GTalk is officially dead, long live Hangouts

NEW DELHI: Google Talk, the 9-year old instant messaging service, has finally been killed by the internet giant. Popularly known as GTalk, the service will now be replaced by Google’s Hangouts; the two have co-existed since 2013.

The news about the retirement of GTalk had been announced by Google’s product manager for Voice and Hangouts, Mayur Kamat, on February 16 via a blog post.

Though the service is officially dead, it can still be accessed via third-party applications like Jitsi, Psi, Instantbird, Miranda IM, among many others. However, Google in an email sent to users said, “Please bear in mind that these aren’t Google products, so exercise caution when signing in with your Google account.”

Among the key features of Google Talk was invisibility mode, which is not available in Hangouts. Also, sharing files is much more convenient on GTalk compared to Hangouts.

However, Hangouts is an important tool in Google’s fight against popular messaging apps like WhatsApp. With a browser extension, mobile app and Gmail integration, Hangouts provides a more consistent user experience than GTalk.

Moreover, Hangouts integrates text messages with internet-based instant messages, along with GTalk features like voice and video calling.