Google has launched a video calling app named Duo that will connect users via their mobile phone numbers. The app is currently live on Android and iOS, and will have all conversations secured with end-to-end encryption. The app currently not live in India; Play Store however provides a ‘pre-register’ option for India users, indicating that it could be launched sooner. Google claims that video calls will work on slower networks as well, since the call quality will automatically adjust according to network connection strength, and according to network type: mobile data or WiFi. This feature will assure that cat call remains connected without dropping due to poor network, according to Google. This was borrowed from Google Hangouts, which currently allows users to manually set call quality. A feature dubbed ‘Knock Knock’ which lets users glance into a live video stream of the incoming caller even before you actually answer the call. This according Google will “give you a sense of what they’re up to and why they want to chat.” A video explaining how 'Knock Knock' works: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CIeMysX76pM Competition Duo users need not create a new Google account to sign up for the service, they simply need to choose a username and the app will identify a user based on their mobile numbers. With this, Google is directly looking to compete with services like WhatsApp, which rolled out video-calling feature in May and has reportedly crossed 1 billion Monthly Active Users (MAUs) in February. Facebook’s standalone messenger service crossed 1…
