For almost a decade the WhatsApp messaging application has been imposed on our mobile phones almost as essential. First it was text messages, then photos, audio and video, the data traffic it generates in our terminals is immense.
A WhatsApp voice call of just 1 minute can consume between 0.15 and 0.20 MB with 3G connection. If what we do is a video call, something very common since the COVID-19 pandemic began, we may be consuming more than 3 MB of data per minute.
We rarely think about it, but our conversations through this application they can consume the data limit that we have contracted with our telephone operator. To avoid staying at zero, or that when it reaches a limit drastically decreases the data rate, we can use a connection wifi, but if it is not the one in our house or one we trust, it is not highly recommended.
A second option, which reduces the quality of sound and image, is forcing the WhatsApp application to use less data in calls.
Setting it up on your mobile phone is very simple, and it’s exactly the same if you have a phone with an Android operating system or an iPhone. First we open WhatsApp and from ‘Settings’ we go to the ‘Storage and data’ tab. Within it we locate the option ‘Use less data for calls’ and activate it.
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By activating this tab we will go from consuming 500 Kb to about 200 Kb per minute. In addition, the network that the mobile uses in that WhatsApp data exchange will change, from 4G or 5G, depending on our terminal, to 2G or 3G.
On that same screen, taking advantage of the fact that we are activating this option, We can check what type of files the mobile downloads with mobile data. With this we can prevent the application from automatically downloading photos, audio, videos or documents. We will be the ones who, seeing them in the conversation blurred, choose if we want to download it or not depending on its weight.
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