Messenger Rooms is Facebook's answer to Zoom. The video calling service allows you to chat with up to 50 people at the same time. Anyone can join a Messenger Room chat, even if they don't have a Facebook account.
Messenger Rooms borrows a bunch of features from similar video chatting platforms. For instance, you can use virtual backgrounds like in Zoom, apply effects and filters to your face, share your screen with others on the call, lock your chat room like in Houseparty, and more.
In this article, we'll guide you on how you can create Messenger Rooms from various Facebook-owned platforms.
How to create Facebook Messenger Rooms on the Messenger app
Facebook Messenger is the official Facebook app. You can have text conversations with all of your friends using the popular social network. Send and receive text messages and establish conversations on your mobile device if you're away from your computer. Facebook Messenger is a messaging platform used to communicate on Facebook. Originally, Messenger was just Facebook Chat and was integrated into the website as a private messaging function. In 2010, Facebook started developing Messenger as a standalone app and the following year it was released for Android and iOS mobile devices.
- Open the Facebook Messenger app.
- Click on the 'People' tab and tap on the 'Create a Room' option.
- When you're creating a Messenger Room, Facebook will give you the option of creating an open link that anyone — even non-Facebook members — can access. If you want to limit participation to Facebook users, you can select the 'Only people on Facebook' option from the 'Who can join' tab.
- Once you've selected your audience permissions, tap on the 'Share Link' button, and send the created link to other participants via email, WhatsApp, Messenger, Slack, or any other preferred platform.
Also read:10 best messenger apps and chat apps for Android! Xbox game streaming app ios.
When the room is live, people with the link will be able to see your name and profile photo, and that you're in the room. This could also include people who you're not friends with on Facebook, depending on who you've shared the link with.
How to create Messenger Rooms on the Facebook app
Fortnite app install. You can also start and share Messenger Rooms on the Facebook app through your News Feed, Groups, or Events pages.
The video chat options here are largely the same as Messenger, apart from a few settings. For instance, the link-sharing settings remain the same and you can choose who gets to join your room in the same way as Messenger. However, unlike in Messenger, you can schedule when to make your room go live through the 'Start Time' setting. This could be very handy if you're hosting a live concert or webinar using the service.
Here are all the ways you can create Messenger Rooms through the Facebook app.
Create Messenger Room through News Feed
- Scroll to the Rooms button on the homepage.
- Tap on 'Create' below your profile picture.
- When you create a room, you can add a room activity, choose who can discover your room, and add a start time. You can always edit these settings later.
- To choose who is invited, tap the setting for the same. Now tap next to 'Friends' to share with all your Facebook friends. You can also tap on specific people or allow link sharing.
- Once you've chosen all the participants, hit 'Save.'
You can read more about setting up a start time and more here.
Create Messenger Room in a Facebook Group
- Tap on 'Groups' in the left menu from your News Feed.
- Select the group where you want to create a Messenger Room.
- Tap the camera icon on top of the group page.
- Enter a room activity, choose an emoji, and hit 'Save.'
- After this, tap 'Create,' write something about the room, and post it to the group.
There's also another way of creating Messenger Rooms in groups if you're still on the classic Facebook design. Check here for instructions.
How to use Messenger Rooms on the desktop?
If you want to use Messenger Rooms to share your screen with other participants, you'll have to download the Facebook Messenger app on your Windows PC or Mac.
Fb Messenger App
The desktop app is obviously more helpful if there are a large number of participants in a room and you need a larger screen to view them all at once. You can create Messenger Rooms directly from your desktop app. However, you won't be able to use filters, effects, virtual backgrounds, or call scheduling through the desktop version of Messenger.
How to change privacy settings for Facebook Messenger Rooms
Just like Zoom, you have multiple ways of ensuring privacy and safety of calls made using Facebook Messenger Rooms. The most basic precautionary measure that Messenger Rooms deploys is that the creator of the room needs to be present in order for a call to begin. Call creators also have the power to remove individual participants at any time. The following are all the privacy and safety measures you can take while using Facebook Messenger Rooms.
- Locking: Call admins can lock or unlock a room once a call begins. If a room is locked, no one else can join, except for admins.
- Removing a participant: You remove individual participants by tapping the 'Remove' button next to their names.
- Reporting: You can report a room name or submit feedback about a room if you believe it violates Facebook's community standards.
- Blocking: You can block anyone on Facebook or Messenger. When someone you've blocked is logged into Facebook or Messenger, they won't be able to join a room you're in and you won't be able to join theirs.
Photoshop free download for windows 10 2019. If you're hosting a video call and waiting for people to join, you also have a cool option to leave the room till others join in. You can access the option by pressing the X icon on the top left corner of the call screen. Here, you can choose to leave and come back later or simply end the call.
How to use virtual backgrounds on Facebook Messenger Rooms
If you want to use effects, filters, or virtual backgrounds, you can tap the window where you see yourself and an array of options will appear at the bottom of your screen.
So that's everything you need to know about using Facebook's new Messenger Rooms service. Not interested in the service? Here are some alternative video calling apps you might want to check out.
Facebook Messenger is a messaging platform used to communicate on Facebook. Originally, Messenger was just Facebook Chat and was integrated into the website as a private messaging function. In 2010, Facebook started developing Messenger as a standalone app and the following year it was released for Android and iOS mobile devices. When the app was released, users were prompted to download it instead of accessing messages through the Facebook app, tapping on the Messenger icon would take you to the separate Messenger app. This frustrated a lot of users, who didn't see the necessity in having the app when the messaging function of the Facebook app met all the user needs of the time. Messenger is great for every type of user who has Facebook, from the casual user to someone who uses Facebook and its messaging service frequently. Messenger is updated consistently, adding new features to improve accessibility among other things.
Video calls, text chats, and multimedia sharing all on one platform
For the casual user, Messenger is a fun way to communicate with your Facebook friends.
You can chat with other Facebook users that aren't on your friends list as well after accepting access to the message. In the beginning, when Messenger was just Facebook chat, text chat was the only available way of chatting, and you could send pictures as well. Now, when tapping on the text box, you can add pictures from the camera roll, take pictures directly from the app using your device's camera, add gifs, send money, and have access to a number of different apps that you can use with the person that you're chatting with. You can share your location for 60 minute increments, play Facebook games, and set reminders.
Besides text chatting, you're able to record voice messages and send the recorded message to chats that you're having with other friends. There's a voice to text option as well if your friend can't listen to the message out loud. If you have a Pinterest account you can link it and send pins, or articles from well-known publishers like the Wall Street Journal. Like a message by tapping the thumbs up, or send emojis, stickers, and GIFs. Add more friends and create a group chat so everyone can join in on the fun at the same time.
Video chatting and calling are the most popular updates to the messenger. As long as you have internet access you can call a friend. Tapping on the phone icon opens up the call screen. You can do a regular voice call and toggle on the camera to turn on the video function. Access the text box while in the call by clicking on the text bubble, mute the microphone by clicking on the mic icon, and you can reverse the camera view from front facing to standard view. Take screenshots in the call that will save to your mobile device or tablet's camera roll. Now not only can you have text group chats, but you can have group voice and video calls too.
As for customization, you can change the color of the icons and the text bubbles. When you send messages, the color that you select shows up in your friend's chat as well. You can view friends' stories at the top of the app, sending messages and emojis for each clip, and you can add to your own story as well.
Instant Messenger Facebook App
On an Android, Messenger takes up about 120 MB of storage while running. As you chat with more people and use more functions like sharing videos, pictures, and outside articles, the space that the app takes up begins to swell and after prolonged use, the app can sometimes shut down randomly. The app also drains the battery very quickly if you're using it for even a few different chats.
Where can you run the program?
Messenger is available for PCs, mobile devices and tablets running Windows, Mac, iOS and Android mobile devices and tablets. On PC, you can access Facebook Messenger through the Facebook website, with pop-out text boxes appearing when messages are sent. There is also a separate Messenger website if you wanted to have a separate tab for your chats, voice and video calls. All of the functions available for Messenger on Android are available on the web versions. On iOS when voice or video chatting, you can pick from a number of effects that hang and float all over the screen.
Is there a better alternative?
For Android, the best alternative is Messages, the Android function that comes with your phone. It has all of the functions that regular text messaging apps come with, but of course there isn't a way to contact Facebook friends unless you have their phone number. The next alternative would be Whatsapp. Text, voice, and video chatting is good across the board, and just like Messenger you need to have some sort of internet or data connection to use it. Other similar functions to Messenger are photo and video sharing capabilities, GIFs and stickers, voice messages, voice to text, and group chatting. With Whatsapp, you can display statuses, and view your chats on your desktop. Just go to the Whatsapp site for web and scan the QR code with your phone. You're instantly able to view all of the chats that you have on your phone on your desktop or laptop.
Our take
Facebook Messenger for Android is a lot of fun to have. It is absolutely packed with functions that make chatting delightful and kicks it up a notch in the messaging app department. There aren't many other apps with this many capabilities available for free for most mobile devices.
Should you download it?
Yes, Facebook Messenger is a useful app, but bear in mind that it drains battery power very quickly, and asks for a lot of personal information in order to download it. When it was first released, users were essentially forced to download it in order to chat with Facebook friends on a mobile device. If you're a user that utilizes a lot of functions often like video or voice chatting, sharing documents, photos, and videos, and you don't mind charging your phone more often, Messenger is worth having on your phone. Otherwise, the messaging application that comes with your phone or Whatsapp should meet your needs just fine.
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