Plenty of businesses use Hangouts Meet for person-to-person video calls and conferencing, especially since the company recently made it free for G Suite customers as a result of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. If you're using it at home and struggling with your laptop's built-in webcam or a mediocre microphone, Google just published a list of approved hardware upgrades that have passed the Hangouts Meet hardware peripheral and qualification program.
In short, that means they tested as not terrible, use open-source firmware for ChromeOS compatibility, and the companies behind them have agreed to provide hardware support for a long enough time to make it worth your while.
Two categories of approved hardware have been published: Cameras and Headsets. Not all of them are brands that most consumers would be aware of, but they all have Google's explicit blessing:
Cameras
Headsets
- EPOS|Sennheiser IMPACT SC 635
- EPOS|Sennheiser IMPACT SC 630 USB
- EPOS|Sennheiser IMPACT SDW 5065
- EPOS|Sennheiser IMPACT SDW 5066
- EPOS|Sennheiser ADAPT SC 160
- EPOS|Sennheiser ADAPT SC 165
- Jabra Evolve 40
- Jabra Evolve 75
- Logitech Zone Wireless
- Plantronics/Poly Blackwire 5220
- Plantronics/Poly Savi 8220
- Plantronics/Poly Voyager 5200 UC
- Plantronics/Poly Voyager 6200
- Plantronics/Poly Voyager 8200
Desktop and small meeting room devices are also recommended, though neither will be much help these days, with offices closed.
If your boss can't hear you the next time you need to chime in during a Hangouts Meet conference, maybe it's time to pick up a new headset.
Source: Google