Use chat with classic Hangouts to stay connected with your co-workers, and people in other organizations.
Use the following resources to get started.
What’s new in classic Hangouts?Here's a summary of even more benefits and features available with classic Hangouts.
| What's new | Description |
|---|---|
| Support for all your devices |
Chat messages in Classic Hangouts take full advantage of the growing number of devices used at work. For example, if you start a conversation on your laptop, you can easily continue the same conversation on your mobile device. |
| Chat with large groups |
Use classic Hangouts to chat with up to 150 people using a variety of devices, including Gmail, the classic Hangouts mobile app, or the Chrome plug-in. You can also name the group conversation, save it, and quickly invite more users. Learn more After the conversation, you can still access the group’s message history. |
| Status messages for a multidevice workplace |
With classic Hangouts, people can see if you are online and available, or not. Other status messages, such as “idle” or “busy” aren’t included because they don’t always apply when people use multiple devices. For example, your computer at work might be idle, but the mobile phone in your pocket means you’re still available. You can still enter a custom status message. Learn more If you’re not online:
Tip: "Invisible status" isn't available in classic Hangouts. To hide when you were last seen using classic Hangouts, uncheck Show when you were last active in your chat settings menu. The green status bar or dot will not appear next to your name, and your "last seen" state will not be shown. You can still send and receive messages. Learn more |
| Classic Hangouts can store your conversation |
Classic Hangouts can manage your conversations in real-time. You (or your administrator) can automatically save or discard all conversations, or you can choose to save or discard each individual conversation. |
| Sharing is easy | You can share all kinds of useful things while chatting with classic Hangouts. Share a map location if you’re discussing a conference site or display photos from a social gathering right in the context of your conversation. |
| Enhanced emoji | Select from an expanded set of emoji to liven up your conversation. Classic Hangouts can even detect specific phrases in your messages, like “Happy birthday,” and offer options for animated stickers. |
Review the following information to get started with chat.
| Resource | Description |
|---|---|
| Install classic Hangouts on all your devices | Install the classic Hangouts apps on your desktop and mobile devices to join conversations wherever you are. |
| Classic Hangouts business processes | Use these common use cases to better understand how chat in classic Hangouts can transform the way you work. |
| Classic Hangouts FAQ for Google Workspace users | Learn more about the switch to chat in classic Hangouts. |
The classic Hangouts Help Center includes complete instructions for using chat in classic Hangouts. Topics include:
- Get Started
- Classic Hangouts on your Android device
- Classic Hangouts on your iOS (Apple) device
- Chat
- Make a phone call with classic Hangouts
and more!
