Google Duo Review: A Bet on Simplicity
August 16 2016 - 12:30AM
Dow Jones News
By Nathan Olivarez-Giles
There is no shortage of messaging apps jam-packed with features
to help you stay in touch with friends. Alphabet Inc.'s Google has
a new app, called Duo, that is going in the other direction and
focusing on just one thing: video chat. Is it enough to get you to
switch?
That depends on whether you chat often enough through video, and
whether you prize simplicity. If the answers to both are yes, Duo
is worth a look.
Duo, which is available for iOS and Android, has a single
purpose: one-on-one phone video chats. There are no video filters,
no group chats, no texting and no GIFs. Duo's interface and setup
are as bare bones as the app's purpose. You sign up with just a
phone number. On the main screen, there is one option. Tap "video
call" to scroll or search your contact list for someone to call.
That's it.
On the most important issue -- video quality -- Duo performed in
line with other chat apps I've used. The visuals were sharp over
Wi-Fi and blurry over most cellular connections. Google says Duo
can switch to an audio-only feed if video quality deteriorates too
much, though I never ran into that scenario. Duo's calls are
encrypted end-to-end, as with some other apps.
Duo has one feature called "knock knock" that sets the app apart
from its competitors. If someone calls you using Duo, a
notification shows you a video preview of the caller before you
pick up. Seeing a video stream of your friend waiting for you to
pick up is fun, but it wasn't a compelling enough feature for me to
try to convince dozens of people I care about to download another
app.
It is likely your family and friends already use one of the apps
already out there for video calls, such as Apple Inc.'s FaceTime,
Microsoft Corp.'s Skype, Facebook Inc.'s Messenger, Snapchat Inc.'s
namesake app or Google's own Hangouts. Many people use a
combination -- an iOS user, for example, might FaceTime with other
iPhone owners but use Hangouts to talk to Android phone-using
friends.
Duo likely won't keep you from juggling multiple apps, either.
Being freed of the myriad features packed into other messaging apps
was refreshing for a time -- when I wanted to make a video call.
Without text messaging and group chats, though, Duo just isn't as
useful as its rivals that offer that combination. Google is
expected to introduce a "smarter" text-messaging app this summer
called Allo for iOS and Android, which together with Duo pretty
much make up Hangouts. Google has done this before, breaking up its
Drive cloud-storage service into separate apps including Docs and
Sheets, for example.
It doesn't help that Duo can only be used on phones. I use a
tablet daily, and I have laptops for work and personal use. If I
want to video chat with a colleague at work or a friend while
lounging on my couch with my tablet, Duo isn't an option. Even if I
wanted to convert to Duo exclusively, I'd need to keep around
Hangouts and FaceTime (or both).
If you absolutely desire a stripped-down video-chat app, and
think you can convince others to download one more messaging app,
Duo is good enough for a look. Just don't expect it to replace your
other messaging apps.
Write to Nathan Olivarez-Giles at
Nathan.Olivarez-giles@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 16, 2016 00:15 ET (04:15 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024