Google Meet has a brand new interface. In this post we look at the changes to the interface and also how the new functionality will impact the way you run online lessons or hold meetings.
As Google rolls out the new interface it is possible not all of your users have access to the new UI at the same time. Over the course of a few days/weeks this should be rolled out to your entire domain and look something like this:
Let’s break it down, and look at the available options at the bottom. After this overview we discuss the new options and features.
Meeting controls
These meeting controls include your Mute/Unmute button, and turning the camera on/off.
The next two options have to do with interactivity and accessibility.
You can turn the automatic closed caption on or off by clicking on the caption icon. In addition to this you have a raise hand button to indicate you’d like to speak or ask a question.
Next, we have the option to start a screen share by clicking on the share screen icon.
Screen sharing
Screen sharing gives you a number of diffferent ways to share your screen. You can choose to share the entire screen, a window, or a tab. Select the one you’d like to share and make sure you tick the Audio box for better Audio quality when sharing a tab.
After selecting the Screen, window, or tab, you get additional options.
Make sure to tick the ‘Share audio’ checkbox if you are going to be sharing a video or music track.
More options
Click on the three dots to open the More options and settings.
Some of the options here are Whiteboard(Links to Jamboard), Recording, Layout options, Background effects and more.
Click on Settings to enter the settings menu.
Here you can change the Audio, Video and Host settings.
All other options and functions have been moved to the bottom right corner where you can find meeting info, people, chat, activities and security settings.
Lets look at each of these in detail.
Information tab gives you all the details about your meeting, including the joining info and added Calendar attachments.
The Peoples tab lets you add people, check all the attendees, mute them or kick them from the meeting.
You can also find a shortcut to the Host settings here for quick join settings and more.
Next, the chat window lets you read and join the chat, as well as turn the chat on or off for attendees.
The activities tab gives you a lot more options and depending on your edition of Google workspace fr Education you may of may not have all of these vaailbel.
To learn more about the changes to Workspace editions, read this post or watch the following video.
I have videos and blog posts on many of these topics, so make sure to check the blog and Channel for more information.
The final icon in the bottom right corner gives you access to the Meeting safety settings.
Here you can let attendees send chat messages, share their screen or enable quick access.
Now that we’ve gone over the Interface changes, let’s discuss the new features and functionality of Meet.
New Changes!
When sharing a screen you no longer have to look at the Presenting now screen.
Here is an image of the old UI to remind you.
The New UI let’s you ‘unpin’ the presenting now screen. Hover over the presneting feed and click the unpin icon.
This makes the presentation smaller and gives you a better view of all attendees.
Hover over your own video feed to ‘Remove this tile’ which will move your own video feed to the bottom right corner.
However over that same feed and select ‘Minimize’ to no longer see your own video feed/ This will still send a video feed to all attendees but you no longer see it.
Video
If you’d like to see this New UI in action you can watch my video demonstration of this here: