Google+ vs Facebook: Battle of the social networking heavyweights

Users have been signing up to Google's latest social networking service by the bucket load judging by how Google is managing access to the service.

Google has no doubt set its sight on overtaking chief rival Facebook, and V3.co.uk has had a look at some of the key features to see how the two social networking services stack up against each other.

It's all in the name
The name of a product or service is crucial to its success and Zuckerberg got it spot on with Facebook. Knowing that this was always going to be hard to top, Google decided to keep it simple by adding a ‘+' to its name. It's short, sharp and catchy and could be one of the keys to its success.

Logos are also underrated and a bit of flair and colour never goes amiss. It's fair to say that Google's multi-coloured logo and icons are far more exciting than the boring icons and drab blue colour scheme used by Facebook.

Instant access
Set up is easy, with Gmail users able to sign in and get going pretty much instantly as the search giant already has key details such as name and address.

Users can post status updates and comments, which friends can ‘+1'. This is the equivalent of pressing the ‘like' button on Facebook and is one of the major similarities between the two services.

Although initial setup on Facebook isn't exactly slow, it's the functionality that counts and it looks like Google may have the edge there also.

Integrate to create
Google+ integrates other Google applications such as Docs, Gmail, Google Chat, Places and YouTube seamlessly, making Facebook look like a lone ranger with its rudimentary ‘Chat' feature.

It is not only possible to upload information to Google+, but also download details. Another great feature is the ability to sync photos and video. Users can auto-upload images from an Android smartphone to a private album. Best of all it takes the hassle out of backing up. However, this is limited to those with Android devices.

‘Hanging out' with friends is one of the best features we've encountered so far. It allows users to carry out a one-to-one or video group chat and the screen automatically changes to display the person that is speaking. An excellent feature that is likely to be useful for business users, and best of all it's free.