WhatsApp joins the list of apps offering video with calls

19th November 2016
WhatsApp joins the list of apps offering video with  calls

Voice and video go together -- and   now  WhatsApp has got the 'message'
Bangalore, November 19 2016 There was a time when a video call was a costly corporate tool --   albeit cheaper than having people fly all  over the world, to meet.  But with cameras on phones  outperforming many  video conference  set ups, the whole technology of a voice-plus-video call has  been  drastically  democratized.
Skype, now a Microsoft product, was the first to  bring a   video telephone to the  rest of us,  by enabling  anyone with a PC, laptop or  even a  mobile phone, to make  what,  technically,  is known as  a VoIP or Voice over Internet Protocol call.   Indians  quickly latched on to  its potential for making free ISD calls, with daadi maa back home,   able to see live pictures of her grand kid,    burping  in the US.
Facebook's Messenger app  embedded  the video calling feature in a corner of the message box -- and so did Skype in its  mobile app.   To find other Skype users you had to  synch  your  address book with Skype -- a hassle.   Apple  had its own video caller -- FaceTime. But like all things Apple, it was  exclusive territory:  it could only  talk to another  Apple device. In August 16,  Google launched its own Android and iOS app, Google Duo,  a video calling tool, that was  elegant in its  stark simplicity. And yes, unlike Apple, you could video-chat with all phones -- iOS and Android. 
Messaging apps like Snapchat and Wechat have had a video calling feature -- but these  tools are not very much in use in India. So it was big news last week when WhatsApp, the most popular  Internet messaging  tool in India announced  that it had added voice calling across  Android, iPhone, and Windows devices.
You may have to update the WhatsApp version  on your phone  before you find the video option. Then go to the Contacts tab,  select the person, tap the phone icon and select Video Call.  It's that easy! But don't  rush. The update is coming to different regions  in a staggered manner and  right now you   may need  to  download a beta or trial version, which may have a few kinks. I would rather wait till they  smooth out the glitches and  offer a  robust update.
When it does come, the WhatsApp video call  will offer a nice picture-in-picture feed which  allows you to see yourself and who you’re talking to. And you can switch from portrait to landscape mode just by holding the phone afresh  and can even change from front to rear camera at will. WhatsApp  promises that like text and voice calling features, video calls will also be encrypted end-to-end to ensure  your safety and privacy. 
A lot of people like WhatsApp  for its simplicity and its zero cost to exchange  text, images and video,   using  Wifi instead of data quota.  A lot of people  find the constant updates from friends and their trivia, a distraction. For  the  latter, there are some tidings of joy:  You can enjoy video calling even without  messaging tools  like   WhatsApp.  As    I shared on this page last week,  you can use the  Jio4GVoice app   with a  phone or  WiFi hotspot powered by Jio  to do  high-definition voice and video calling even  with 2G or  3G phones. 
To see each other as we speak --  that adds a whole new meaning  to a tele-conversation these days.