Having a second screen is useful when you're in a meeting room and you want to participate in activities or share your screen without worrying about echo. Learn more about Companion mode.
Compare Companion mode to full audio & video
Feature | Companion mode (second screen) | Full audio & video (primary screen or meeting-room hardware) |
---|---|---|
Share your screen & view presentations | ✔ | ✔ |
Chat, polls, Q&A, & host controls, depending on your Google Workspace edition | ✔ | ✔ |
Camera & self-view | ✔ | ✔ |
Mic & meeting audio | ✔ | |
Participant tiles | ✔ | |
Join from mobile devices | ✔ | ✔ |
Connect to a meeting
|
Turn on your camera
In a video meeting, click Turn on camera . When your camera is on in Companion mode, your participant tile:
You can also change your background during a video meeting. |
Share your screen
For details, see Present during a video meeting. |
Host & participate in activities
Activity | More info |
Chat | Send chat messages to video meeting participants |
Hand raising | Raise your hand during a video meeting |
Polls (Activities Polls) | Conduct a poll during a video meeting |
Q&A (Activities Q&A) | Ask questions in a video meeting |
Whiteboard (Activities Whiteboarding) | Use a whiteboard in a video meeting |
Captions (More Turn on captions) | Use captions in a video meeting |
Attendance tracking (More SettingsHost controlsAttendance tracking) | Track attendance in video meetings and live streams |
End a Companion mode connection
At the bottom of the meeting window, click Leave call .
Download Companion mode quick start (PDF)
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