ooVoo 7.0.4

Winner Best software in 2014 - Communication.

Overview

ooVoo is a powerful video chat software that provides comprehensive functionality and a plethora of useful, unique features. OoVoo is a free venue through which you can effectively organize and communicate with all of your contacts through an array of methods, including video chat, group video calls, social networking, and even VoIP phone calls!

Installation

ooVoo has modest system requirements, so you'll only need 20 MB of free hard disk space, a computer with a Pentium 4 processor or above (with at least 1 GHz clock speed), and a minimum of 256 MB RAM. The first step of the installation requires you to choose your preferred language. In the second step, you may prefer to decline the offer to make Ask.com your default homepage/browser. After performing the installation, you'll need to complete the setup by providing some basic information and choosing your new ooVoo ID/Password.

Interface

The ooVoo interface is neatly organized into tabs and dropdown menus that make using any feature a user-friendly and self-explanatory experience. By default, the main screen shows your online, offline, and pending friends. The Add Friends and Invite Friends tabs are conveniently located above the contact list search bar. At the top of the interface, directly under your display name is a box that lets you update your Facebook status message. All ooVoo features can be initiated within the Actions drop-down menu at top of the user interface.

Pros

• Choose between various modes, including high-definition one-on-one chat, or group video calls with up to twelve participants

• Lets you quickly record and upload video chats to YouTube on-the-fly

• Recording and sending video messages to anyone's e-mail address is as simple as a few mouse clicks

• Full-screen mode provides a more lifelike, enjoyable video call experience.

• For a nominal fee the ooVoo interface can be used as a VoIP (voice over Internet protocol) phone that lets you call over 70 countries

• Users can send up to 20 files (25 MB per file) at a time to as many contacts as they like, even if they are currently logged out of their ooVoo account.

• Provides group video call modes that integrate nicely with the iPhone and Android operating systems.

• Sidebar view conveniently displays multiple video chats vertically

• Post statuses messages directly to Facebook, and upload video messages or audio calls of up to 10 minutes in length directly to YouTube.

• Allows for up to 1000 minutes of recorded video per user

• Create up to five video chat rooms, and easily generate embed codes to place your new chat rooms on a website.

Cons

• Some users have noted that their Contacts list may load slowly if they have a large number of contacts

• The free version displays advertisements in the sidebar of the main window

Alternatives

The most popular alternative to ooVoo would have to be Skype – a similar free video chat/ internet phone software. Other alternatives include Yahoo Messenger and Google Voice and Video Chat. However, ooVoo specializes in video chat and therefore offers a host of new features not seen in other programs that simply facilitate basic video calls.

Conclusion

Although there are other free software that let you make video calls and participate in group video chats, none of them offer the functionality and convenience of ooVoo. If you want to bring your online communication to the next level, ooVoo is definitely worth considering.

Winner Best software in 2014 - Communication.