You have a family member, friend or loved one who is living far away or perhaps so far, that they are on the other side of the world, but you really would like to see them again.
In the past, one would make a call to the telephone exchange and request a long-distance call which often was quite costly. And, for those of us who are old enough, you had to contend with a slight delay in the conversation. But now, with smartphones, one can not only make a call but also have a video call and see the person on the other end.
Video calls have become a new normal in conversations across the world. Where meetings or chats are often conducted using Microsoft Teams, Zoom and Google Meet when using a computer, these are also used on the smartphone. The important thing to remember is that everyone that you would like to video call needs to be on the same app when making the call.
FaceTime
Apple FaceTime was launched in June 2010 alongside the iPhone 4 and was limited to use via Wi-Fi and only between iPhone 4 users. By October 2010, FaceTime was available on certain Mac laptops with an official launch in February 2011. Since then, FaceTime was introduced into the iPad range and used via mobile data in 2012 and by 2018 FaceTime had Group FaceTime enabling up to 32 people to be on the video call together. FaceTime was added to Apple TV in 2023 and in 2025, Apple introduces Live Translation to FaceTime on Apple Intelligence compatible devices providing translated live captions during a call.
Google Meet
If you have an Android smartphone, you are most likely to be logged in to your Google account which will provide Google Meet as a pre-installed app to make video calls. Google Meet was launched in March 2017 as an invite-only app where a link was required to be part of the call, similar to Teams and Zoom. It was made free to all Google account users in April 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Google Meet was originally unveiled as a video conferencing app for up to 30 participants with a 60-minute limit per call. Google Meet is however, not limited to Android phones, as one can log into any mobile device or computer with a Google account to access the app.
WhatsApp is extremely popular throughout the world, except in China and North Korea where it is fully blocked. Other nations like Russia, United Arab Emirates and Qatar to name a few have restrictions on WhatsApp where texting is available but no voice or video calls are permitted. WhatsApp was launched in 2009 and launched video calling in November 2016 allowing users of Android, iPhone, Windows phones and computers with WhatsApp installed to text, send voice message, photos, videos and make video calls.
Messenger
If you are a Facebook user, you will also have access to Messenger by Facebook. Facebook was launched in February 2004 as a way of communication between Harvard students. It gradually expanded to other colleges in the United States and Canada and by 2006, if you were over 13 years of age and had a valid email address, you were able to have a Facebook account. Facebook Chat was launched in 2008 and Messenger in 2011 and in April 2015 Messenger video calling was introduced. Messenger in also used for sending photos, videos, audio and files.
No matter which app you prefer to use, and there are many others, there are two main settings that need to be switched on on a smartphone to be able to make video calls. This may differ slightly from one phone manufacturer to another, but the application of the settings are similar.
The first of these will be the camera. Go to “Settings” and type in Permissions Manager in the search bar. Click on Permissions Manager. A drop-down menu will appear where you can select “Camera”. Once selected, grant permissions to the app that you will be using to make the video calls. There are typically three options. 1. Allowed only while in use. 2. Ask every time. 3. Not Allowed. Select option 1 for the camera to be used by the selected application.
The second permission to be granted will be for the microphone. As above, go to “Settings” and type in Permissions Manager in the search. Click on Permissions Manager. A drop-down menu will appear where you can select “Microphone” and select the appropriate permissions as listed above.
Lastly, select the application you prefer to use for video calling and select the camera icon when making the call and not the telephone icon. By selecting the telephone icon, the camera is not activated and video calling will not be possible. Where possible, keep the smartphone at arm’s length and yourself centred on the screen so that the person on the other side of the call has a clear view of who they are having the conversation with. After all, as Apple put it, it is called FaceTime and we all would like to see each other’s faces during the conversation.
Photo: Vitaly Grieve on Unsplash