Microsoft has released the latest update for Skype, adding a feature we've seen pop up in a number of similar products: custom backgrounds. These images can be used during video calls to replace the user's real-life background, obscuring the clutter, boring background, or simply offering a cleaner, neater background for distraction-free video chats.
While some work that has been taken home can often be done solo, employees in more collaborative offices often need more than just email or text messages to communicate. Sometimes even real-time team chats aren't enough, especially for those used to looking for visual cues on their teammates' faces. Video conference services are, of course, a dime a dozen but some claim to be easier to use than others. There is probably nothing easier, though, than just sending a link and nothing more which is exactly what Skype's new feature promises.
After its acquisition, Microsoft has tried to reinvent Skype's image as something not just for businesses anymore but as a communication tool for groups as well as personal chats well. In other words, Microsoft wants people to know they can use Skype for any and all chats, be it text, audio, or its original video functionality. Unfortunately, it seems that putting all your communication eggs in one Microsoft basket may have repercussions in terms of privacy, especially after the latest report that exposes the company's rather lax security standards for the service.
Skype has been updated on desktop and mobile with a variety of new features, the most notable improvements involving messaging. Starting now, Skype users on Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS can bookmark any Skype message, making it easier to find in the future. As well, the updated software now also supports saving message drafts, split windows on desktop, and more.
Last week, word surfaced that Microsoft, as with Apple, Google, Amazon, and Facebook before it, was using human contractors to listen to some Skype and Cortana audio clips. Though other big tech companies have paused these practices in light of consumer concerns, Microsoft has taken a different route, updating its privacy policy to explicitly state that people are listening.
Amazon, Google, and Apple have recently come under fire because of the way they have handed audio clips to human reviewers with users' knowledge. All three companies have commented and put their programs on hold to avoid possible lawsuits and further backlash. It turns out that it's not just voice-controlled smart assistants are involved in this business practice. Even Skype calls, long considered to be sacrosanct, are apparently subjected to the same treatment and some Microsoft contractors have become privy to those conversations, even very intimate ones.
Microsoft has announced that Skype will lose support for SMS Connect, the feature that enables users to view and send text messages from their computer instead of their phone. The feature is very convenient for those who use SMS messaging, but who are on their computer during work and don't want to separately handle their handset. Though the loss is disappointing, Microsoft says there is an alternative option.
Skype will soon be slightly more useful on mobile for certain users thanks to a new feature: screen sharing. This ability is arriving first in beta for Android and iOS users, making it possible to share a phone or tablet's display directly with another Skype user. Because the feature is only available in beta, mobile users will need to be a Skype Insider to access it.
The recent Group FaceTime bug on iOS has cost Apple no small amount of credibility, not to mention an inquiry from US lawmakers. Considering the potential number of affected users, this bug on the Skype version of Android that automatically answers calls might actually be more egregious than the FaceTime version. For better or worse, however, it is at least less clandestine than Apple's bug.
In addition to its desktop and mobile applications, Microsoft offers Skype on the Web, enabling users to access the service directly in their browser. In an update today, the company announced that its Skype for Web product has been updated with new features and support, including the ability to make high-definition video calls directly in Chrome and Edge.
Bokeh, the effect of blurring of objects around the subject, has become a popular feature in mobile photography. It's made possible with two cameras but even a single camera can do it with some software tricks. But while that's relatively easy to do with still shots, it's harder to pull off when your subject is less stationary. And that is why Microsoft is resorting to some Artificial Intelligence to implement background blur in Skype video chats on desktops.
Microsoft has launched live call captioning with live captions and subtitles in the latest version of Skype. The new feature was announced on the UN International Day of Persons with Disabilities, giving users who are deaf or hard of hearing an important accessibility feature. The captions and subtitles appear as people are talking.