Amazon Chime Vs Others; A First Attempt At Collaboration

Collaboration is an important part of ensuring that any organization stays productive in the ever-evolving business environment. The average workforce has become more dispersed and diverse and this has led companies to seek ways by which every worker can access the necessary resources required to communicate.

There are several collaboration platforms already in existence and those like Microsoft Teams have become a household name in top companies around the world.

But then, there’s a new kid on the block who’s got what it takes to match what the market already has — Amazon Chime. Slowly making its way into becoming an essential part of the average business environment, Amazon Chime has etched its name among the world’s top 5 in its category.

Video conferencing keeps getting better daily and this is what you get when you throw the wealth and weight of two of the world’s big wigs behind it.

Amazon Chime and Microsoft Teams measure up against each other in what is really an interesting battle as the duo both have an array of interesting features.

Amazon Chime Vs Microsoft Teams

Depending on how to you choose to look at it, you could argue that one of these two is better than the other but we have to agree that either of them offers a simple way for workplace collaboration.

The problem that arises mainly between these two is having to decide which of them is right for your company. Both collaborative platforms are absolutely secure and have both mobile and desktop versions as well as various essential communication features and more.

Chime is Amazon’s first shot at a video conferencing. The service, however, didn’t gain much attention when it launched mid-way through 2017. It has however leaped immensely and began to show some positive signs.

There is still a lot of room for improvement and enthusiasts in the business environment expect more innovation from the brand in the coming years.

Teams, on the other hand, is regarded as a major upgrade from a company that has enjoyed lengthy years of video conferencing monopoly. Its predecessor Skype for Business comes with a free-to-use version.

While Microsoft teams, however, is yet to offer its own basic package that attracts no cost, Amazon Chime is one of the UC solutions that offers a free package. Even with Microsoft teams advanced features, the app still allows personal usage and app integration.

Although Teams has become a veteran due to experience gathered over the years, the mere fact that Chime comes with a free plan that includes 1:1 calling, screen sharing features, and access to the chat feature, as well as 30-day message history, puts a hole in what is somewhat perfect.

Both Platforms Are Smart, Sharp, and Swift

Just as you would expect from these two heavyweights, the digital technology innovations of both Teams and Chime are quite remarkable. Both offer a comprehensive solution to all collaboration issues via a superb video-conferencing.

The intuitive in-call options combine with the clean interface and an easy-to-use chat window presentation, displaying crystal clear images to provide you with fine user experience.

Either of the platforms works perfectly with the basic requirement of a 4MBps bandwidth to ensure that what you get during your calls is an HD-resolution that eliminates every visual difficulty.

Chime and Teams contain the requisites for your video conferencing needs and they include

• Mobile app compatible with iOS and Android devices
• Group calls
• Cloud connectivity and storage
• Integrated chat and messaging
• Call recording
• A wide range of third-party interoperability
• An efficient online customer support
• Screen and browser sharing

The diverse features common to both makes each of them a smart choice for start-ups as well as medium businesses.

It is, however, noteful to mention that Teams slightly edges Chime across most of the listed features. In terms of cloud storage, it offers more space per user, also a maximum of 50 group callers can communicate simultaneously compared to Chime’s 16 and a wider range of enhanced video conferencing features like the background blur.

Although the differences that exist between both may not be as clear as the daylight, Teams definitely have an advantage that presents it as a more effective solution.

Ease of Use

Although the feature that enables Microsoft teams for personal use is commendable, Amazon Chime also shines in this regard. One of Chime’s major attractions is that it is super easy to use with very little need for training.

Chime shares basic similarities with other standard UC platforms but it has some really interesting features worth mentioning like the ability to mute a particular participant that might be disturbing the flow of a conversation during a call.

While it is certain that Chime is straightforward and easy to use, Microsoft Teams isn’t to be left out in this regard. Teams represent an all-round solution to organizations that have already blended with the Office 365 suite.

Teams provide a comprehensive and terse Office 365 package to the business sphere while also affording users with a special chat-based hub for seamless communication.

On the side tracks are some features like the Azure Active Directory and Teams that also integrate with other services within the Office 365 framework.

The Other Side

The crux of the disappointment that fazed Amazon’s debut in video conferencing is how ordinary it looked. In an era where top video conferencing platforms like Slack have been busy stocking up the manner in which video is incorporated to make workplace collaboration easy, Chime launched a Skype-esque video experience that hasn’t improved much.

Microsoft spotted Chime’s potential and took a step ahead by smartly remodeling its renowned Skype for Business in order to stay ahead of the competition.

In the end, what you choose between Chime and Teams goes down to a personal decision and what your business requires. Amazon chime is, however, a simple and effective tool for communication and also requires little training.

Although Teams feel more like the better option given its wider workplace collaboration format, Amazon Chime is also backed by a plethora of rich options that make it a more than decent UC solution.

Originally published at https://nextplane.net on October 4, 2019.