Social Media Smart Screen Video Chat

Facebook Portal, which has been designed to let you video chat with your friends online, has been finally released.

22:42 10 October 2018

Facebook has revealed its first-ever physical gadgets; the Portal range of smart screens. The Portal and Portal Plus are highly anticipated products from the world’s largest social media network and have been designed to rival the Amazon Echo smart speakers. Their main function is to allow users to video chat with their friends online. 

 

The speakers are powered by artificial intelligence and come with built-in speakers and webcams, and can stand upright or horizontally on a surface. The portal proper has a 10-inch screen while the Facebok Portal Plus has a 15-inch screen. Both look like fairly standard tablets fitted to speakers. 

 

Both screens are activated by voice commands. You can begin a video call by saying “Hey Portal” followed by the name of the person you’re trying to call. Users will be able to make group video chats with up to seven people at once. 

 

Facebook is also keen to promote its privacy policy: “Facebook doesn’t listen to, view, or keep the contents of your Portal video calls.

 

“Your Portal conversations stay between you and the people you’re calling. In addition, video calls on Portal are encrypted, so your calls are always secure.”