Google's G Suite customers can hide Gmail's Meet integration in the sidebar

As Google rolled out its Meet video calling service to users, the company added it to Gmail's sidebar. For users who don't like that it takes up space there, you have the option to take it out. Unfortunately, this option is only available to G Suite customers. If you use G Suite and want to take it out, you can head to Gmail's web preferences (the gear icon in the top right corner) and locate the Chat and Meet menu. There will now be a Meet section there that you can toggle. If you want to hide Hangouts as well, you can do so here, too, under the Chat option.

If you're a G Suite admin who'd like to do this for an entire domain, there is a different setting for you to do. But for individual users, it's as simple as heading into your settings to enact the change.

Source: 9to5Google

Google Meet gets a Zoom-like gallery view, among other new features

Like other videoconferencing solutions, Google Meet has seen significant growth amid the COVID-19 pandemic. So, it makes sense that Google is working fast to release new features. The app gets some significant updates that have already started rolling out. 

One is a Zoom-like gallery view that lets you see 16 participants at once. While Zoom can take up to 49 people on the same call, the jump from four to 16 for Google Meet is a good improvement nonetheless. Google Meet will let you present a single Chrome tab starting today if you want. 

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Google makes Working Hours feature in Calendar more prominent for G Suite users

One of the things Google improves is its Digital Wellbeing features. The company encourages "work-life balance," and one way they want to help out users is when it comes to telling others about their availability. The Working Hours feature is now more prominent. G Suite users will have this feature turned on by default. You can set your work times, but when this feature is enabled, Google will estimate your working hours based on previous appointments. Similarly, when you schedule a meeting in the app, Google will take note of the working hours of other invitees. 

The aim is also to help reduce the back and forth when trying to schedule meetings. If you plan a meeting outside of someone's Working Hours, you will receive a notification that "Some people might decline." Elsewhere, you'll see a purple briefcase icon that features a strikethrough and notes "Outside working hours" beside the invitees' name. All G Suite users will start getting this feature, and it'll be fully available later this month.

Source: 9to5Google

This new Gmail feature will prevent you from sending an email to someone who is out of office

Google business suite users are getting a new Gmail feature that will stop them from disturbing someone on vacation, or at least manage expectations of when their recipient will get back to them. Gmail and Hangouts Chat will display a warning banner at the bottom of the email compose panel or chat window that informs you that the recipient has an out of office entry in their calendar. It also lets you know when they'll come back. G Suite users are the only ones getting this feature, but it's designed for them. It's rolling out over the next few weeks, and it will be enabled automatically.

Source: Engadget