Video calls are used everywhere now. Students use them for online classes, offices use them for meetings, and friends use them to stay in touch.
But many times the video freeze, the sound cut, or the call feels slow. This lag is frustrating and makes it hard to talk properly.
Let’s see the main reasons why video calls lag and some simple ways to fix it.
Internet speed and traffic
Video calls need steady internet. If your internet is weak or many people in your home are online at same time, the call may lag.
You can think of it like a busy road, too many cars make traffic jams. Same thing happens with internet, too many users make it slow.
You can test your internet speed before a call to check if it is strong enough.
During your call, pause downloads or ask others not to stream during your call.
Latency and packet loss
Even when speed looks fine, calls can still lag because of latency. Latency is the time data takes to travel from your device to the other person.
If delay is high, voices sound out of sync and video freeze. Sometimes data packets get lost, which makes call choppy.
Using a wired cable instead of WiFi often reduce this problem because cable send data more directly.
Too many apps or devices
If your computer or phone is running many apps at once, it may not have enough power left for the video call.
Background programs like downloads, games, or open tabs can slow things down.
Closing extra apps before a call helps. This is true whether you are using Discord to chat with friend
If many devices in your home are online together, like TV streaming and kids gaming, the WiFi gets overloaded and calls lag more.
WiFi interference
WiFi signals can be blocked by walls or disturbed by other devices. At night, when more neighbors are online, their WiFi signals overlap with yours.
This interference makes connection weaker and cause lag. Moving closer to router or switching to a less crowded WiFi channel can improve speed.
Microsoft Teams meetings can benefit from small adjustments to the place where the router is placed.
Outdated software or devices
Videos may not work on old laptops, smartphones, or webcams. A slow device or internet may cause a video to freeze even with a good connection.
Updating your system, drivers, and video call apps often helps. In the app settings, you can also lower the video quality to make the call smoother.
Sometimes just closing other programs give enough memory for call to run better.