Communicating has never been easier thanks to Windows 8 and the host of video conferencing options available. From the very early days of the telephone, companies have tried to add video to the audio, in the main they have failed to even scratch the surface.

Combining video and audio as one and delivering them to a single place anywhere in the world has proved troublesome. However, the technology may well now have caught up to offer up reliable video chats.
Perhaps the most famous video chatting software is Skype. Free to download and use you can video call anyone anywhere completely for free, all they need is a copy of Skype. The software is available for phones and Macs too so the person you’re calling doesn’t even need to be using a PC.

The trick up Skype’s sleeve is that it can also call landlines, you can have your very own number for people to call too. Skype is a fully featured video conferencing tool allowing group video chat and video messaging so it can even be used in business. You have to pay more for some of these features, but costs are low. If you just do the odd video chat then Skype is the perfect solution and the fact it’s free to use between users is a real advantage.

Of course there are some seriously industrial video conferencing apps that you can use for business or if you absolutely must have the highest level of security. Polycom is one such company whose products are used by courts and police forces all over the world.

For the vast majority, however, the likes of Skype should be more than adequate. Whatever your video conferencing needs the fact is that these days a laptop with a webcam and an internet connection are all you need to see and hear someone half the world away.

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