In this digital era, it’s not just about creating things but also about sharing the information with your team members. Communication among co-workers is crucial to keep them updated and engaged.
Zoom and Microsoft Teams are video-conferencing solutions that enterprises can use to connect your employees and clients from all over the world. But they are different in many ways, from where they excel to which features you’ll find. So how do you know which is best for your business needs?
What is Microsoft Teams?
Microsoft Teams is a communication platform that allows users to communicate in real time through a variety of different methods. Team members can meet via audio or video calls, share documents, leave comments on files, and more. Teams is available as part of Microsoft 365 business plans, and integrates with other Microsoft 365 applications, like Word, Excel, and Outlook.
Features:
Document sharing: Microsoft Teams allows you to share documents across your team in real time. You can also leave comments and collaborate on those documents, making collaboration across teams much easier.
Guest access:
You can give guest access to your colleagues so they can join a call, but they will not be able to participate in the rest of your team communication features. This is a great feature if you want to allow someone to join a call you have scheduled.
Channels:
With channels, you can create different topics for different types of conversations. You can create channels for topics like “Marketing“, “Projects”, and more. You can invite only the people you want to be part of a specific conversation, and then you can choose whether to make the channel public or private.
What is Zoom?
Zoom is a cloud-based video conferencing and webinar tool similar to Microsoft Teams, allowing users to make audio and video calls, share screens, and use built-in integrations with other business applications.
Features:
Customised meeting invitations: You can customise your meeting invitations to fit your needs. You can include a custom message, set a date and time, and choose whether you want to make the meeting public or private.
Zoom Rooms:
Zoom Rooms are like meeting rooms in Microsoft Teams. They are rooms where you can invite a large number of people to a meeting, and Zoom will help you manage the meeting.
Guest access:
Zoom has a feature called guest access, which allows you to give access to anyone you want to join a meeting; however, they will not be able to access any other part of your Zoom account.
Video quality
When choosing between Microsoft Teams and Zoom, one of the main things you should look at is the video quality. Microsoft Teams and Zoom are tied when it comes to video quality, as they both offer HD 1080p at 30 fps.
To reach this resolution, Microsoft suggests a connection of at least 2Mbps, while Zoom suggests a connection of at least 3Mbps. Because Zoom does not enable 1080p by default, 720p is used by default; this may be altered by the user.
User interface
The user interface of Microsoft Teams is designed with a focus on simplicity and usability. It has an intuitive navigation structure that allows users to quickly find the information they need by using various shortcuts, filters, and other options. It also has built-in integrations with other applications such as Outlook, OneDrive, and SharePoint, so it can be used in conjunction with many other tools already in place.
Zoom offers fewer user features and integrations, but it provides a clear, uncluttered interface that is easy to navigate and use.
Both platforms provide screen and app sharing, voice communication, whiteboards, custom backgrounds, breakout spaces, and meeting recordings.
Security features
Teams leverages Microsoft’s staunch cyber security features, including end-to-end encryption, multi-factor authentication, data loss prevention, and regulatory compliance across HIPAA, GDPR, and many other industry compliance requirements.
Zoom provides meeting hosts with a variety of security features, including waiting rooms for attendees, audio signatures, screen-share watermarks, and password-protected meetings. It encrypts data using 256-bit TLS and AES-256 encryption, and, optionally, end-to-end encryption. Zoom stores only basic information pulled from user account profiles, such as email addresses, passwords, first and last names, and company names.
However, Zoom has been criticised for its privacy policies and lax security, including a major breach in 2020 where attackers gained access to the Zoom Windows client’s group chat feature and leaked links online. This resulted in the loss of over 500 million usernames and passwords throughout the Zoom user base.
Get the right communication platform for your business needs
Microsoft Teams and Zoom are both powerful video conferencing tools that allow you to connect with your team and clients from all over the world. Both have a number of great features, but when it comes to app integration, security features, and collaborative capabilities, Teams is the clear winner.
The business IT experts at Itopia can help you implement the ideal communication platform into your business, guide you on its best practices, and train your users in how to navigate the interface.
