From Nasdaq:

Alphabet’s Google has added a “Calls” tab to its Google Meet web app, integrating the meeting side with the traditional Duo direct dialing feature. The recent update comes with a navigation drawer that allows users to switch between “Meetings” and “Calls.” Google Meet now offers meeting and direct calling functionality on mobile, while the “Meet (original)” app remains with a video tab for meetings.

Apart from the addition of the Calls tab, Alphabet introduced an On-the-Go mode for Google Meet users on mobile, enhancing the meeting experience by detecting motion and prompting users to enable the mode. Another Google Meet update now allows Workspace users to make direct calls, allowing them to share meetings via calendar invite, chat, or email. This change allows users to place cloud-encrypted 1:1 video calls directly to colleagues, similar to personal users. Additionally, a recent Google Meet update now enables gesture detection to trigger a “Raise hand” button in the toolbar, allowing users to raise their hand for Q&A sessions and moderation. The company also rolled out portrait touch-ups on Google Meet, offering two subtle and smoothing options for users to enhance their appearance before or during meetings.

Alphabet’s growing efforts to bolster its Google Meet capabilities will, in turn, boost its Workspace offerings. Notably, Alphabet unveiled Google Chat redesigns featuring Home, Direct messages, Spaces and Mentions in a pill-shaped container, replacing the bottom bar and “New” floating action button (FAB). The strengthening Google Cloud segment is expected to aid its overall financial performance, with the Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2024 total revenues standing at $283.39 billion, indicating year-over-year growth of 11.26%.

Currently, Alphabet carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Some other top-ranked stocks in the broader technology sector are Camtek (CAMT), KT and Everbridge (EVBG), each carrying a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. Camtek shares have returned 194.6% in the past year, KT shares have declined 6.4%, and Everbridge shares have lost 19.3% in the past year. These are notable advancements whose effects have been experienced within the past year.



Read more: Alphabet (GOOGL) Boosts Google Meet Offerings With “Calls” Tab