Version 4.34 - Features and Enhancements delivered in the September 14, 2020 Amazon Chime release.
Amazon Chime version 4.34 for Windows, macOS, and web are now available. The iOS, and Android clients have been submitted to the mobile stores for approval.
Windows 7 Deprecation [Windows]
Due to the Microsoft depreciation of the Windows 7 operating system on January 14, 2020, beginning with the November, 2020 Windows client release, 4.36, Amazon Chime will no longer provide support for the Windows client when running on Microsoft Windows 7 devices. Meeting attendees and Amazon Chime users running on Windows 7 can access meetings, chat, and other features using the Amazon Chime web application (https://app.chime.aws) on the latest version of Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, or Chromium Edge. The web application always loads the latest version with the most up-to-date features and security updates.
Video background blur [Windows, macOS]
Amazon Chime now uses machine learning to provide the ability to blur the background of your video during meetings. In addition, users may choose the strength of the blur - low, medium, high, and no blur.
Enabling Background Blur
By default, Video background blur is turned off and can be turned on and off at any time during the meeting by toggling the Blur My Video Background option on the More menu. The preference is persistent between meetings - once turned on, all meetings will use video background blur until it is turned off.
Note: Amazon Chime client settings, including the Blur my background value, are reset to the default value when a user signs out of the client.
Set the Blur Strength
You can choose the degree to which the blur is applied at any time during your meeting - choosing between a Low amount of blur, Medium amount, or a High amount of blur. Once selected, the preference is persistent between meetings.
- Windows: Choose Settings under the File menu and navigate to the Video tab. There you can choose the Background blur strength.
- macOS: Choose Preferences under the Amazon Chime menu and navigate to the Video tab. There you can choose the Background blur strength.
Note: Background Blur currently is available on the desktop clients running Windows 10 or macOS 10.14 (Mojave) or later. The feature uses your graphics processing unit (GPU) for best performance, and older GPUs may not have the power to run it. If you try to use background blur on a computer with an unsupported operating system or an older GPU, the Amazon Chime client displays a message indicating it is not supported, and the feature won’t start. If you have an older computer and your video starts to lag, we recommend turning off background blur.
If you have any feedback on this feature, be sure to leave a comment in the meeting feedback form presented when you leave the meeting or work with your AWS IT Administrator to file a ticket with AWS support.
New Operating System Support [Android, web]
Amazon Chime has added support for the following operating systems:
- The Amazon Chime Android client now supports users running Android 11 on their devices.
- The Amazon Chime web application now supports audio, video, screen share, and other features on Chromium Edge browsers version 84 and above.
Amazon Chime Add-in for Outlook running on Office 365 now supports delegation [Outlook]
Meeting delegates can now use the Amazon Chime Add-in for Outlook to schedule meetings for other Amazon Chime users.
Note: If you are scheduling meetings for someone else, please be sure you do the following:
- Ensure that the user you are scheduling for has added you as a delegate in Chime.
- Open a new or existing appointment on the user's calendar.
- Click Schedule Chime Meeting.
- Make sure you choose the user from the delegate list in the add-in:
Please see Scheduling Meetings using the Amazon Chime Add-in for Outlook (https://answers.chime.aws/articles/1097/scheduling-meetings-using-the-amazon-chime-add-in.html) for complete instructions on how to schedule meetings.
