If you work from home, chances are you’ve been dealing with a constant barrage of video calls for most of a year. While there are advantages over in-person meetings, things can and do go wrong.
Fortunately, Google Meet is getting a very useful upgrade in the form of a “green room”. That means it’s easier to check that everything is working properly and that you look presentable before actually joining a video meeting.
The concept here is not particularly new. Google Meet has included this kind of buffer zone for a while, so you can prepare for meetings before anyone can see you. Whether that means checking that your camera is pointed in the right place, blurring your background, seeing who is already on the line, and so on.
The crucial change here is the inclusion of a button that says ‘Check your audio and video’. Allows you to record a six-second video clip that shows you how you look and sound to everyone else in the meeting. It will also use your microphone, speaker, camera and internet connection to make sure everything is working properly.
That means you can get to the matter without worrying that no one can see or hear you properly. It also shows you which hardware works best. It’s all well and good to have a headset on, but what if your laptop’s microphone is clearer? These are all things you can think of before going to your meetings.
The feature is now live and all you need to do is click on your Google Meet link. The “Check your audio and video” button is located at the bottom of the screen and will guide you through the entire process.