Tinychat, which started out as a simple IRC-style chatroom app to complement the quick-and-dirty conversations on platforms like Twitter, has been steadily building a solid browser-based communication platform that rivals some of the tools built by large corporations or venture-backed startups out there.
After adding essential features like video chat and screensharing options to the application back in May, Tinychat has recently leveraged P2P technology to enhance the service (see p2p.tinychat.com) and added embed capabilities that basically enable anyone with a website to integrate a robust, 100% peer-to-peer enabled video chat system by simply embedding some code and fiddling with some of the variables. (Skype, you listening?)
Tinychat has just been given a new lick of paint, with new controls and a slicker design that’s much more inviting. Also, you can now enter chatrooms and start conversations with multiple people – whether using text, video, audio or a combination thereof – by connecting to your Facebook or Twitter account, eliminating the need to register.
I think this service is awesome, and I consider it to be closest to being the “Skype for the web” (which someday, Skype will introduce, let there be no doubt) than anything else I’ve tried in the past. You go to the Tinychat website, pick a name for your conversation room at hand and bang, you get an instantly shareable, dedicated web-based chat location where you can initiate video or audio chats with decent quality, share your desktop view with others and soon also a way to exchange files from computer to computer.
I’m seemingly not the only one who digs it either. Here’s a quick and dirty comparison based on Compete traffic estimates for TokBox, which developed a similar application with $14 million in VC funding behind them, and Tinychat.com. Alexa shows even more growth for the bootstrapped initiative.
I’m not sure why compete ranks our traffic so low. Those numbers look like our dailys vs monthly. Alexa has a more accurate representation http://301.to/9uc
Alexa is hurtful
isn’t*
Hopefully the P2P is an improvement over the browser video chat. When we reviewed it on 40Tech, we found it to have some latency, which made carrying on a normal conversation a bit awkward. Notwithstanding that, we did like the service, but we felt that the video chat wasn’t as smooth as Skype over the same connection. If the latency is caused by the middle man, then maybe P2P will take care of it.
TinyChat has great potential, but I think they should really re-think the process of starting a chat, it currently takes a non-user approximately 8 clicks/screens to get a chat up.
There’s a lot of value to be gained by giving people a 1-click chat up and running, do all the other stuff later as opt-in (e.g. log-in with facebook, name the room, invite people, room settings. Its like they force you through this unnecessarily exhausting wizard to setup a room.
In any case, keep up the good work.
For the room starter it may be 8 clicks but for anyone joining your chat its ONE. Big difference and nobody else offers that
I definitley agree! Our site focuses on creating a simple user experience and this would be a great addition to my site if users can login seamlessly.
Tinychat is great, love using it. Design is simple and easy to use.
Not a fan of it sending a tweet when you enter a chatroom that requires twitter login, nor the automatic follow of @tinychat. I avoid using it.
pretty cool stuff
If anyone wants to kick the tires I’ve just opened a room up:
http://tinychat.com/qthrul
Very good article mate.
Something that you may be very interested in is the Facebook Status Generator, let me know what you think:
http://www.thei...atus-generator/
Looking forward to reading more of your stuff mate.