Thursday, February 18, 2010

Gmail's Buzzing!

Lately, there has been a lot of talk over whether the new Google Buzz will take over Twitter. Google has tried to ape something that may or may not work wonders. Well, Buzz does have its plus sides. We know that everyone who has an internet connection HAS a Gmail account. When one asks for an e-mail id these days, it's assumed that the person will give out his Gmail. Buzz gets enabled in your inbox automatically, and that gives easy access to it. You can link any number of sites to your Buzz, and it will automatically post updates from those sites onto your Buzz, so that people who follow you can see those. Your Google Talk chat status messages get updated there too (unless you remove that option from the list). It's a very useful social media tool. It can also help you discover a lot of people since almost all of us have Gmail accounts. People have started creating their Google profiles too, thanks to Buzz. A lot of them didn't even know a Google profile existed.

There are a lot of snags though. For one thing, it crams up your inbox. You get a mail for every Buzz that mentions you. If it weren't for Gmail filters, I'd have probably turned off Buzz and never used it again. Moreover, when Buzz is enabled for the first time, it automatically adds people to your follow list! So, if there's someone in your Gmail that you'd rather not have a conversation with, unfollowing him explicitly later makes him/her actually get the point! :D There is no "Reply" button. You have to type the person's email address in order to reply to him! And though Buzz posts my Twitter feeds, they aren't real time. So I had someone actually asking me why I was making pots somewhere in South Bombay at 3 am in the morning. It also does not post ALL of them. And, like it is on Facebook, you can only "like" an update, not "dislike" it.

Google Buzz vs. Twitter

I'd say Twitter rules any day. Google Buzz lacks a lot of features: Retweets (re-posting updates that you like so your followers can read them), lists(categorising people you follow so that you can keep a track of their updates better), direct messages (private messages, but here you've got Gmail too so it's okay), Favorites (you can "like" an update but you can't sort those updates you liked), a "Reply" button (:D), attractive profile backgrounds and a lot more.

So, Buzz still has a long way to go if it has to match Twitter. But yes, great job Google! Atleast we have more people using Buzz than Wave.

Buzzing OFF now! :P

Happy Buzzing, Tweeting, Waving, Facebook-ing ..gosh, so much to keep track of now!

P.S: My first "tech" review post :P

7 comments:

JD said...

Interesting!! I love Google and its products but just like most of the people in the world lookin @ Buzz, I m "Buzzed" too :D Buzz is late i guess..just to add, the best part according to me is that u don't have character limitation like twitter..but than its more like wrytyng a blog. aur integration karne ke baad bhi there are some posts that never reflect..but initial stage pe i would not blame them...this is just a hype just like Google Wave created a hype sometime back..But yea, question is: "What will u update where"? tooo many options will create too much confusion :)

-Tweeter Fan :)

Sakhi said...

hmmm... i use buzz only coz its default and as you said it automatically shares my google reader sharing items... though i need to streamline soon. :) :)

Finally i did comment on your blog!! :D :D

Anubha said...

@JD
That's what. Too much confusion and too much to keep track off! And for die-hard Twitter fans like us, it's no good :)

@Sakhi
Yes.. finally!! :D Yaar abhi naya job dhund hi rahi hai toh pehele check kar lena mera blog blocked hai ya nahi :P :P

Ritzzzz said...

Hey Great tech Review post...
Quite Informative.Keep it UP!

Anubha said...

@Ritzzzz
Thanks a lot !! :)

Reema said...

I didnt even try using it. just turned it off. two blogs, twitter, orkut, facebook, flickr are enough for me!

Anubha said...

@Reema
Hmm, I agree there's a lot to keep track of now.. I was planning to turn off Buzz too, but it helps to stay in touch with your other contacts who mostly use only Gmail.