Huddle is net2phone’s built-in video conferencing tool. Huddle video conference allows you to schedule meetings, connect face-to-face, collaborate in real time, and connect with coworkers or external guests directly from the net2phone desktop app, browser app, or Huddle mobile app.

You can start a Huddle meeting instantly, schedule a meeting in advance, or join using a shared meeting link. Huddle also includes collaboration tools such as screen sharing, chat, polls, reactions, video recording, and Smart Notes with AI-generated meeting summaries and transcriptions.

Start or join a Huddle

You can start a Huddle at any time from the net2phone app. When you start a meeting, a secure meeting room is created automatically.

To join a Huddle, you can:

• Click a shared meeting link.
• Join directly from the net2phone app.
• Dial in by phone using the provided dial-in number and PIN.

External guests do not need a net2phone account to join a Huddle.

How Huddle works in the net2phone app

In the net2phone app, Huddle opens inside the platform so you can meet without switching tools. You can also expand Huddle into its own browser window at any time. Opening Huddle in a separate window provides the same meeting features with a larger meeting display.

Embedded or separate window

Use the embedded view to keep Huddle alongside your net2phone workspace.

Open Huddle in a separate browser tab if you want more room for video, screen sharing, or meeting controls.

Change your Huddle default view

From the desktop and browser app, you can set your preferred Huddle meeting layout to either a larger two-panel view or a smaller single-panel view.

Before you join a meeting: Huddle pre-lobby settings

While waiting in the lobby, participants can see that the meeting is active but cannot hear or see other participants until they are admitted. The pre-lobby is where you prepare for a meeting before fully joining it.

In the pre-lobby tabs, you can find:

• Audio to test your microphone and speakers, and ensure the correct input and output devices are selected.
• Video to preview and adjust your camera.
• Virtual backgrounds to select a virtual background or blur.
• Notifications to manage notifications and keyboard shortcuts.
• Shortcuts to view the available keyboard hotkeys when shortcuts are enabled.
• Poll drafts to create polls in advance.
• General to change the language of your Huddle app.

In-meeting controls and features

During a Huddle meeting, you can manage your audio, video, and collaboration tools using the meeting controls.

You can quickly access these on-screen controls:

• Mute or unmute your microphone to participate in the conversation.
• Turn your camera on or off using the video controls in your Huddle window.
• Share your screen to present live displays of your computer environment.
• Switch between different display layouts, such as tile view.
• Open or close the meeting chat and create polls for participant feedback.
• Use reaction emojis to respond without interrupting the speaker.
• Use Step away when you need to leave a meeting briefly without disconnecting.

To find More Actions, click the three dots in the bottom-left corner of the meeting window.

• Settings opens meeting options while you are on a call.
• Select background lets you customize your background or blur the environment behind you.
• View shortcuts shows available keyboard hotkeys.
• Noise suppression helps reduce background noise from your environment.
• Participant stats displays participation and speaking activity.
• Performance settings lets you adjust the priority between video quality and voice performance.
• YouTube video lets you share and play a YouTube video during your meeting.
• Live streaming lets you stream through a YouTube streaming access key.
• Video recording lets you record meeting video when enabled for your account.

Smart Notes and recordings

Huddle supports Smart Notes and meeting recordings to help you capture, review, and share important meeting details after the call ends.

Smart Notes

Smart Notes use AI to generate a full meeting transcription and summary. Depending on your meeting and account settings, Smart Notes can include:

• Summary for an AI-generated overview of the meeting’s main topics and decisions.
• Details for high-level topics from the meeting discussion.
• Next Steps for automatically detected tasks and action items.
• Speaker identification to help label who spoke during the meeting.
• Timestamps to help you jump to relevant sections of the recording.

Always On Smart Notes

If Always On Smart Notes is enabled, Smart Notes can start automatically when a Room Owner or Team Member enters the meeting. Smart Notes stop automatically when the meeting ends or when only guests or dial-in users remain.

Video recordings

When video recording is enabled, Huddle meetings can be recorded for later review. Recordings may be saved to the net2phone server or to your local device, depending on your available options and account settings.

After the meeting, you can review available Huddle recordings, Smart Notes, summaries, participants, chats, and polls from the Recordings area.

Manage Huddle recordings

The Recordings area helps you find and manage your Huddle recordings after processing has finished.

You can use filters to sort recordings by:

• Recording type to find audio or video recordings.
• Date range to locate recordings from a specific time period.

You can also delete recordings you own. Select individual recordings using the checkboxes, or use the top-level checkbox to select multiple recordings for bulk deletion.

Step away from a meeting

Use Step away when you need to temporarily leave a meeting without fully disconnecting. When Step away is active, your tile dims and a coffee cup icon displays so other participants know you are temporarily unavailable.

To return to the meeting, turn off Step away or unmute yourself.

Chat, polls, and reactions

Huddle includes built-in tools to keep meetings interactive:

• Chat: Send messages to participants during the meeting.
• Reactions: Use visual reactions to acknowledge or respond quickly.
• Polls: Create polls to gather feedback or make decisions in real time.

Polls can be saved as drafts, edited before sending, and shared with meeting participants during the call. After the meeting, chats and polls may also be available in the meeting details from the Recordings area.

Invite others to a Huddle

You can invite others to a Huddle at any time by sharing:

• The meeting link.
• Dial-in details for phone participants.

You can also invite contacts directly from the net2phone app, depending on your account settings and your Google or Microsoft calendar integration.

Manage Huddle email settings

Depending on your permissions and account settings, users may be able to receive emails for Huddle video recordings and Smart Notes summaries.

Administrators can manage whether users are allowed to receive Huddle video and Smart Notes Summary emails from Settings > Huddle. Users can manage their own Huddle email preferences from the General tab in Huddle settings.

Get Huddle on mobile

Huddle is available on both iOS and Android. The mobile app allows you to:

• Join meetings from your mobile device.
• Participate with audio and video.
• View shared screens and use chat.
• Use Step away when you need to briefly leave a meeting.