group video support
Hangouts works with up to 10 participants using video out of the box or up to 15 if you are a business, government or school. It determines who is the primary speaker at any given time, and the camera view automatically switches to that user.
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Top
Con
Lacking clients for older versions
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Pro
Useful for businesses
Hangouts can scale to become a videoconferencing solution for an entire company, since the software can run on nearly all platforms. In fact, Google itself uses Hangouts as its meeting room video conference software.
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Top
Con
High hardware usage
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Pro
Easy to start using
Hangouts is integrated with Gmail & Google+, does not require you to download desktop software, and all chats can take place directly in your browser, significantly reducing the barrier to entry for a new user.
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Con
Not recommended for long sessions
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Pro
Completely free
Google offers all features of Hangouts completely free. There are business, education and government solutions that increase the participant count to for video calls to 15 and offers support.
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Top
Con
Won't work on Windows 8-style UI
As Hangouts uses a browser plugin on the desktop and it doesn't work with Windows 8-style UI, it has to be used in desktop mode.
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Top
Pro
Cross platform
Hangouts work on Android, iOS, Chrome OS, web and as a Chrome extension.
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Pro
Live broadcasting and instant recording
With Google+ “Hangouts on Air”, you can broadcast any hangout to an unlimited audience via your Goolge+ Profile or simply a generic YouTube link. Moreover, any Hangout on Air (public or private) is automatically saved as YouTube video that you can keep for private reference or use in any way that you would normally share a YouTube video. This allows you to record conversations without additional obtrusive software.
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Pro
Google Voice integration
Allows for a fixed phone number, receiving and making calls. Calling US or Canada is free.
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Pro
Integrates with Google Maps for sharing locations
When chatting with people while trying to plan a meet up, the share map button can be extremely useful.
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Pro
Android app does both sms and hangouts messaging
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Specs
Platforms:
iOS, Android, Mac, Windows, Linux, Web
Genre:
0
Co-Op:
0
Publisher:
0
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Experiences
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151
129
Skype
All
21
Experiences
Pros
10
Cons
10
Specs
Top
Con
Plagued by bugs on all platforms
Crashes and other bugs are prevalent on Android, Windows and other platforms.
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Top
Pro
Easily connect with others due to how popular the service is
There's a good chance that whoever you're trying to reach has Skype already set up and familiar with it, avoiding the hassle of installing and getting to know new software.
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Top
Con
Subpar video quality with more than 5 users
Skype has significant problems with multiple users and video quality. Skype recommends that a max of 5 users group chat as video quality is severely affected. Even webcams tested with other chat services showed lower quality when used with Skype.
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Top
Pro
Screen sharing
You can show your whole desktop, a select part of the screen or a specific window over Skype.
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Top
Con
Not a feasible alternative as a professional team chat
Missing key feature such as centralized mgmt, centralized billing, data retention policies, ...
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Top
Pro
Cross-platform
There's software for Windows, Mac & Linux and apps are available on iPhone, Android, and Windows Phone.
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Top
Con
Poor quality when screensharing
It is not possible to manually set resolution or bitrate, and Skype often defaults to a resolution so low that text is unreadable. It is also not possible to transfer control over mouse and keyboard.
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Pro
Group video for free
You can hold video calls with up to 10 people.
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Con
Slow filesharing speed
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Pro
Available on Linux
A stripped down, minimalist version of Skype is available for Linux.
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Con
Owned by Microsoft
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Pro
File sharing
Skype allows you to send any files (MP3s, images, text, etc.) by simply dragging and dropping then in the chat window making it simple to share things with colleagues.
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Con
Obnoxiously large ads
Ads take up over 25% of the usable space.
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Pro
Cheap fixed phone number
Starting at $5/mo you can get a Skype number.
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Con
Poor Linux support
The version available for linux users is quite outdated, and does not support some of the newer functionality, such as the free group video calling and screen sharing.
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Top
Pro
Send SMS and make regular calls
With Skype Credit bought or a subscription, you can send SMS and make direct calls.
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Con
Requires both ends to be online (if neither end is using a cloud-enabled device)
Messages are sent and received only when both ends are online, if neither end is using a cloud-enabled device. In this case, if you are online 9-17 and your recipient is online 18-3, messages will never be delivered.
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Pro
Group chat with archive / records
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Con
MIcrosoft (Skype's owner) actively assists eavesdroppers
On the other hand, if you lose your copy of one of your conversations, you may be able to get a copy of it from your government with a little bit of luck and a public records request.
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Top
Pro
Powerful 1:1 chat and also group chat
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Specs
Platforms:
iOS, Android, WP, OSX, Windows, Linux, Web. Blackberry. Chrome OS. BSD, iPadOs
Publisher:
Skype
File Size:
Varies with device
Required Android Version:
6.0
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Experiences
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161
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