What is known

According to Google, users have been demanding this feature, and now it’s coming to the video conferencing app, allowing you to apply “cosmetic” effects during video calls. Portrait correction is currently available in Google Meet on select users’ mobile devices, with a global launch planned 28 October. The new feature will be available in the web version of the program “by the end of 2023”.

Two portrait modes are available, providing varying levels of skin smoothing, under-eye brightening and teeth whitening.

• “Subtle” mode, as the name suggests, provides very slight cosmetic adjustments.
• “Smooth” mode has been made a little stronger with improvements.

Whichever mode you choose, Google says it allows users to “tweak their view a little bit,” so it doesn’t seem like the new feature is intended to make any major changes.

Usually, such things work thanks to artificial intelligence, but the company does not make any statement about this.

Portrait correction is off by default, but you can turn it on in Google Meet settings.

This feature is at least initially only available to users of premium Google accountsIncluding Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Education Plus, Google One and Google Workspace Personal. The portrait correction feature isn’t yet available for personal Google accounts, and the company hasn’t said whether it plans to expand the feature to all users.

Considering how many filters and facial smoothing effects there are in apps like TikTok and Instagram, it’s surprising that Google hasn’t implemented similar tools in Meet for so long. Rival video conferencing apps like Microsoft Teams and Zoom also offer a range of “beautifying” features that blur the user’s skin and even apply virtual makeup effects.