Google Announces Google Duo For Android, iOS; New Video Chat App Better Than FaceTime, Skype?

Google just announced its own video chat app called Google Duo, and by the looks of it, this could be the app that could threaten the popularity of FaceTime, Skype, Messenger and other video chat apps on both iOS and Android platforms.

Yesterday, Google surprised everyone when it introduced the 1-to-1 video-calling app on its official blog. As though throwing some shade on the video chat apps available in the market, Google opened its post by claiming that other video-calling services have limitations, like not being able to perform well when there is slow network connection or having to mandatorily use supported devices only. Then to segue into the introduction of its own app, Google stated that Duo is different because it “takes the complexity out of video calling.”

Highlighting the good points of Google Duo, the multinational technology company presented the simple interface, the speed and reliability and the human design of Google Duo. Google claims that its video chat app has a straightforward interface and functionality. Users need not to create an account for it, because the app functions using the phone number of the SIM. Making video calls is also a no-nonsense task with Duo, since users can call any of the people on their contact list with just a single tap. This is because the app is directly tied to the contact list of the device, as per The Verge.

Google is also taking pride on the app’s Knock Knock feature that enables the user to see what the person on the other line is doing before even engaging into the video call. Kind of creepy to be honest, but Google is just optimistic that people will use this feature in a good way — just like how the people in the app’s official ad (found below) use it.

In addition, Google is also claiming that its video-calling app is always fast and reliable because it is designed to adapt to the network speed a device has. So let’s say the bandwidth is limited, the video quality will adjust to the resolution that cam still ensure the smooth flow of communication. There isn’t even a need to manually switch from Wi-Fi to cellular data, Google Duo does the job itself, so users can just engage in video calls seamlessly.

Because of these features, Google Duo is now seen as a strong rival of Apple’s FaceTime, Facebook’s Messenger and Microsoft’s Skype. But to say that it could lead to the death of the latter apps is an overstatement at the moment. Duo, which was originally announced in May according to the BBC, is currently available on Google’s own mobile operating system, Android, and Apple’s iOS for iPhones. Google still has its Hangouts app, which is also capable of making video calls, but that one is now taking a different path toward corporate use. Hence, it would not be surprising if Google will be pushing for Google Duo to become more popular by making it a stock Android app for new mobile operating system upgrades in the near future. Only then would it be appropriate to regard Google's new app as a threat to FaceTime, Skype, Messenger and what have you.