Are you looking for a low-cost and effective web conferencing system with great co-browsing facilities? Then iVocalize might satisfy all your needs.

The recently launched version 5 of iVocalize comes with great improvements and allows users to get total control over the web conferencing platform, which in the case of iVocalize is characterized by an extreme ease of use.

VoIP, integrated recording options, co-browsing and remarkable annotation tools are some of the great features of iVocalize 5. I have spent some time testing this web conferencing platform with Robin Good and here is what I found out:

iVocalize 5: key functionalities

iVocalize is an extremely easy to use web conferencing tool that can indeed satisfy any kind of user. It is possible to access 90% of its functions just by using a keyboard, which makes it the ideal tool for those people who have disabilities or simply prefer to manage everything with the push of a button.

Whiteboard

The one provided by iVocalize 5 is a great example of what a good whiteboard should always be: simple, with not too many buttons and with all the most important commands at hand. Moderators can easily import PowerPoint presentations, which will be automatically converted into Flash. Of course all the transitions and dynamic effects of the slides disappear after the import process, but the quality of both images and text remains very good.

Unfortunately I wasn't able to enlarge the size of the slides imported in the whiteboard to adapt them to my screen; perhaps I was unable to find the right way to do it, but if my impression is right this fact represents indeed a limitation.

Co-browsing

The co-browsing feature is indeed one of the most effective available around. The moderator can easily bring all the attendees to the same URL and annotate over the web pages that she is showing. It is very important to note that the moderator can import bookmarks from Firefox and Internet Explorer, which frees her from the frustrating procedure of manually entering the URL in the co-browsing navigation tab.

Another interesting addition brought up by iVocalize 5 is the possibility to co-browse web pages that require a username and password to be accessed. In fact, the moderator can access the protected web pages and take a screenshot of them, which will be visualized by all the attendees.

The moderator can then annotate over it and take as many screenshots as she needs. This feature is particularly interesting because, while protecting the access to private pages, it allows the moderator to show something to attendees that wouldn't be otherwise as easy to show.

Text chat and VoIP

The text chat provided by iVocalize 5 is indeed very functional and pays a lot of attentino to facilitate the user experience. It allows participants to exchange private and public messages and also to visualize a time stamp near each message. Users can also insert icons, choose the color and dimension of the text as well as copy and paste within the chat box.

The only feature that is unavailable is the auto-URL (which was instead featured in the version 4), which is really disappointing considering the usefulness of this function in a co-browsing session. Text messages can also be moderated and each time a user is typing a symbol appears near her name.

VoIP is also available in half duplex (users cannot speak in the same moment), which can be very useful in certain situation. In order to talk, users have to push the key CTRL or, alternatively, the button with the icon of a microphone that is available under the chat box (this command can be also executed by pushing ALT+L to lock and unlock the microphone). Whenever a user is talking a blue balloon appears near her name.

Moderation commands

All the moderation commands are accessible through the use of the keyboard. This is indeed a feature that makes iVocalize 5 the ideal tool for those people who want to be able to manage web conferences in multiple ways. Moderators can block the room to prevent other people from accessing it, kick users out, mute microphones, and also moderate the text messages that appear in the chat box.

Recording

All the conference files can be saved on the computer. The moderator, as well as any other user, can record the whole conference and save it on their computers. iVocalize automatically creates a folder that contains the audio files in mp3 format, the images, and a html file that, if clicked upon, will lead the user to a web page that displays the recorded web conference with all the text messages, audio and co-browsing sessions as if it was happening in real time. It is to say, though, that iVocalize records the URLs of the web pages you visit, and so you will not be able to view the page as it was looking at the time of the recording.

System requirements

iVocalize supports Windows OS (Vista included) and Mac OS X. It is accessible from Firefox and Internet Explorer (included version 7) and requires the installation of the Java plug in.

Price

iVocalize is available for free tryout for up to three people. A room for 10 concurrent users costs $40 per month, but you can check the different pricing options (which depend on the number of concurrent users) on the dedicated web page.

Learn more

Read the presentation of iVocalize 5 on the official site.

Check out the technical support pages if you are experiencing a problem.

Try it out

Take a chance to try out for free a three participants room.

Editor's comments

iVocalize 5 is indeed a great web conferencing solution for those who are looking for an affordable and efficient tool to collaborate online.

Among the positive traits of this product I want to mention the effective co-browsing feature and the whiteboard (along with the provided annotation tools) which are really impressive. The VoIP is also well developed and the chat box is equipped with interesting functions.

Another strong point is the capability to access all the moderation commands from the keyboard, which makes iVocalize 5 a very versatile tool (also very good for those people with disabilities and physical limitations).

Speaking of the negative sides of iVocalize 5, I have to recall the lack of the auto-URL feature (which was available in the previous version). It is surprising that such an important function is not available anymore. Also, it is not possible to enlarge the imported PowerPoint slides and adapt them to the screen.

Furthermore, it is impossible to keep the microphone active when switching to another application (e.g. word processor or browser). In the previous version it was possible to keep on talking while momentarily reducing the iVocalize window to an icon. To many people this was a disadvantage... but it would be great if users were given the possibility to choose according to their needs.

iVocalize has great possibilities for growth and already demonstrates to conjugate effectiveness and a very low price.