Google’s push to make their apps a robust communication and productivity solution is continuing. We saw the big announcement on Monday about Google Hangouts being updated and now Google Slides has been update too. Why is that a big deal? This update to Google Slides brings the ability for you to present your slides to a Hangouts video call audience that you have in your calendar. Simple and seamless presenting without having to go through the pain of a separate app or service. This update to Google Slides is version 1.2.312.15.35 for those keeping score at home.
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To use this new feature in Slides you have to make sure you give the app permission to access your calendar and device microphone. Once done, if you have a hangouts video call appointment in your calendar, when you start that call, you can now share your presentation directly from within Slides to those callers. To do this, tap on the Play button at the top of the Google Slides app. You then will get the option to present to someone on-the-fly or via an appointment on your calendar.
Google Slides for Android
Essentially what it allows you to do is turn your Android phone or tablet into a full fledged conference app with the ability to share a presentation – ala Go To Meeting. It’s a bold move and it is clear that Google wants to position Hangouts and their office apps as viable business solutions for everyone.
While this new feature is obviously the big news in this update to Google Slides, there are a few minor updates that bring performance and stability improvements to the app. These update, as is usually the case with Google, are not explicitly outlined on what was addressed.
Google Slides is part of the Google answer to Microsoft Office and is a free download for your Android phone or tablet. There are also Chrome extensions for Google Slides that will allow you to use the app and edit presentations while you are offline. Read my article on the power of Chrome extensions for more details.
