Ever since MySpace enjoyed an incredible amount of popularity, we’ve seen new social networking sites pop up every year or two. Facebook appears to have changed the game, however, sticking around for years and continuing to grow in users. In a bid to get in on the action, search giant Google has launched its own site – Google+, read on to find out what it does better than Facebook.
Facebook has proved unusual among social networking sites, attracting kids, teenagers, adults and even businesses, and continuing to hold their attentions. Unlike its rivals, it also appears that Facebook is here to stay. With that in mind, is there enough space in the market for yet another social networking site?
Google appears to think so, which is why we now have Google+. Joining means you’ll have to go through the whole rigmarole again – tracking down friends and acquaintances, setting up a profile and getting to grips with the new site, but it does have some features that Facebook can’t offer.
Circles One of the features we like the most about Google+ is Circles, which lets you split your contacts into different categories. It means you can add people from work, people you used to go to school with, and all your current friends or family, and keep them all separate from each other. That means there’s no more worrying about having to accept requests from your boss, and then trying to hide drunken photographs or status updates.
Sparks Sparks is similar in concept to Facebook’s ‘Like’ function, with the intention to strike up conversation between users. It lets you find subjects you’re interested in, and helps to bring you closer to other people. It also brings personal advertising with it, with adverts targetted directly at individual users.
Hangouts Hangouts offers one of Google+’s best features, letting users chat to each other via video messaging. With the ability to conduct video conferencing between more than two users, it’s similar in concept to Skype, but without having to pay a subscription. As such, it could be perfect for businesses and staying in touch with colleagues.
Huddle Huddle is an instant messaging client for Google+, offering a similar mobile product to RIM’s BlackBerry Messenger. You’ll be able to chat on your Android handset wherever you go, without having to wait for minutes for text messages to come back to you.
Android We already love the Facebook integration available for Android but Google+ has one big advantage over its rival. The fact that Google is also the company behind Android means that it can build even better integration into its smartphones, also tying in all your features from your Gmail account, contacts and calender.
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