If you’ve been a follower on my blog for a while, you know I’ve been seeking the elusive unicorn: a video conferencing application that doesn’t make me think.
I want an application that doesn’t require me to download anything or set up an account. Or make me try to figure out where the controls have been hidden.
I’ve come close, when I discovered a promising video conferencing application last February. Appear.in is easy to use: the video and audio are great, you can go full-screen and even make your video conference private.
However, Appear.in doesn’t offer any recording options nor has any keyboard navigation.
And since it uses Web Real Time Communication (WebRTC), it can only be used on Chrome, Firefox, and Opera. As of July 9, 2014, Internet Explorer and Safari don’t support WebRTC.
Drat.
Talky.io
I heard about Talky.io this week from several people I follow on Twitter. A free video conferencing application that didn’t require a download? Sure, I’ll try it!
According to its website, Talky.io is a
Truly simple video chat and screen sharing for groups
Built by &yet on the open-source SimpleWebRTC toolkit, Talky.io is an anonymous peer-to-peer application that currently works (as of July 2014) in Chrome, Firefox and Opera (since they all support WebRTC).
Starting a video chat in Talky.io is as easy as:
- Visiting the Talky.io website
- Entering the name of your room
- Giving permission for the application to access your microphone and camera
- Sharing the link to the room you created with the people you want to video chat with (up to six people)
The Talky.io interface is quite simple, with share screen, mute, hold, and leave buttons above the main screen and a left side panel. Screen sharing only works in Chrome, but shared screens can be displayed in Firefox and Opera.
I tested Talky.io on Chrome this afternoon with two colleagues. My friend Chris, who’s in Austin, hopped on for a short video chat. Our video connection worked fine, but the audio sounded like squirrels were running around in the background. Not the experience I expected.
When I tested Talky.io with my friend Nancy on the east coast, we had no issues with audio. Nancy used Firefox and was able to view my shared screen without any issues.
However, when I stopped sharing my screen, she lost the video chat view, though the audio continued without any problem. All Nancy saw in the interface were two white rectangles on the screen.
Oops! There are a few bugs to be worked out.
A few more things to know:
- All the data used in Talky.io video chat is encrypted
- You can add a shared key to a room for more privacy
- Like Appear.in, Talky.io doesn’t have any recording capability
- But, you get to play rocket lander as you wait for others to join your chat. Talk about making the user experience delightful! Good job, @yet.
Should You Try It Out?
Based on my trials, I’d say Talky.io is another video chat option you want to check out, as long as you’re using Chrome, Firefox, or Opera. It’s simple to set up and use.
Talky.io wants feedback from you about your experience; every chat ends with a quick survey asking about your experience, with the option to share more feedback by email.
Me, I’m still waiting for Internet Explorer and Safari to add WebRTC support. And when they do support WebRTC, both Appear.in and Talky.io will be on top of my list of great productivity apps.
Until then, I’m still searching for the unicorn.
