Google Talk vs GChat: Difference and Comparison

Online communication through video-calling services and web-based chatting apps has become a crucial part of our everyday lives in the past decade.

Key Takeaways

1. Google Talk was an instant messaging service that supported text and voice communication.
2. GChat was a colloquial term for Google Talk, which later evolved into Google Hangouts.
3. Both services have been discontinued and replaced by Google Hangouts, which now integrates with Google Meet and Chat.

Google Talk vs Gchat

Google Talk, also known as Gtalk, was an instant messaging service developed by Google in 2005. It allowed users to send text messages, voice calls, and file transfers to other Google Talk users. Gchat, also known as Google Chat, was a chat service that was integrated into Gmail, Google’s email service. It allowed Gmail users to chat with other Gmail users in real-time.

Google Talk is a software developed by Google for providing video-call services. It was developed as direct competition to other software such as Skype, Yahoo Chat, and MSN, which were popular at the time.

Gchat was the first messaging service developed by Google. It was introduced as a messaging application and was branded as Google Talk initially.

Comparison Table

Parameters of Comparison	Google Talk	Gchat
Definition	Google Talk is an online communication platform developed by Google and it provides video-calling services	Gchat is an online messaging service developed by Google and is integrated into Gmail.
Service Type	It is a free service but it requires the software to be downloaded before using	It is a free service as it is integrated into Gmail
Installation	Installation of the application is required to use Google Talk	There is no application installation required
Protocol	It uses VoIP protocol to provide video-calling service	It uses the same protocol as Gmail
Services Available	It provides chatting, video-calling, conference call services	It only provides chatting services

What is Google Talk?

Google Talk is a video-calling service developed by Google. It was introduced in the year 2005, and during its initial release, it was presented as a chatting service.

As a chatting service, it had quick send capabilities and was designed as a messaging app with quick messaging and voice chat features.

Google Talk was designed as a direct competitor to other such video-calling service providers, such as Skype, MSN, and Yahoo Chat which were popular at the time.

The service was made available for all the major operating systems, such as MS Windows, Apple OS, Ubuntu, Android, and separate versions were made for each respective operating system.

Google Talk uses VoIP protocol to provide video-calling service and also provides a reliable connection. Along with this, there were conference call and chat features integrated into to software. Thus the user base of Google Talk increased exponentially over the years.

What is Gchat?

Gchat is a messaging tool provided by Google, and it is integrated as an extension into Gmail. Thus Gchat uses the same Gmail platform for its services.

Initially, Gchat was introduced as a chatting service and was branded as Google Talk. It was a part of the Gmail service provided by Google with more focus on quick messaging.

Later Google Talk was reintroduced as a completely different software, and the chatting service of Gmail was rebranded as Gchat. Similar to its predecessor, Gchat was integrated into Gmail, while Google Talk was released as new software.

Thus Gchat is a chatting and quick messaging tool of Gmail. It is an extension of Gmail, and it requires no separate installation. As a chatting feature, it focuses more on quick messaging and thus is faster than regular mail.

Thus short messages could be quickly sent, and this allowed for a fast and sophisticated chatting service. Being a Gmail-based chatting service, the only registration required for using Gchat was a Google account.

Main Differences Between Google Talk and Gchat

1. Google Talk uses VoIP protocol to provide reliable video-calling services. In contrast, Gchat uses the same protocols as Gmail for chatting services.
2. Along with vide-call, Google Talk also provides conference call, chat, and voice call services. Gchat is a messaging tool of Gmail, and thus it only provides a chatting service.

References

1. https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/4037059/
2. https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/5137327/
3. https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/1652607/