14 DAY TRIAL // Google+ Hangouts are becoming a lot more useful, as the Google Docs app/integration is graduated from the testing phase and is now an integral part of the group video chat feature.
Participants in a hangout will be able to work on documents while communicating, in real-time with video and audio with each other.
"Last year we launched Hangouts with extras as a way to preview certain hangout features. Google Docs integration was one such extra, and the Google+ community has used it for all sorts of awesome -- from trip planning and lecture notes to doodling and charades," Google's Robin Schriebman writes.
"Today I'm happy to announce that we're graduating Google Docs to the core Hangouts experience for all users," she announced.
Using the feature is rather straightforward, just click on the Docs button you'll see once you start a hangout. You'll be greeted by a familiar Docs interface and you'll be able to add an existing document to the group editor or just create new one.
All the documents available to the hangout will be listed in the left sidebar and you'll be able to edit several documents at the same time.
The feature has been in testing for several months now, but Google needed it working properly before making it the default. It believes that time has come.
Google+ Hangouts are already quite useful and they're the one standout feature of Google+, which has its fair share of critics, mostly for its lack of activity.
While Google has so far advertised Hangouts for group chat or for celebrities and public persons to engage with regular Google+ users. But Hangouts can be a great collaboration tool as well, especially tied in with another great collaboration tool from Google, Docs, whether its for a work project or planning a party.