The COVID-19 pandemic forced employees to work from home, but the show had to continue in some way.
Overnight, the video conferencing platform became the lifeline of the enterprise. Even if operations return to normal, video conferencing providers are investing resources in their products.
The two main collaboration suites, Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace, provide video conferencing capabilities, but it would be an oversight to not include one of the more popular video conferencing applications. On the market today – Zoom.
At this point, your company almost certainly already has a video conferencing platform. If not, or if you want to switch platforms, please read the breakdown of features and options below to help you make up your mind.
Is your meeting long or short? Do you mainly meet internally or with potential clients and clients? Will you hold a webinar?
Needless to say, if your company has already subscribed to Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace and you are satisfied with the platform, then you should use Teams or Meet respectively. If you don’t have a subscription and just need a separate video conferencing application, Zoom has a free version that can solve most of your needs.
In the following section, we will compare the top three video conferencing platforms based on various indicators. Things to consider before choosing the right product for your business.
Teams vs Meet vs Zoom: Integration with your other apps/services
Before diving into the complete feature list of each platform, understand the full amount you pay from you.
Teams and Meet are part of a larger productivity suite, while Zoom is a standalone product with all the specific video conferencing features you might need. Although Teams and Meet can be purchased separately, it’s best to combine them with the larger suites Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace.
For example, subscribing to Zoom Pro will only provide you with video conferencing capabilities. For lower than Zoom Pro, M365 Business Standard Edition and Workspace Business Edition subscriptions include a full set of business applications.
With Microsoft 365, you can get a fully integrated experience with desktop versions such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Microsoft’s biggest selling point is easy collaboration between applications, and the biggest difference between Teams and its competitors is the concentration of the suite.
Teams can seamlessly jump from instant messaging to video calls, and can switch back and forth.
At the same time, Google Meet and Workspace’s chat application Google Chat are separate. Although users can use two Workspace applications at the same time, the separation of the two is a bit contradictory.
With M365 and Teams, all your chats, recorded meetings, and files are in the same central location, making searching easier.
With Meet and Zoom, you will have to search for chats saved from previous meetings, or in the case of Meet, go to Google Chat.
The same is true when working with collaborative files. Any attachments in the Teams chat will be displayed in the file tab at the top of the window, which means you don’t need to waste time chasing them when you need them.
Microsoft has provided more applications than Google in its plans, although many have gone unnoticed.
For example, Microsoft Sway allows you to quickly capture and edit recorded Teams meetings, and then you can host the meeting locally within Teams.
If someone is late for a meeting, or an employee records the same meeting and allows it to run for several hours after it ends, you can quickly get the part of the meeting you need and save it.
This avoids the storage space consumed by an hour-long video clip and the time required to load it. Trim and export the video from the video editing platform.
In addition, all three platforms are integrated with various other business applications, so be sure to check compatibility with any applications you already use and these platforms.
Teams vs Meet vs Zoom:
The Microsoft, Google, and Zoom versions with free paid versions
They have been well adapted to the needs of certain features on their platforms, so most of the same features overlap in the plans of the three suites. This includes screen sharing, video recording, real-time subtitles, and custom backgrounds that everyone likes. As for some other features, they vary with each company’s offer.
Audio conferencing on the move
While present across the board, but the dialing capabilities vary from plan to plan. Meet provides free phone access to any paid plan, which is one of the biggest advantages of the platform over competitors.
Teams provides a dial-up function, and each user pays an additional $4 per month; while Zoom’s dial-up is charged.
Both Teams and Meet provide Internet-based PBX solutions that can replace your internal phone, and Zoom’s charging settings are impractical.
Microsoft 365 Business Voice is seamlessly integrated with Teams, allowing employees to handle business anytime, anywhere, and everything is completely continuous.
Video quality: Who supports the best?
At the time this article was published, each platform played videos in high-definition format, but the quality was different. If you have 1.5 Mbps of bandwidth, Teams can play 1080p video at 30 frames per second.
Zoom also has 1080p video, but it is limited to the platform’s business or business plan. In some cases, 1080p can also be enabled through scaling support. Zoom’s 1080p feature requires 1.8 Mbps of bandwidth for 1-to-1 calls and 2.5 Mbps for group calls.
Meet will use 360p video by default, but you can send and receive 720p video.
The audio quality on all platforms depends on the quality of the microphone and speakers, as well as the quality of your Internet connection.
Room and Work Area-Breaking the Rules
The breakout meeting is essentially a meeting that takes place at the same time as the original video conference. These are especially necessary for virtual education, so teachers can divide students into different groups for learning.
Group rooms in professional spaces also have clear practicality. If a larger team is meeting on a project and divide tasks into smaller groups, a group room may be a good solution.
In all plans, Teams and Zoom have team rooms native to their base platforms. These rooms are essentially simultaneous meetings with the original video conference.
Meet allows small group rooms through its Standard and Plus plans, but not the Free or Basic plans. However, as with most Google features in the cheaper plan, you can add Google Chrome extensions, but this may be more of a headache than the final value.
Recently, Microsoft has also implemented a model that uses artificial intelligence to place video participants in various digital configurations. Although the utility is lightweight, the "together" mode may boost morale.
Teams vs Meet vs Zoom: Conclusion
Although most video conferencing platforms have similar features, the exact needs of your business should determine whether you choose Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, or soaring.
Offering high-end features at an affordable price, it’s hard to beat Zoom, which focuses only on video conferencing. In order to make the most of your investment, Teams integrates your entire business into one space and provides the best features and available security.
If you are looking for an all-in-one collaboration center that keeps all communications in one space, we highly recommend Microsoft Teams.
Read More: VoIP vs Landline: which is better for your business?