Building a Video Chat App Using Agora: Everything You Need to Know

Are you feeling tired and exhausted using traditional video chat apps, especially for your business purpose? Then it is time for you to create a real-time and cross-platform communication video calling app using Agora. Agora, being an infrastructure provider for live and interactive voice and video offers native SDKs for both mobile platforms and the web. It will allow you to create a video-calling app with very few simple lines of code. Moreover, it will enable you to cover a wide range of use cases such as video conferencing, interactive live-streaming, real-time messaging, and many more. But, it requires completing a few steps and processes to get the final product. In this article, we will discuss How to Build a Video Chat App using Agora in a very straightforward manner.

Here, we will cover all the necessary steps to create a well-integrated, fully functional, and reusable video-calling solution for you. But, before we dive deep into the topic, it is important to discuss how quality Mobile App Development Services will help you to create such a finished product. So, Let’s have a look at this first:

What Are Mobile App Development Services?

Mobile App Development Services are aimed to build both iOS and Android applications as the substitute for web solutions. It offers large possibilities to assist in specific developmental stages and provides full-cycle mobile app implementation through several steps including consulting, designing the UX and UI of the app, mobile app development, back-end development, web development, mobile app integration, mobile app QA and testing, maintenance and support along with mobile app modernization. No matter whether you want to build a full-cycle application design or you need integration and management services a leading mobile app development company can lead the entire mobile app development process ranging from ideation, and concept to delivery and providing ongoing support.

How Do Mobile App Development Services Help to Build a Video Chat App Using Agora?

When it comes to developing a mobile app that incorporates video calling features, using Agora SDK is the best option to choose. It is because Agora SDK is such a platform that allows developers to create rich in-app experiences including embedded voice and video chat, real-time recording, live streaming, and real-time messaging with comparatively less code.

A Brief Introduction to Agora Video Call SDK:

Agora video call SDK is a platform that allows mobile app developers to create rich in-app experiences such as embedded voice and video chat, real-time recording, live streaming, and real-time messaging. Thus, Agora video call with useful features is capable enough to improve social and business capabilities very easily. Moreover, it comes with new features like AR facial masks, sound effects while sharing your screen, whiteboards, and other capabilities resulting in offering benefits to your commercial and educational apps. If you integrate Agora’s Video SDK, it will help you embed real-time video chat into your web, mobile, and native app.

Agora’s intelligent and global Software Defined Real-Time Network will enable you to get the highest quality video and audio quality. The best thing is that it requires minimum code to integrate high-quality and low-latency video calling features into your video app. So, it is up to you which functions you want to add to your app and you can choose any one or apply for all available features. But, make sure you have enough knowledge and understanding of tech to integrate video calling features into your app using Agora. Otherwise, it is better to take assistance from a leading Video Calling App Development Company.

Why Is Agora Preferred for Building a Video Calling App?

With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Agora has seen a 300% increase in signups and a 60% increase in usage. It is because Agora offers several advantages for building a video chat app including:

• With Agora, you can use one SDK for everything ranging from voice, video, live streaming, screen sharing, and many others.
• With Agora, you will get 10,000 free minutes every month offering you the flexibility to develop your solution prototype for free.
• You will never face any challenge in managing the underlying infrastructure that supports the video call functionality with Agora.
• With Agora, you can get intuitive API documentation.

There are several other video conferencing tools available online such as Zoom, Google Meet, Jisti, and many more, but Agora proves to be the best choice when you want to pay a small amount to integrate a variety of online communication features into your app.

Steps to Create a Video Calling App Using Agora:

When it comes to creating a video calling app using Agora, there are some steps to follow including:

1. Setting Up an Agora Account: First, you need to set up an account on the agora.io website successfully. Once you do this, you need to create a project and look for it in the console. Now it is time to prepare the app id and the app certificate before you go to the next step.
2. Integration of Stream Dashboard: The next step is all about integrating Stream Dashboard for implementing first-class integration of Agora. It is necessary to make Agora work as a server component that can handle token generation and more. It involves a few processes ranging from heading over to the Dashboard and login in, creating a new app, or selecting your app by name, selecting Ext. Video Integration and selecting the Agora tab. To go with these steps effectively, first, you need to enable the integration through the toggle to see the green Agora Enabled badge at the top. Next, you need to enter the credentials from the agora console. Here it is necessary to enter the aforementioned app id and app certificate from the agora console to continue the process.
3. Setting Up Basic App Architecture: The integration of the video calling app using Agora requires a few preliminary setups. Otherwise, you will be unable to get a clear overview of the overall architecture. For instance, before you go deeper into the process of building the video calling app using Agora, you need to import the Agora SDK into the project. To do it you can use Swift Package Manager (SPM).
4. Basic UI Layout: When it comes to setting up the basic UI, the SDKs will provide you with a lot of assistance in creating the best view for calls. When you will start creating the view for calls, you will be able to see some UI elements along with some participants. So, the UI components include a vertical list of all call participants, the user’s video which is placed at the top right above the other content, and a row of buttons at the bottom to control certain call elements such as toggle audio and video and end call. Creating basic UI layout involves several ranging from creating a view for call participants, creating a view of the users’ video, combining everything with the call view, creating the custom channel header to constructing the call overlay for the channel.
5. Initiate Call with Channel Update: When it comes to initiating a video call, every time the channel will hold all necessary information about the call. This is a basic approach to a video calling app. It will help you know about all members of the channel who can join. But, here you need to do a few things such as watching the channel for updates, handling the updates in the local state for updating the UI of an ongoing call, and updating the channel state when a call will start or end. Firstly, you need to create a little helper function that can help you take care of watching a channel, for handling the channel updates and data you need to create a new Swift file and fill it with a String extension that can hold a few constants that you will need. Updating the channel state does not require very complex coding and there are several ways to do it.
6. Integration of the Agora SDK: Once, everything is prepared, finally it is time to integrate the Agora SDK. To do this, you need to fill in the methods with the relevant code. There are separate codes and methods for starting and joining a call, leaving a call, muting audio and video, and listening for updates during a call.

What Are the Advantages of Building an Agora Video Chat App?

• Global Coverage: Agora provides the broadest range of coverage all across the world. Simply put, you will be able to connect with people anywhere.
• Ultra Low Latency: With Agora’s video chat app, you can offer high-quality and steady streaming to your users. Agora is capable of monitoring the network in real time and choosing the most effective routing path automatically resulting in delivering an ultra-low latency of below 400 ms.
• High Quality on Mobile Devices: Agora is treasured with such features and functionalities that will help you to deliver high-quality, consistent voice and video streams to mobile devices all over the world irrespective of packet loss or signal degradation.
• Fast Integration: Agora is designed with a feature-rich set of APIs that can effectively reduce the amount of code you need to write. It will help you launch your app to market faster even resulting in lowering the development cost.
• Third-Party Compatibility: Agora can support a wide variety of third-party add-ons. It will help your app get additional functionality and flexibility.
• Partner Ecosystem: The best thing is that Agora partners with development companies and system integrators all over the world to offer solutions for all their needs.

Build Video Chat & Live Streaming Apps with Agora App Builder in Zero Code:

Agora now launches the latest Agora App Builder to help developers and non-technical creators build an Agora Video Call App. It allows developers and creators to build a scalable video calling app with absolutely no coding experience to break out of one-size-fits-all video conferencing solutions and start building custom apps according to their specific use case and company.

Agora App Builder is powered by Agora’s highly scalable and reliable Software-Defined Real-Time Network and it offers free leverage for all innovators and companies looking to stand out from the crowd and drive business outcomes.

You May Also Like: How to Create a Live Streaming Website

What Are the Features of Agora App Builder?

The launch of Agora App Builder aims to make APIs accessible to anyone. Agora App Builder features include:

• Superior Customization & Go-to-Market Speed: It offers complete customization power with no-code customization, go-to-live options for non-technical creators, and fully downloadable source code for developers.
• Latest Conferencing Features: It comes with a beautiful User Interface (UI), multi-screen sharing, dial-in support, host controls, cloud recording, call analytics, and many more.
• Offers Quality & Scalability: It is featured with ultra-low latency which is about 60% lower as compared to top competitors, 250+ global points of presence for rapid network routing, and 99.99% availability.
• Reliability: Agora builds in redundant servers and data centers allowing users to interact with your app 24/7.

Conclusion:

Do you know Agora is such a platform that powers 50 billion minutes of live voice and video every month? Yes, that’s right! This is not the end, Agora even helps all industries to scale up ranging from education, gaming, live audio streaming, media, and entertainment, Metaverse, retail, and social to telehealth and many more. Several popular video chat apps are built with Agora such as Super Gaming, Noon, LiSA, and many more.So, no matter whether you are a developer, a non-technical creator, or a business owner planning to build a video-calling app to offer your users the best video-calling experience, Agora can be the ideal platform to choose.