Not to sound alarmist, but looking at the numbers of victims claimed by the COVID 19 virus outbreak, you ought to be alarmed. Stay at home unless it is absolutely necessary that you leave. Below we have a list of best video chatting apps, you can use to stay in touch with family and friends.
The human species on Earth has reached a curve in their journey where it is being tested for grit and ability to rise above challenges. The outbreak of the COVID 19 virus, which has since been declared as a global pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO), is hitting hard economies and normal social orders around the world.
The virus is primarily being spread around the globe through human-to-human interactions. The WHO in conjunction with various governments around the world has asked people to practice social distancing. That has seen countries hard hit by the pandemic embark on total lockdown, leading to closure schools, outlawing public gatherings, and people working from home.
Social Distancing requiring Virtual Socializing
With more people heading calls by government and health officials, we are seeing more companies allowing their staffers to work from home. At least those whose jobs can be executed digitally over the internet.
While the idea of working from home might sound forward-thinking in the face of this pandemic. When one sits down in their home and starts getting work done, there are those things you find in the normal working environment that will be missing.
For one, you cannot pull yourself in your chair to your colleague’s desk for a quick question. You also can’t talk to someone during your 30 minutes breaks from work. However, social distancing does not have to mean isolation from society. You can still be together, while apart through technology.
The Best Video Chatting apps for Virtual Socializing
Skype
The word Skype has become synonymous with video chatting; you often hear people say ‘let’s skype’ ‘I will be skyping you in the evening’ and such things. The application is quite solid on both mobile and desktop platforms and has no real-time limitations, especially if you are focusing solely on video calls. It comes complete with emojis and status updates, among other features.
Zoom
Zoom has been picking up quite some traction in the business community world. Much of that can be attributed to its reliability and a solid integration into the web among other features. It is a free-to-use video chat app, but there is a 40-minute limitation for group calls. Though there are allegations that Zoom has been harvesting user data behind the scene.
Messenger
Messenger is quite popular for family and friends to catch up, and that is because it runs on a more personalized platform; Facebook. Video calls on Messenger support up to eight individuals per session, which sucks, but compensates for it by having no duration limitation.
Well, both Messenger and WhatsApp apps are owned by Facebook, but the latter has grown so popular around the world. Much of that is attributed to how easy it works, you only need your phone number to sign up on the first time, and no single logging in afterward. However, there are some buggy limitations, you can only have up to four people per video call, and the video calling experience has some room for improvement.
Hangouts or Google Duo
Google does seem confusing with all the duplicity it has in its messaging services. Over the years it has retired some apps and brought new apps with exactly the same features as the previous apps but with new names. A good example is Hangouts which was succeeded by Google Duo, yet the two are technically the same thing. However, both apps work pretty well, with unlimited video calls and great for professional meetings.
Honorary Mentions
Houseparty
It launched while taunting itself as the video chat app for teens, and sure enough, it came packed with features and games that appeal best for teenagers. Though pundits may not give it quite the high ratings and good reviews, the teenagers love it. That is mainly because it helps a group of close friends connect with each other through alerts when someone comes online. One can also join in without a lot of fuss about signing up and logging in.
Wrapping up
As you practice social distancing and working from home, as the world waits out for this COVID 19 pandemic to pass. The last thing you want to do is become isolated from the rest of the world. The above apps will help you remain social but from a safe distance.
