Gmail now offering webcam capabilities

On Tuesday, the Associated Press reported that top search company Google has been tinkering away in the labs yet again, and is ready to unveil new improvements for its free webmail service, Gmail.

These new enhancements, unleashed Tuesday, focus on the visual element of online conversation, which was pretty much lost in a wave of faceless instant messaging and emails. The proliferation of online videos, vlogs, and webcams over recent years has done much to resurrect the personable sentiment of virtual communication, and Gmail is taking one step forward in this direction by integrating video and audio chat directly into its Gmail application.

Now not only can Gmail users enjoy free email and live chat all in one window, they will be able to see and hear the person on the other end of the line. True to form, Google isn’t expecting users to purchase fancy external hardware in order to enjoy these features. A free piece of downloadable software and a webcam are all users need to turn their Gmail into a video online phone. The only “catch” is that both users participating in the conversation much have Gmail accounts; the features are expected to be compatible with both Windows and Mac operating systems.

Gmail has been open to the public since early last year, and over the past months has become increasingly popular due to its user-friendly interface, massive archiving storage, and quirky gizmos. Recall last month’s “Mail Goggles.” This spoof on beer goggles consisted of a series of simple mathematical questions users were prompted to answer before they could click “send.” The goal? To determine if you really want to send that late-night email, or if it’s all to blame on that third glass of wine…

It’s these funky, functional features which are giving Gmail the ability to be a serious competitor to other free email services, namely those belonging to Microsoft and Yahoo!.

Metrics company comScore Inc. recently reported that while Google is trailing significantly behind its rivals with 113 million worldwide users, member registration has increased by an impressive 34% over the past year. Steady in second place is Yahoo!, with 274 million members, an 8% increase, and capping off with 283 million members, Microsoft comes in first after a 13% boost from last year.