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Google Meet Layout Improved for Presentations

Now up to 16 people can be seen in a tiled layout while also placing the presentation in its own large tile.

 & Matthew Humphries Former Senior Editor

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Google wants as many people as possible opting to use Meet for their video conferencing needs. The latest way the search giant is enticing us to try it is by improving presentations, even when there's 16 participants on the call.

Google Meet used to be a video service limited to business and education users, but that changed in April when it was opened up for free for everyone to use. It also received a Zoom-like upgrade to allow 16 participants to join a chat, rather than the previous limit of just four. Now those 16 users can enjoy a much improved presentation experience.

What Google is referring to as "tiled view with presentations" has just gone live as a feature. It still allows for up to 16 participants to join a chat, but the tiled layout has been adjusted to give whoever is presenting a large, central tile for the others to more easily view. All participants can still be seen in small tiles, as the image above shows.

The presentation view is offered as a type of layout and it will be automatically saved as a user's preferred layout when first selected. Next time you load up Google Meet it will select presentation mode, but the other options remain available, including Spotlight and Sidebar layouts. Google also made some minor user interface improvements, which "better utilize the space on your screen." The new features are already available to use and have been rolled out to both G Suite customers and users who access Meet through their personal Google account.

Further Reading

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About Our Expert

Matthew Humphries

Matthew Humphries

Former Senior Editor

My Experience

I started working at PCMag in November 2016, covering all areas of technology and video game news. Before that I spent nearly 15 years working at Geek.com as a writer and editor. I also spent the first six years after leaving university as a professional game designer working with Disney, Games Workshop, 20th Century Fox, and Vivendi.

I hold two degrees: a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science and a Master's degree in Games Development. My first book, Make Your Own Pixel Art, is available from all good book shops.

My Areas of Expertise

  • PC components and system building
  • Raspberry Pi
  • Software development
  • Storage technology
  • Video games and gaming hardware

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