Microsoft launches video messaging app – Skype Qik
It is raining messaging services in the technology world and how could Microsoft be left behind in the race to have a widely used messaging app. As business insiders have accepted that the number of mobile users is increasing which has lead to driving more and more business in terms of organic leads or ads from mobile and in times like these. It is better to have a messaging service. Facebook has the most popular app Whatsapp, it was high time Microsoft comes up with their own app. Microsoft markets Skype Qik as the best messaging app after their own Skype.
What is Skype Qik?
Skype Qik is a video sharing application which allows you to send short videos to a friend or a group of friends in your contacts and it is available on Windows Phone, iPhones, and Android phones. You can chat with your friends sending short videos with just a single tap and share option, the best thing is there is no complication of a sign-up and you actually do not need a Skype account to run Skype Qik. You can send a message to anyone in your contacts and the contact will receive the message with a link to download the app, that’s how simple it is to use Skype Qik.
Is Skype Qik different than Snapchat?
Yes, It is quite different from Snapchat. Snapchat is an ephemeral messaging service for pictures, whereas Skype Qik offers the same option for videos. Though there is no need of an app like Skype Qik and the question is why users will start using Skype Qik when they already have Whatsapp, Snapchat, iMessage and more. Skype Qik is a quick reminder of what would happen if Skype would have been launched today.
The thing with Skype Qik is that you can send recorded video messages to your friends if you are feeling lazy or not in the mood for a video call and the best part is that you both don’t need to be online at the same time, works well for business people in different time zones and long distance relationships.
When you first heard of Skype Qik, it must have sounded familiar because that is the name of the mobile company Skype acquired in 2011. Some of the developers from Qik worked on Skype Qik, it is entirely different technology than Skype. Qik was live video streaming whereas Skype Qik is like a video voicemail app and the app which was launched recently was built again using a different code.
Skype’s idea was about connecting people and bringing them closer when they were miles apart, whereas Skype Qik is an altogether different thing. Internet users have also started shifting from desktop to mobile and Skype reports that half of the new users every month are on mobile, so an app which catered to the mobile-only audience was in need.
Feedback of Skype Qik
Skype Qik offers a vibrant, intuitive and a simple UI. The users can just tap the pink button which will open a home screen with your previously recorded video messages and an option to record a video and send to your friend. While recording a video, it is important to note that the easy transition between the front and rear camera makes it quite an app to look forward to.
To record a video, there is only one red button. You just need to drag the screen down to start recording your video. You can now tap to start the video and tap to stop. When the recording is complete, you can select a recipient or recipients to send the video and it is not necessary for them to have the app.
Responding to a message is simple, the video messages from your friends are displayed as round icons which you can view with a tap on the icon. Skype Qik fills the void which was unserved by Skype. For funny responses to your friends’ messages, you can record various 5-10 seconds responses like “OMG” or “What’s wrong with you?” reactions.
As we have mentioned above It is an ephemeral app, which means that the video messages gets automatically deleted after two weeks. And, only 8 video messages can be viewed on the screen at a time. When a person is added to the group, he can not view the previously sent video messages in the group.
Skype Qik is yet to compete in this big bad world of messaging services, but you can make it count while it makes an impression by downloading it on iTunes, Windows Phone Store, and Google Play.
Keval Padia is the founder & CEO of Nimblechapps, a fast-growing mobile app development company. The current innovation and updates of the field lures him to express his views and thoughts on certain topics.