Unless you have been living under the rock, it is impossible that you are unaware about the latest craze around the Houseparty app. As the world is put under lockdown in order to deal with the recent outbreak of the Coronavirus, people are staying at home alone or with their families in isolation. This does not allow us to meet and greet our friends as we usually would and this is only boosting our urge to spend more time with our loved ones. Due to this reason, there has been a sudden increase in the number of users for the video calling apps such as zoom, house party, Google meet etc. These video conferencing applications allow us to interact with a large number of friends face to face virtually from the comforts of our houses without having to get out and risk our lives with COVID-19.
What is a Houseparty app?
Houseparty app is a mobile or desktop application that allows for video calling through these devices. Houseparty app was developed by Life on Air, Inc. in 2016 and acquired by Epic Games, the developers of infamous Fortnite, in 2019. Houseparty app is available for android and IOS devices and also as an extension of chrome as Houseparty app Chrome that can be added on the desktop. A maximum of eight people in one session is how many people can be on houseparty. Houseparty app is available freely for use on android and IOS. One special feature of this app is that it allows you to play Houseparty app games with your buddies while on the video call. Houseparty app sends your friends a notification that you are in the house whenever you open the application.
How to Use Houseparty Application?
The following steps will guide you through how to use Houseparty app.
Download and Install
The Houseparty app can be downloaded freely from Play Store in Android and on iOS. The application is also available for Chrome as Houseparty app Chrome that can be added to the desktop of your PC. With the world under quarantine, the Houseparty app has seen a resurgence in the number of downloads from all the streams and is leading the charts in almost all the countries under lockdown. In Italy and Spain, the downloads surged by 423x and 2360x respectively by 21st March 2020.
Sign up
You can sign up in the houseparty app by using your Facebook and Snapchat ID and password. The app asks for permission to access your contacts from the Facebook or Snapchat and then shows you a list of your friends already using the app and allows you to send them a friend request. The houseparty app also shows you the list of names of people in your contact list who still do not use the app and all you to send them an invite to install the same. This app isn’t linked to your phone books like various other video conferencing applications such as Zoom and Google Meet which are meant for business purposes.
Know who is in the house
Once you join the app, it will regularly send you the notifications regarding who has recently logged into the application and make you aware about which of your friends is in the house.
Call your friends
Then you can open the application and virtually wave at your friends or call them directly through the app. Once they receive your call, you will be able to talk to them face to face on the screen. Maximum eight people are how many people can be on houseparty in a single session.
Slide a chit
There is also a chatbox feature available in the app which enables you to send your friends private text messages or face mails when you know how to use Houseparty app.
Send video messages
After sliding to the right of the opening screen, you can send your friends a private video message or face mail by clicking on the option available in the bottom right corner of the private chat.
Edit your name
You can easily change your username after you join the application unlike in the case of Snapchat. For this click on the face icon in the top left corner and open edit profile. This will take you to the option to change basic profile settings such as username, email address etc.
Houseparty app Games
The houseparty app games that can be played between eight people simultaneously include
Trivia: This game is about taking a quiz on the topic of choice with your friends and leading the chart of rights.
Heads up: This version of Psych requires you to enact the topic on your screen for your friends on the other side to guess.
Chips and Guac: In this Houseparty app games, one person becomes the judge and has to choose the best response for the completion of a sentence by the other buddies.
Quickdraw: This game is about drawing the various objects on the virtual white slate so that your friends will guess the item correctly and you will score the points.
Houseparty vs Zoom
Houseparty and Zoom have been the applications leading the charts of number of downloads across the world. The basic differences between Houseparty vs Zoom are the video calling time and the number of people that can join the video chat. Houseparty allows a maximum of eight people to video call at a time with no time limit. The Zoom app allows around 100 people to video conference in a single session lasting for only 40 minutes for free members, after which it stops the call. In this Houseparty vs Zoom debate, both are winners for their functions of providing a social platform for youngsters missing socialising and allowing video conferencing comfortably from home for the working population, respectively.