Managed IT Support Microsoft Teams vs Google Meet vs Zoom: The Definitive Videoconferencing Battle

Managed IT Support Microsoft Teams vs Google Meet vs Zoom: The Conclusive Videoconferencing Battle

The COVID-19 pandemic required employees to work from home, however the show needed to go on in some way. Overnight, videoconferencing platforms turned into the lifeline that held organizations together. Even as operations go back to normal, videoconferencing providers are putting resources into their products.

The two main collaboration suites, Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace deal videoconferencing abilities, however we would be remiss not to consist of among the most popular videoconferencing apps in the market today-- Zoom.

At this moment, your service is nearly ensured to have a videoconferencing platform already. If not, or if you are seeking to alter platforms, continue reading below for a breakdown of functions and alternatives that will assist you make your decision.

Are your conferences long or short? Are you mainly meeting internally or with leads and customers? Will you be hosting webinars?

It goes without stating, if your business is already signed up for Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, and you enjoy with the platform, you should use Teams or Meet respectively. If you are not subscribed to either and just need a standalone videoconferencing app, Zoom has a totally free version that should resolve most of your needs.

In the sections listed below, we will compare all 3 major videoconferencing platforms based upon different metrics you must think about before picking the right one for your service.

Groups vs Meet vs Zoom: Integration with your other apps/services

Prior to diving into the full list of functions for each platform, it is essential to comprehend how much you get from the totality of what you are paying for.

Teams and Meet are part of bigger efficiency suites, whereas Zoom is a standalone item with all the videoconferencing-specific functions you may need. While Teams and Meet can be procured separately, they are best bundled with their larger suites, Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace.

Case in point, a Zoom Pro subscription only offers you videoconferencing abilities. For less than Zoom Pro, the M365 Business Standard and Workspace Business subscriptions consist of a complete suite of service applications.

With Microsoft 365, you get a totally integrated experience with desktop variations of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and more. The biggest selling point of Microsoft is how quickly the apps work with each other, and the biggest difference between Teams and its rivals is how centralized the suite is.

Groups jumps flawlessly from immediate messaging to video calls, with the ability to switch back and forth in between them.

On The Other Hand, Google Meet is independent of Workspace's chat app, Google Chat. While users can make use of both Workspace apps all at once, the separation of the 2 is a bit counterproductive.

With M365 and Teams, all chats, recorded meetings, and files are all housed in the very same central area, making searchability far easier.

With Meet and Zoom, you will have to seek out saved chats from old conferences, or when it comes to Meet, head over to Google Chat.

This is likewise the case when working on collaborative files. Any files connected in a Teams chat will appear under its files tab at the top of the window, meaning you do not need to lose time chasing them down when you need them.

Microsoft provides even more applications in their plans than Google, though numerous go unnoticed.

Microsoft Sway allows you to quickly grab and trim a taped Teams satisfying that you can then house in your area within Teams itself.

In the event that somebody arrives late to a meeting, or a worker records the exact same meeting and lets it run for hours after its conclusion, you can quickly grab the part of the conference you need and save it.

This bypasses the storage that would be consumed by an hours-long video, in addition to the time it would take to submit, cut, and export stated video from a video editing platform.

Furthermore, all 3 platforms do have integrations with numerous other business applications, so make sure to examine compatibility with any apps you currently utilize, and these platforms.

Teams vs Meet vs Zoom: Features

Comparing Free Versions vs. Paid

Microsoft, Google, and Zoom have all adjusted well to the demand for particular features on their platforms, thus the majority of the very same features overlap throughout prepare for all 3 suites. This consists of screen sharing, video recording, live captions, and everyone's favorite: custom backgrounds. As for some other functions, they differ throughout each business's offerings.

A table portraying the various strategies and functions of Microsoft Teams vs. Google Meet vs. Zoom Audio Conferencing On-the-Go

While present throughout the board, dial-in capabilities differ throughout plans. Meet provides dial-in for free with any of their paid strategies, one of the most significant advantages that the platform has more than its competitors.

Groups offers its dial-in capability for $4 additional per user, per month; while Zoom's dial-in is toll-based.

Both Teams and Meet deal internet-based PBX services that can change your in-house phones, while Zoom's toll-based setup is not practical.

Microsoft 365 Business Voice integrates effortlessly with Teams, allowing employees to take organization on the go, all with full connection.

Video Quality-- Who Supports the very best?

As of the time of this post, each platform shows video in HD, however the quality varies. Groups is capable of 1080p video at 30 frames per 2nd if you have 1.5 Mbps of bandwidth.

Zoom likewise has 1080p video, but it is limited to the platform's service or business strategies. 1080p can also be allowed by Zoom assistance in certain cases. Zoom's 1080p functionality needs 1.8 Mbps of bandwidth for 1-on-1 calls and 2.5 Mbps on group calls.

Meet will default to 360p video, but it can send and receive as much as 720p video.

Audio quality throughout platforms depends upon microphone and speaker quality, as well as the quality of your internet connection.

Spaces and Workspaces-- Breaking Things Down

Breakout rooms are essentially conferences that run all at once to the original videoconference. These were particularly needed for virtual education, so teachers might break students out into different groups to learn.

There is a clear utility for breakout rooms in professional spaces, too. If a bigger group is fulfilling about a task, breaking down jobs into smaller sized groups, breakout rooms could be a fantastic option.

Both Teams and Zoom have breakout spaces native to their base platforms, throughout all plans. These spaces are essentially conferences that are running simultaneously to the initial videoconference.

Meet enables breakout spaces through their standard and plus strategies, however not in the totally free or fundamental plans. However, like a lot of Google functions on cheaper plans, you can include Google Chrome extensions, but this could be more of a headache than it is worth in the end.

Recently, Microsoft also rolled out Together Mode, which utilizes AI to put video participants in different digital settings, together. While the utility is light, Together Mode could be a solid spirits booster.

Teams vs Meet vs Zoom: Privacy and Safety

To its credit, Zoom reacted quickly to the "Zoom battle" of the early days of the pandemic, adding end-to-end encryption and intensifying their personal privacy policy. Sadly, over 500,000 Zoom accounts were stolen and published for sale online soon thereafter.

While Meet has not had any famous events of privacy breaches, Google has actually had plenty of privacy concerns and a performance history of collecting information for use on site it support services in marketing.

Microsoft has the very best track record of security and they likewise have the most transparent privacy policy.

All three platforms support two-factor authentication. Thinking about that 99% of cybersecurity attacks include a password element, two-factor authentication is a should if you want a genuine defense versus cybercriminals.

image

As a part of the wider M365 suite, all chats, notes, and files are encrypted and stored within OneNote and SharePoint, respectively.

Additionally, Microsoft Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) is available on its Business Premium and E5 plans, blocking possibly malicious content from being accessed by those in your company.

Microsoft also uses Data Loss Protection (DLP) to catch sensitive data being shared (like social security numbers), and automatically block it from being sent out.

Together with eDiscovery and legal holds within channels, talks, and files, Teams guarantees you remain compliant with all information storage guidelines.

A graphic revealing the course of info as it is encrypted from Microsoft Teams through Microsoft 365.

Google does offer eDiscovery in their Business and Enterprise plans and DLP in their Enterprise strategy just, but these are only restricted to Drive and Gmail. From what we can see Meet has no specifically listed DLP capabilities.

Zoom does not offer any of these features on its primary platform.

In general, Zoom has responded well to its privacy difficulties, however the changes are mainly cosmetic.

End-to-end file encryption (E2EE) is great to have, however its addition was more of a reaction to a problem than a total solution. It is unlikely that E2EE safeguards most users from more than file encryption in transit and at rest, like with Teams and Meet.

E2EE is most helpful in 1-on-1 discussions where delicate information may be shared, and it will be offered on Teams soon according to Microsoft.

image

The videoconferencing company has less to fret about since they are a single-purpose app, dealing entirely with videoconferencing, and not the storage of files, talks, and other details like Microsoft or Google.

Based upon track record alone, Microsoft stands well above the others in regards to security.

Since your information is all saved in a single area, Teams and its security features take your efficiency center and turns it into your business's own data stronghold. This 2nd level of defense and personal privacy makes it the most safe, in our experience.

Teams vs Meet vs Zoom: The Verdict

Though the majority of videoconferencing platforms have similar functions, your business's exact requirements need to determine whether you select Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, or Zoom.

For base-level functions at a cost effective rate, it is tough to beat Zoom, who is focused exclusively on videoconferencing. For the most bang for your buck, Teams ties your entire business together in one space, with the best possible functions and security available.

If you are trying to find an all-in-one collaboration center that keeps all your communication in one space, we highly advise Microsoft Teams.

IT Support Guys has leveraged the power of Microsoft 365 considering that 2008 when it was still called Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS), and we have actually continued our collaboration till the present day.