The app, which was originally meant to be a no-frills Facetime competitor, is one of the best in the bunch and is available to use on mobile devices as well as desktop. Here we show you how you can share your screen with others in Google Duo on Android.
The Differences Between Google Duo and Google Meet
Before going down to the nitty-gritty of how you can share your screen with Google Duo, let’s take a small detour and talk a bit about Google’s current assortment of apps for video calling. The company’s approach to video and chatting solutions has been confusing at best over the years with Google launching a jumble of apps that share many functionalities. The Android maker’s current (free) selection is a little more straightforward and includes just Google Meet, Google Duo and Google Hangouts. The biggest distinction between Meet and Duo is that the former is geared toward the professional crowd, and it can host large-scale meetings. The service was originally intended for Google’s G Suite business customers, but ever since the pandemic, the tech giant has made the app available for all, although meetings are limited to 60 minutes each and up to 250 people. In contrast, Google Duo allows users to engage in one-on-one conversations using their mobile phones (or PCs). Even so, the service offers a group chat option, with up to 32 participants being allowed to join the discussions. This makes the app perfect to use during these “social distancing” times so that you can easily keep in touch with your friends and family. The two services have a few things in common. For instance, they both encrypt your data and can run on both mobile and PC. Duo comes preinstalled on most Android devices, while Meet is easily accessible through the Gmail app or its standalone app. Both apps require users to have a functional Google account.
What About Google Hangouts?
Hangouts is Google’s longest-running messaging and video chat app. The service still exists and remains pretty popular with some users. It can be accessed at hangouts.google.com, directly through Gmail or via the mobile app. However, in October 2020 Google issued a press statement in which it revealed its intention to commence the migration of Hangouts users to Chat (which is part of Google Workspace) in the first half of 2021. As per the company, Chat will become free to use for anyone. Right now, users need a paid G Suite/Workspace account in order to access Chat. Furthermore, Google says it with automatically migrate all Hangouts data (conversations, contacts, as well as history) to Chat, although the exact date has not been finalized yet. As a sign of things already heading in that direction, Google has updated the group video-calling experience in Hangouts with Meet to provide better quality meetings. A one-on-one video chat option is still available through Hangouts. For the time being, you can still rely on Hangouts to fulfil (most of) your video calling needs, as the aging chat app will hang on a bit longer.
How to Share Your Screen Using Google Duo on Mobile
The feature is still pretty new, as Google started rolling it out in late September. You’ll need a device running Android 9 Pie or higher to take advantage of screen-sharing in Duo.
- Open the Google Duo app on your phone.
- Select the person you want to call.
- Tap the blue Video call button to get started.
- Once the other person you called answers, you’ll notice a few buttons have appeared at the bottom.
- Tap on the last one – the one with three little stars on it.
- Select Screen Share.
- A message will pop up alerting you that you’re about to give Google Duo access to information shown on your display. This includes sensitive data such as passwords, payment details and more.
- Knowing this, if you feel comfortable to continue, then press Start now. The screen sharing will start. While this is going on, you’ll notice a little red cast icon in the status bar in the upper-right corner, which indicates you’re sharing your screen. You are free to leave the Duo app to do something else, such as opening your image gallery to show your friends the latest photos of your fluffy cat.
Quickly Turn the Feature Off
Once you’ve accomplished what you wanted to do, simply tap again on the Screen Share button (that looks like a phone) and the sharing will immediately stop. Or you can, swipe down the notification panel and tap on “End screenshare.” From the same menu in the app, Google Duo also makes it easy to add Effects or enable Portrait mode which, will blur your background. Video calling (and screen sharing) will require a good Internet connection, so you may want to get up to speed regarding the amount of bandwidth used by video calling or the top Zoom features you should be using for better remote meetings. Image Credit: Google
