It makes perfect sense for Google to focus on Gmail as the backbone of its workplace collaboration suite. It’s the first thing many workers open, and it’s a central location that they return to every day. The screenshots show a simplified interface to move between the different services: on iOS and Android, you will get four icons at the bottom of the screen, while on the web they will appear in the left Gmail menu. Chat will allow you to have personal conversations with colleagues, Rooms is Google’s solution for Slack group chats, Meet of course is the place where you will go for video chats.
We have seen Google tackle business productivity in the right way and start over the years. Gsuite brings together web applications that consumers already use, but have generally been stored on their own screens. You have to go to another site to work on a linked document from a Gmail message and open another tab to have a video chat with a colleague. Judging from the screenshots, business users will be able to collaborate on a document, video chat, and receive messages from others on the same interface.
Rahman also points out some of Meet’s main future features, many of which are catching up with other video chat services. You’ll be able to blur and change your background, keep track of meeting attendance, and raise your hand to control the flow of your conversation. It seems that even Google is running to keep up with Zoom.
