Google Hangout Editor's Review

Send IM's, Voice chat, and do it all with complete Gmail integration with Google's platform independent communications tool.

You know...Skype is the thing. It really is. The Jetson's video-style chat is something that many people have been dreaming of as the standard M.O. for voice communications for the last 50 years. Now, thanks to the internet and to those tools like Google Talk, it's now possible; and it really doesn't matter what platform you're using. Google has a communications solution for you.

Unified communications is one of THE buzz words of the coming year. Google is doing its best to provide most everyone with the single best way to communication with family and friends and they are hoping that their Gmail and Google Talk combination are the key to that success. With Google Talk, you can IM and voice chat with friends, family and just about anyone with a Gmail address or Google account.

With Talk's text chat, you can send instant messages, make status updates, and transfer files. With voice chat, you get free PC to PC GLOBAL, long distance calling, and can hold an video conference with multiple parties all at once. All you need is Google Talk, a Gmail address and a web cam at each end point. Actually, even if someone is missing a web cam, they can still participate either via audio only or one-way video

Pros: Free, platform independent.

Cons: Mac version via web only.

Conclusion: Google Talk is a viable Skype competitor and is a reliable way to video chat with friends everywhere. The only thing that you risk with Talk is that it's not very popular and Google's less popular software tends to either get neglected or discontinued without a lot of notice.