One of the most frequent tasks that users want to solve by connecting to the Internet outside the city, be it a summer cottage or a house for permanent residence, is the full use of such a popular service as Skype... And then the question arises, will Skype work? Is there enough speed and traffic for this?

Where a cable Internet line is suitable, as a rule, this question does not arise. Fiber-optic access speed (up to 100 Mb / s) is quite sufficient for Skype, and for watching movies online, and even in HD quality.

But what to do when broadband is not available? What should all those who live in small suburban settlements do, where cable providers are in no hurry? What speed do I need to use Skype?

Internet GPRS from operators Kyivstar, MTS or Life (lifecell), is not able to provide sufficient speed. If a voice call via Skype can still go through, then the video practically does not go. The picture stops, everything freezes, and communication takes place with great difficulty. If it happens at all. Such an Internet, as a rule, gives a download speed of no more than 100 kbps. With a good alignment of stars. Although theoretically it can go up to 200 kbit / s.

New services 3G from GSM operators (this is MTS, Kyivstar, Lifesel) provide a fairly high speed. The declared 42 Mb / s would be enough headlong if this speed were constant. But, as the network is loaded, it will fall. But to what values ​​it will be seen in the coming year. In any case, the coverage area of ​​this 3G is rather limited at the moment, so it's not worth betting on these operators yet.

The required speed can also be provided by the service MTS - Connect from the operator MTS. Provided there is good coverage, low network load, or installing an external antenna with a weak signal.

Internet from SDMA operators, such as PEOPLEnet or Intertelecom, also opens up ample opportunities for the full use of the Skype service. PEOPLEnet, however, has reduced its coverage in Ukraine to a minimum, but Intertelecom is working quite stably and is even developing slowly. Here it is also necessary to know the coverage at the point of use. If it is insufficient, then it is also possible to recommend installing a remote directional antenna. When all is well, the transmission and reception rates can range from 1Mbps to 3-5Mbps. Sometimes more. This speed allows you to feel very good not only in Skype, but also when watching various video services. Well, okromya, HD (high) quality.

What speed do you need for Skype?

So, what speed should a subscriber have for using Skype so that communication is comfortable and not inconvenient?

Before answering this question, I would like to give one piece of advice that you may have ignored when using the fast Internet somewhere in a big or small city. Before the "session", disable all unnecessary services on your laptop that may consume traffic. All sorts of shmorrent torrents. Close the browser so that the open pages do not pull traffic, turn off online music, wait until the antivirus or similar programs are updated. As a rule, this is ten minutes after your computer has access to the Internet (at a good speed).

Now in terms of speed. Let's see first, what camera installed on your device through which you will communicate via Skype. Here, as a rule, there are several options: 0.3 megapixels, 1.3 megapixels, 2 megapixels and more. The lower the resolution of your camera and your interlocutor, the less speed and traffic you need for trouble-free communication.

Now in numbers. In order to communicate with a 0.3-1.3 megapixel camera on both sides, it is necessary that the speed of reception and transmission does not fall below 250 kB / s. At this speed, small periodic braking, a screen in squares, etc. are possible.

That would "work well" - you need a speed of 500 kbit / s and above. Under this condition, the camera and 2MP will work. And at a speed of 1 Mb / s or more, there should be no special problems, provided that all your Internet speed is spent only on Skype. Nothing is updated, no viruses send anything anywhere.

How much traffic does Skype need?

The second question that may arise when connecting to wireless Internet is what tariff package to take. Or, to put it another way, how much traffic is Skype taking?

It all depends on how much you will be talking on this service. That is, how long the communication session will last. If video is turned on from both sides, that is, you and your interlocutor, then even if you silently look at each other, the Internet traffic goes away, and goes out quite well.

For example, you can take the speed of the Internet connection from 500 kbps to 1 Mbps. Let the duration of our conversation be one hour. Video is on, and you and your interlocutor have 2MP cameras. In this case, the approximate traffic consumption will be up to half a gigabyte. That is, 500MB will be spent on this conversation.

Now we take tariff packages and see that the amount of traffic per day is not less 1000 Mb(one Gigabyte). We leave stock for visiting sites, videos, etc. A month, respectively, if you use it every day, there should be at least 30 GB of traffic.

If your communication is more extensive, then you need more traffic. Perhaps even unlimited without speed limits. In general, each operator has statistics, unless, of course, this is an unlimited tariff plan. Therefore, you need to use, watch and draw conclusions ...

Modern communication is not only telephony and communication using different messengers. It is also working in chats, negotiations with colleagues, friends and family using Internet technologies.

Fortunately, using all types of communication at once, which is not very convenient, is no longer necessary. There is a program that combines all possible types of communication and types of communication. We are talking, of course, about Skype. Skype works in the presence of the Internet and the transmission speed for the implementation of its capabilities is different. About what speed is needed for Skype, read on.

How Skype works

Through the Skype program, you can easily, and for someone a free basis for negotiations will be an excellent bonus, you can enjoy communicating with any other users of the system, even if you are at the North Pole, and your interlocutor is chilling out somewhere in Cambodia. With all this, as mentioned above, you do not pay anything to the program itself and its developers, but only pay with the Internet service provider. And if your tariff is also unlimited, feel free to consider Skype as an absolutely free pleasure.

And now let's talk about what Internet speed is the most comfortable for Skype.

Comfortable internet speed for Skype

Internet speed for Skype will be quite tolerable, starting from the border of 100 Kbps. If you want to use a video call in Skype, the speed of the Internet that is comfortable for this action will depend on the quality, in other words, the resolution of the video you are transmitting.

Initially, Skype will check your internet speed before connecting to the interlocutor. Based on the received data, the program determines the quality of voice transmission and video transmission. If the speed of the Internet connection for you and your interlocutor is acceptable, then the program will transmit sound and video of the highest quality, or the quality of the connection will decrease to a level that will allow you to simply transfer information. If your webcam captures video in high definition format, then for comfortable communication in Skype you will need a speed of 1.5 Mbps. In the question, what is the minimum speed for Skype, it is important to understand that the use of group calls requires an even higher Internet speed.

In general, regarding the latest trends, it should be noted that the Skype program works at medium and low Internet speeds. Even the most economical tariffs allow you to use this program without any special restrictions. And any more or less comfortable Internet connection speed that supports non-stop streaming video will not take you an extra minute, even when working with video messages.

The internet connection speed that Skype needs depends on the type of calls you make on it. Below are the minimum and recommended speeds for optimal performance.

The table below lists the minimum required transmit and receive speeds, and the recommended speeds for optimal performance.

If you're signed in to Skype but don't call anyone, Skype will use an average of 0-4 Kbps. When you call, Skype uses an average of 24–128 Kbps.

• Close other applications using the Internet, especially those playing music and videos.
• Cancel ongoing file transfers.

If that doesn't fix the problem, you may need a faster connection. For more information on upload and download speeds, contact your internet service provider.

The connection speed required for Skype Connect depends on the following factors:

1. How heavily you use your internet connection for email, web browsing, and other data transfers.
2. How many calls can be made at the same time in your company.

Depending on how many calls you need, you may need a separate internet connection exclusively for Skype Connect. We recommend that you consult with experts to determine the exact needs of your company.

The following table shows the approximate number of concurrent calls using the G.729 standard that can be made with typical types of Internet connections.

They arise not through the fault of the user or a defective PC, but due to low traffic. Necessary internet speed for skype depends on how you prefer to communicate and how you generally use the program.

Specific speed in each case

• In standby mode, Skype transmits up to 4Kbps.
• To call the interlocutor, you need a speed of 30 Kbps (optimal - 100 Kbps).
• For normal video communication, you need from 128 Kbps (better - 300).
• For clear communication in high quality, you need at least 400 Kbps (the developers recommend 500).
• If you want to communicate in HD format, you will need from 1.2 Mbps (or even better - 1.5).

With group communication, the issue is more complicated. Regardless of the number of chat participants, the minimum data transfer rate from your side should be at least 128 Kbps (preferably 512).

But the download speed will depend on the number of interlocutors.

Below are the minimum and optimal download speeds for different chat sizes.

• For three participants - from 512 Kbps, normally - 2 Mbps;
• For five participants - from 2 Mbit / s, normally - 4 Mbit / s;
• More than seven people participate in the chat - from 4 Mbit / s, normally - 8 Mbit / s;

Check connection

Voice calls are possible with almost any connection. Video streaming can be turned off by clicking on the camera icon. The picture will disappear, but the sound quality will improve. You can check the connection in the program itself - Skype for Windows 10 has provided a similar opportunity. For this:

• We find the future interlocutor in the contact list:
• Select the "Check settings" item in the chat header;
• In the "Connection" column, select the "Check" sub-item;
• The quality of the Internet connection is analyzed by the Skype program - after checking you will receive information about the possible quality of the connection.

If your internet speed is too slow for a normal call, you can close all programs that are using traffic on your PC and cancel downloading files. As soon as Skype's competitors in the competition for traffic cease their activities, the quality of communication will immediately improve.

The internet connection speed that Skype needs depends on the type of calls you make on it. Below are the minimum and recommended speeds for optimal performance.

The table below lists the minimum required transmit and receive speeds, and the recommended speeds for optimal performance.

If you're signed in to Skype but don't call anyone, Skype will use an average of 0-4 Kbps. When you call, Skype uses an average of 24–128 Kbps.

• Close other applications using the Internet, especially those playing music and videos.
• Cancel ongoing file transfers.

If that doesn't fix the problem, you may need a faster connection. For more information on upload and download speeds, contact your internet service provider.

The connection speed required for Skype Connect depends on the following factors:

1. How heavily you use your internet connection for email, web browsing, and other data transfers.
2. How many calls can be made at the same time in your company.

Depending on how many calls you need, you may need a separate internet connection exclusively for Skype Connect. We recommend that you consult with experts to determine the exact needs of your company.

The following table shows the approximate number of concurrent calls using the G.729 standard that can be made with typical types of Internet connections.