Top 10 Video Chat Apps for Eastern Europe

2024. X is launching audio and video calls



X (formerly known as Twitter before it decided a rebrand was in order) has rolled out audio and video calls for its regular users, no longer reserving this dubious privilege for its premium subscribers. To partake in this feature, one must wade through a direct message, tap a phone icon that one might have thought was decorative and then choose whether to subject themselves to an audio or visual encounter. Of course, this all assumes you didn’t stumble upon the feature entirely by accident while scrolling through a sea of messages, wondering if you’d ever actually use it. The whole ordeal begs the question: in a world already teeming with communication platforms, does anyone really need X to throw its hat into the ring? Sure, you don’t have to trade phone numbers—hardly groundbreaking when so many apps already do that—but the "unique value proposition" of this latest addition seems about as clear as mud. For the average non-paying user, it’s less of a handy feature and more of an afterthought glued onto the platform for reasons only the algorithm gods might understand.


2021. Facebook Messenger Adds Encryption for Audio and Video Calls



Facebook Messenger has expanded its E2EE encryption option to audio and video calls. E2EE (End-to-end encryption) is end-to-end encryption, meaning only users participating in the conversation have access to messages. This encryption has been available in Messenger for text chats since 2016. The company faced pressure from US law enforcement agencies not to encrypt calls. However, call encryption has gradually become the standard and is already available in the company's other messenger, WhatsApp, so progress has not been stopped. However, there is one detail: encryption will not work until both users tick the appropriate box in the settings. Encryption will not be enabled automatically for everyone.


2020. Telegram launches video calls in its iOS app



Telegram has released an update to version 6.3 for its Android and iOS apps. Among other features, the iOS app now features video calls. Currently, these features are in test mode. Telegram announced plans to launch video calls in April 2020 amid the increased popularity of video conferencing services due to self-isolation. The team promised to add the feature by the end of the year.


2018. Instagram and WhatsApp to get group video calls



At Facebook's annual developer conference, F8, Mark Zuckerberg announced that Instagram's group calling feature is already available to some users participating in testing and will be rolled out to the wider audience "within weeks." Additionally, Instagram will redesign the Explore section and allow users to manually customize the camera's AR effects. Zuckerberg also announced a group video calling feature for WhatsApp.


2018. Snapchat adds group video calls.



The updated version of Snapchat messenger now features group video calls. Users can create a group call and invite up to 16 participants. Additionally, the app has launched a new "Mentions" feature, which allows users to be referenced in stories using @name.

2014. Google Hangouts is available as a standalone Chrome app for Windows and Chromebooks


Google Hangouts users can now chat and make calls from their desktops without opening their browser. Google Hangouts is now a Chrome app for Windows and Chrome OS computers. It can be installed on Mac OS X computers that also have Chrome but isn’t yet fully supported. The app provides all of your active chats on the desktop for easy access. More important though is the support for voice calls through the app, right on your computer. And Google Voice users will benefit from the Voice integration with Hangouts, meaning access to voicemail and the ability to send and receive SMS.


2011. Nokia and Skype not in a hurry to bring videochat to Windows Phone


Today in London, Nokia unveiled its first smartphones on Windows Phone (Mango) platform - Lumia 710 and Lumia 800. In general, they haven't disappointed anyone. Stylish, high quality, fast and reliable smartphones with pre-installed Mobile Office and Outlook, integrated to Exchange, SkyDrive, SharePoint, Office 365 - will surely attract business users. Of course, the price $580 (Lumia 800) - is not much different from the iPhone, but otherwise it has all chances to compete with iPhone and Android-devices. The only big cons - is that Nokia Lumia has no front camera, which means it doesn't support video chat, so important for business users. Why wasn't it installed? Nokia representative said that they simply had not enough time. But this is not the most shocking news about the video chat on Windows Phone. ***


2000. NetMeeting - Web conferencing for business



NetMeeting is a program that allows for audio and video (if a video camera is available) communication between two conference participants. It also offers the following features: File transfer. During a conference, you can exchange files with other participants. Collaborate on documents. One of NetMeeting's most distinctive features is its ability to share applications. For example, you can allow a remote participant to work with your office programs, even if the remote user does not have these programs installed. Chat. You can exchange text messages with your interlocutor. Whiteboard. You can share graphics with your interlocutor in interactive whiteboard mode. In this case, each participant opens an additional window with all the necessary functions. All your actions (drawing, inserting photos, graphs, etc.) are immediately reflected on your partner's screen.