Google Meet is a video conferencing platform created by Google in 2017 and which became particularly popular in 2020 as it is completely free. It is essentially a platform that allows group video calls (video conferences) and the sharing of documents, presentations and messages; basically Google Meet allows you to participate in remote meetings. Sooner or later you will find yourself having to attend a meeting on Google Meet so do not get caught unprepared and read this guide to know how Google Meet works, I promise to be as clear and concise as possible.
Index
- How Google Meet works
- How to use Google Meet
- Google Meet from Smartphone
- Google Meet from PC
How Google Meet works
Before seeing how Google Meet works, I want to point out that this platform in the free version allows you to make video conferences with up to 100 participants and for a maximum duration of 60 minutes per meeting; these limits can be overcome by subscribing to the paid version.
How to use Google Meet
The peculiar feature of Google Meet is its ease of use. You can participate in Google Meet meetings from your computer by connecting your browser to the google Meet page; both from smartphones (Android and iOS) through the official app and even by phone by dialing a particular number to access the meeting that is indicated in the invitation (in the latter case, of course, you will only have the audio of the video conference). In order to use Google Meet you will still need to have a valid google account, this is not a problem because you can create it in less than 5 minutes by following this guide and if you use it from a computer you will obviously have to have a microphone and a webcam connected and working.
Both from the computer and from the app, every time a meeting is organized with google meet, emails are sent to all the people marked as participants with the code inside them to participate in the meeting; this code must be entered by attendees to join the meeting. In addition to the code, the link to the video conference is also often sent, clicking on the link will open the meeting directly.
Google Meet from Smartphone
First let’s see how Google Meet works from Smartphone and let’s start immediately by saying that you can use Google Meet on any Android or iOS mobile phone or tablet. First you will need to download the free Google Meet app available on the Apple store for iOS or Play Store for Android. Once downloaded you can immediately start using google Meet.
To participate in a meeting through google meet you simply have to press on the writing Enter a meeting code and enter the code you received; later, when you are ready, you will have to click on Ask to join to ask the organizer to let you in the meeting. To end the video conference and disconnect from the meeting, just press the red button with the telephone symbol.
To organize a meeting, click on New meeting and then copy the meeting code to send it to the participants; you can also copy and send the telephone number and PIN to be dialed to participate in the meeting from a normal telephone.
Google Meet from PC
Now let’s see how Google Meet works from a PC and I’ll tell you right away that it’s even easier than from a smartphone because you just need to open the web browser (Chrome, Firefox or Safari) and connect to the home page of the service and that’s it!
To participate in a web meeting you simply have to enter the code you received with the meeting invitation in the field that says Enter the meeting code . At this point you will have to wait for the meeting organizer to approve your entry and let you join the google meet video conference.
If, on the other hand, you are attending the meeting as a guest, you must wait for the meeting manager to accept your link; after which you will automatically be inside the meeting.
To organize a meeting, press the blue button that says Start a meeting and log in using your google credentials.
At the top right you will find the code to participate in the meeting that you will have to transmit to the people you want to have in a video conference; alternatively you can press the Add button and enter the email addresses of the people to automatically send them an email containing the link and code of the Google Meet meeting.
Now let’s see how Google Meet works during the video conference; the Google Meet screen on PC is very similar to the one for smartphones; you can disable and re-enable the camera at any time by pressing the button with the camera symbol and the microphone by pressing the microphone symbol. I remind you that it is a good idea to always disable the microphone when other participants are talking to avoid disturbing them.
To send short messages via the google meet chat, press the button at the bottom right of the chat.
From the web you can share your PC screen or a single window; you will have to press the Present now button at the bottom right and select the type of sharing (full screen or single window).
Now you know perfectly well how Google Meet works and I hope you have also realized how easy and fast it is to use; speed of use and simplicity, in fact, make it the most used tool for small videoconferences.
