Google Meet’s new update will finally help us all look a little better on our morning video call
- Auto-framing is coming to all Google Meet users
- The function automatically positions you in the center of the video frame
- The framing can be adjusted at any time and even works with virtual backgrounds
Looking your best on the morning team video call could soon be a lot easier thanks to a new update to Google Meet.
The videoconferencing platform has revealed that the automatic framing tool will be coming to all levels of the Google Workspace platform, allowing more users to better represent themselves during a call.
The tool helps users automatically center themselves in the middle of the screen when they’re on a video call or meeting, meaning they’re well-framed and as visible as possible.
Google Meet framing
Auto-framing was launched by Google Workspace in 2022, but until now was only available at select levels. In the future, this will be enabled by default for all users and no administrative control will be required.
“Depending on camera placement, some meeting participants may be less visible than others,” the company said in a Google Workspace update blog post. “With autoframing, Google Meet automatically centers your video before joining a meeting to ensure equal visibility for all participants.”
The feature takes effect before a user joins the call, but can be re-customized at any time during a meeting by the user if they want to refresh their appearance, by hovering over the video tile and clicking ‘Reframe’.
The tool also now works better with virtual backgrounds, which previously may have affected the way a user is framed during a conversation. Google says Meet will “continually keep you centered when you use a virtual background, so your background stays fixed and isn’t constantly reframed, which can be distracting.”
The news is the latest in a series of recent updates to Google Meet in recent weeks, as it looks to become more useful and intuitive for users everywhere.
This includes a new picture-in-picture feed, which opens automatically when you navigate to another tab – useful for those who may need to search for relevant information or data from different sources.
Google’s Gemini AI platform now also automatically takes notes during a meeting, allowing users to “drop the pen” and focus more clearly on the meeting rather than splitting focus between listening and note-taking during video conference calls.
