In Telegram’s latest update, you can now have up to 1000 participants in group video calls; the catch is, only up to 30 people actually get to broadcast video from their cameras. The rest can still watch and listen.
In a way, this update takes a book from social audio app Clubhouse – where users can now treat the feature as a platform to broadcast live content; but the added benefit here is that the selected few get to present visually as well, as opposed to the all-audio format of Clubhouse.
According to Telegram’s blog, the feature will let you know when you are live – meaning your webcam is engaged, and mic is turned on – and show you which members are currently present and are listening. It also looks like you have the option to turn off your camera and just use your audio input only if you choose.
In the same update, Telegram has also introduced higher resolution video messages, and the ability to expand and scrub these video messages.
On the productivity front, users on 1-on-1 calls can now screen share, which also contains sound from your device.
Another note-worthy update introduced is in the privacy front where users can now set a period of time for the messages, they send to erase themselves. The feature lets you choose between 1 day to 1 month for a text message to delete itself. This is useful if you’re sharing over personal information that you don’t want sticking around forever.
For more information of Telegram’s latest updates, read up on their blog here.