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Skype vs WhatsApp: which one is better?

Tags: skype whatsapp

Gone are the days when people needed telephones to communicate with their loved ones. Now is the time of VoIP or voice over internet protocols that is making the lives to people around the globe very easy by keeping them in touch and up to date about the life of their loved ones. Making calls to people residing in different continents have become quite easy thanks to these VoIP Apps. A number of VoIP applications are available and sometimes it becomes very difficult to decide which to use. In this article we consider two of the most popular ones, Skype and WhatsApp, and analyze which one is better. Skype vs WhatsApp is a tough competition as both are quite good and have millions of users. Which one to use depends upon the person’s personal needs. Let’s discuss the merits and de merits of both.

Skype vs WhatsApp Basic functionality

Both the applications provide instant voice and text messaging and audio and video calls to people all around the globe. The people who are using the applications can connect to other people who have the same application free of cost anytime. The voice call quality of Skype is better than WhatsApp. There have been complaints of calls dropping in WhatsApp from many countries. Although the calls go through fine but they drop few minutes into the conversation. The video calls on WhatsApp have the same issue. Although Skype provides seamless voice and video call experience.

also read Why WhatsApp Plus Was Blocked by WhatsApp?

Skype vs WhatsApp connectivity

In both applications, you can contact people who are using the same App free of cost. So it is very important how many users are using this App. The more the people who are using the App, the more are chances of you finding your friends to connect with. According to latest research WhatsApp is a clear winner in this area. Around a billion people use WhatsApp. This number is almost five times greater than the users of Skype. There are more people on WhatsApp so there is a better chance that you would be able to stay connected with the people you want to talk to through this App, freely. It is a big achievement because Skype came around years before WhatsApp but it has succeeded in garnering a greater user base than its competitor.

Skype vs WhatsApp Accessibility

Here by accessibility we mean how we can connect to people who are on Skype or WhatsApp. In WhatsApp it is easy, if you have a smartphone, you can download WhatsApp on it and then other people who have your number can see that you are available on WhatsApp and can contact you. The people who have WhatsApp downloaded on their mobiles are automatically added to the WhatsApp contact list of other people using the same app and having the number stored.

However in Skype you can add people by usernames. Every Skype user has a unique Skype id that is given to other people so they can connect to each other. Although it is good for privacy control, it does hinder the connectivity when urgent communication is required and the person does not have the Skype id of the other person he wants to contact.

also read Will WhatsApp’s Call Feature Be The Demise of Viber?

Skype vs WhatsApp Cost

Both applications provide messaging and calling services for free. Skype does charge its users but for services that are not offered by WhatsApp. In Skype if you want to call users on a landline or mobile phone number, you need to pay the charges. But as these services are not offered by WhatsApp and other major VoIP service providers’ one cannot hold it against Skype. Besides their rates are quite reasonable and even if you do not have a landline or mobile number of your own, you can call on other landlines or mobile phones at an economical rate.

Skype vs WhatsApp Mobility

Skype came about in the Desktop and laptop era. Earlier almost all the laptops had Skype installed. But then came the smart devices era. WhatsApp came for the smart phones. It can run on the desktop machines too but you must have a sim card and a mobile number registered to it. Once registered you can use it on devices without a sim card but for initial registration it is essential. However you can open up a Skype account without having a mobile number.

Skype took some time to become compatible with the smart phone devices. Still there are some platforms where you cannot use Skype. We can safely say that WhatsApp is better for smart phones and Skype is best for desktop VoIP.

Skype vs WhatsApp Features

The list of features for Skype is very long as compared to WhatsApp. Skype is great for video conferencing between many people. Also it provides many features like screen sharing, file sharing, collaboration tools and business features. Some of these are paid services but are very helpful in multinational organizations that are outsourcing remotely. Skype also lets you call on landlines and any other numbers.

Skype vs WhatsApp Data consumption

Both the applications provide free of cost voice calling so it might seem that the cost is equal however as it is a VoIP, we have to cater to bandwidth consumption also. The data consumption in Skype call is much higher as compared to voice call of WhatsApp. Of course that is the reason the voice and video call capability of Skype is much greater than WhatsApp but comes with a price. Data consumption does not effect people who are using Wifi but if you have a 3G or 4G data plan, skype calls are going to eat away most of your balance.

Looking at all the pros and cons of Skype and WhatsApp, we can safely say that both are quite effective services, however if you are using desktop machines go for Skype and if the major part of your communication would be on smartphone, go for WhatsApp. Many people are using both, which is a better option as in this case you reap the benefits of both Apps.

Skype vs WhatsApp, which App do you think is better. Which one are you using and if you are using both, which serves you better? Let us know your opinion in the comments section below.

The post Skype vs WhatsApp: which one is better? appeared first on The Next Rex.



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