Google Meet adds presentations to its tiled layout
It still shows attendees on screen even if someone is presenting.
Google has tweaked Meet’s UI yet again, adding a feature meant to simulate in-person workplace presentations. Back in April, the tech giant rolled out a Zoom—like tiled layout option that gave the video conferencing service the ability to display up to 16 participants on screen. Now, it has updated that tiled layout, allowing users to see attendees even when someone is presenting.
Presentations now appear as a large tile at the center of the screen, while active participants’ video feeds will be shown at the side or the bottom. Google says it’s hoping the change can help make remote meetings feel more like in-person meetings. In addition, the video conferencing app now retains the last layout users choose until they manually select a new one.
Google has been updating Meet with new features ever since people were forced to work from home due to coronavirus-related lockdowns. Aside from giving it a tiled layout in an effort to make it a more viable Zoom competitor, Google also made it free to use. G Suite users still have exclusive access to more advanced features, but everyone with a Gmail account can use Meet for their conferencing needs.
