Google Meet free version now available, integration with Gmail starts rolling out for GSuite users

Even as Zoom's video conferencing platform is growing in popularity, Google is leaving no stone unturned to push its own "Meet" video chat and collaboration application. The company has already upgraded Meet with a slew of new features for users. Now, it's looking to propel the Meet adoption by offering it to free to all users. The company has also begun integrating the platform with Gmail (GSuite) for more users.

The free version essentially allows anyone with Google account to create free meetings. This supports up to 100 people with no time limit for the video meet. The free version is available until September 30 and after that it may be capped to 60 minutes, reported TheVerge. There will be some limitations with what you can do with the free version of Google Meet. For instance, it doesn't support landline dial-in numbers for conferences.

Gmail integration

The integration, for now available to GSuite users, allows one to get started with Meet right within the Gmail app. When GSuite users launch Gmail on their desktop browser, they get a pop-up saying, "Google Meet, now in Gmail." The focus is on allowing users to either "start a meeting" or "join a meeting." The new section appears on top of the Hangouts section.

If you want to understand more about how it works, there's a learn more button to help you.

Google had announced integrating Meet in Gmail earlier this month. "It's important that everyone who uses Meet has a secure and reliable experience from the start, so beginning next week, we'll be gradually expanding its availability to more and more people over the following weeks," the company wrote in a blog post.

As said earlier, Google has beefed up Meet with some new features. The latest additions include low-light mode and noise-cancellation technology.

Google Meet, like many other virtual remote working and collaborating tools, has seen a huge traction amid the Covid-19 lockdowns around the world. The platform has grown 30x since January and is said to be adding 3 million new users to Meet everyday.

"As of this month, Meet is hosting 3 billion minutes of video meetings and adding roughly 3 million new users every day. And as of last week, Meet's daily meeting participants surpassed 100 million," the company added.