Pre-COVID normalcy has yet to return to the world, so video meetings are still a thing. Because of this virtual shift, more and more people are leveraging Microsoft Teams. Though, those new to Teams should be aware the different experiences…
There are three versions of Teams: mobile, browser, and desktop.
| Mobile | Browser | Desktop | |
| Gallery | X | X | X |
| Large Gallery | X | ||
| Together Mode | X | X | |
| Raise Hand | X | X | X |
| Screen Sharing | X | X | |
| Change Background | X | ||
| Meeting Chat | X | X | X |
- Gallery is the view of the meeting participants. Mobile participants can see up to 4 participants, but browser participants limited to seeing only the current speaker. However, desktop participants can view to 9 participants.
- Large Gallery is currently restricted to desktop participants of meetings with more than 10 attendees. They can see up to 49 participants.
- Together Mode is a recent-ish feature where meeting participants are presented in an auditorium setting. At least 5 attendees need to be in the meeting.
- Raise Hand is exactly what it sounds like. Very handy in larger meetings.
- Screen Sharing, again, exactly what it sounds like. Desktop participants can specify individual screens or specific applications to present. Mobile participants can share their entire screen. Browser participants can’t share their screens.
- Change Background helps to jazz meetings up a bit. Microsoft provided several out-of-the box images and a background blur feature. They also introduced functionality to upload custom images.
- Meeting Chat is the ability to send messages to for all meeting participants to see.
Note: This was not an exhaustive list of features.
Remembering that there are three versions of Microsoft Teams, there are also three ways to leverage it:
- Guest participants are invited to meetings, but they don’t have registered accounts with Microsoft Teams. While in the meeting, (Guest) will be listed next to their name.
- Free participants are registered with Microsoft, so they have a Teams account. But they aren’t licensed with Office 365. Instead, they are using the free version of Teams and don’t have (Guest) next to their name.
- Licensed participants have Office 365 accounts associated with a tenant. It doesn’t matter the tenant size, but they will typically have other Office products available: OneDrive, Outlook, Word, etc.
| Guest | Free | Licensed | |
| Gallery | X | X | |
| Large Gallery | X | ||
| Together Mode | X | ||
| Raise Hand | X | X | |
| Screen Sharing | X | X | |
| Change Background | X | X | |
| Meeting Chat | X | X | X |
| View Attendees | X | X | |
| View Settings | X |
Conclusion:
The desktop application is the most robust. There are also features only available with a licensed account. Everyone can participate, but they’ll participate differently…
“I am, and always will be a catalyst for change.”
Shirley Anita Chisholm
#blacklivesmatter
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