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What is Zoom?

If an invite to a meeting has you wondering “what is Zoom?”, we’re here to answer the question with as much detail as we possibly can.

Custom image for What is Zoom guide with a question mark silhouette and the Zoom icon

If you’ve got a meeting invite and find yourself asking “what is Zoom?”, don’t worry. We’ve got your back on everything you need to know about the popular video conferencing service, from big corporations offering invites to sales calls, to setting up a live chat so you and your friends can communicate across different devices, and how you can use it yourself.

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What is Zoom?

Zoom is a video-conferencing service that you can use to chat with anyone anywhere in the world, so long as they have a microphone and internet signal (and a camera helps too!). Functioning as a more professionally acceptable version of Skype, Zoom has been incredibly popular since the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, with many businesses turning to the service to continue to function remotely.

How do I download Zoom?

We’ve got a whole other guide on how to pull off a Zoom download, so check that out if you need answers. It’s a very simple process, but even if you do get a Zoom invite, you don’t necessarily have to download the app, as you can always join an invite link in your browser, providing you have the original link.

What is Zoom - someone using a mobile phone to make a video call

How much is Zoom?

Technically, you can use Zoom for free, but there are limitations, like call length and call size. For those who need longer or bigger meetings, there are four different professional options that you can check out below.

Zoom One plan Price Service included
Basic Free
  • Team chat
  • 40-minute meetings 
  • 100 attendees per meeting 
  • Three whiteboards
Pro $149 / £119.90 annually
  • Team chat
  • 30-hour meetings
  • 100 attendees per meeting 
  • 5GB cloud storage 
  • Three whiteboards
Business $199.90 / £159.90 annually
  • Team chat
  • 30-hour meetings
  • 300 attendees per meeting 
  • 5GB cloud storage 
  • Three whiteboards
  • Extras 
Business Plus  $250 / £185 annually 
  • Team chat
  • 30-hour meetings
  • 300 attendees per meeting 
  • 10GB cloud storage 
  • Three whiteboards
  • Extras 
  • Translated captions
  • Workspace reservations

As you can see, which option to go for depends on your business or individual needs. There is also the option to request a demo on the official Zoom site for those interested in trying the service out.

What is a Zoom client?

If you’ve been invited to a meeting via the Zoom client, and you’re wondering what exactly it is, we’ve got you covered. A Zoom client link essentially means you can join a meeting without needing to download Zoom, which is especially handy if you’re dealing with a company that uses Skype, Microsoft Teams, or another Zoom alternative.

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What is Zoom One?

Zoom One is essentially a digital workspace, offering messaging, calls, meetings, a digital whiteboard, and more to bring your communications together in one place. It also utilizes some smart AI tech to make notes from meetings and help organize your workload. However, it is a subscription service, so you can’t use it without your company first purchasing the program. You can find out more via the official Zoom One website.

How do I set up a Zoom meeting?

Provided you have a Zoom account, you can set up a Zoom meeting by following these steps.

  1. Sign into the Zoom portal
  2. Hit the “meetings” option
  3. Select the “schedule a meeting” option
  4. Choose your time and date
  5. Select save
  6. (Optional) Use the “copy the invitation” button to copy a link to the meeting you can send directly through email or workplace messaging service.

There you have it, our answer to the question “what is Zoom?”. If all this talk of zooming has you wanting to put the pedal to the metal, check out our picks for the best mobile racing games. Or, if you prefer in-game money making mobile titles, check out our free Monopoly Go dice and Coin Master free spins guides.