Introduction
This page lists the various web-conferencing features most requested on the four web-conferencing tools supported at Biola. Some feature restrictions may change as service providers adapt and remove restrictions due to various circumstance ( e.g. the COVID 19 pandemic).
Web-Conference Feature Comparison
| Feature Category | Specific Feature | Google Meet (Till March 2021) | Zoom (Basic/Free) | Zoom for Ed (Paid) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Host/Join Method | Audio-Only | Yes Up to 250 Participants | Yes Up to 100 Participants | Yes Up to 300 Participants |
| Audio & Video | Yes Up to 250 Participants | Yes Up to 100 Participants | Yes Up to 300 Participants | |
| Browser-based Sessions | Yes Up to 250 Participants | Yes Up to 100 Participants | Yes Up to 300 Participants | |
| Computer Software-based Sessions | No Up to 250 Participants | Yes Up to 100 Participants | Yes Up to 300 Participants | |
| Conference Call (Call In Hosting) | Yes* Up to 250 Participants | Yes Up to 100 Participants | Yes Up to 300 Participants | |
| Dial in by Phone | Yes Up to 250 Participants | No Up to 100 Participants | Yes Up to 300 Participants | |
| Recording** | Yes | Yes Locally | Yes Locally or in the cloud | |
| Live Stream | Internal (Biola)***: Up to 250 Participants and 100,000 Viewers. External: Up to 250 Participants and no Viewers. | No | Yes (via 3rd party integration) Limit is dependent on connected live stream service (Facebook, YouTube, etc.) | |
| Webinar | No | No | Yes**** | |
| Anonymous User Joining | Not by default However, this can possibly be turned on upon request. | Yes | Yes | |
| Collaboration | Breakout Rooms | No***** Google is releasing breakout rooms soon. | Yes | Yes |
| Chat | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| File Share | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Length of Meeting | No Limit | 40 min. for 3 or more participants | 24 Hr. | |
| Polls | No***** | Yes | Yes | |
| Q&A | No***** | Yes | Yes | |
| Hand Raising | No***** | Yes | Yes | |
| Screen/Specific App Share | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Whiteboard | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Function & Limits | Closed Captioning | Yes - Automatic | Manual via stenographer or Automatic - 3rd party API Integration | Manual via stenographer or Automatic - 3rd party API Integration |
| Attendance/Tracking | No***** | Yes | Yes | |
| User Camera Backgrounds | Yes Blurred background only, but customizable backgrounds are coming soon. | Yes | Yes | |
| Registration | No | No | Yes | |
| See Participants Consecutively | Up to 49 Note: Depends on user's hardware. | 49 per gallery page with ~20 gallery pages. Note: Depends on user's hardware. | 49 per gallery page with ~20 gallery pages. Note: Depends on user's hardware. | |
| See Shared Content & Participants | Yes (less intuitive) | Yes | Yes | |
| User Limit | Up to 250 participants | Up to 100 participants | Up to 300 participants | |
| Waiting Room | No***** | Yes | Yes | |
| Remote Computer Control | No | Yes | Yes | |
| Lock Meeting | No | Yes | Yes | |
| Host Controls Over Participants | No***** | Yes | Yes |
* You can start the meeting without a computer, but you must have scheduled the meeting in advance on a computer.
** Please be aware that HIPAA laws may affect your use of this function.
*** Live stream feeds may be delayed and do not allow participant interaction.
**** To request a webinar, you must contact University Events at 562-944-0351 x5982 or event.services@biola.edu.
***** According to Google's first blog announcement on August 10, 2020 and second blog announcement on October 8, 2020, these features are coming soon.