Microsoft optimizes Skype for low-end Android phones
What's the story
Microsoft is rolling out an updated version of Skype that is optimized for low-end Android smartphones.
The new voice and video chat app will specifically be compatible with phones running Android versions 4.0.3 to 5.1 (the latest version is Android 8.1).
This will help users of such smartphones with better audio and video quality while running Skype on their devices.
Details
The new Skype version is lighter, faster
According to Microsoft, the new version is "lighter on both, disk and memory consumption, allowing for greater speed and better audio and video quality on lower-end Android devices, as well as increased performance in challenging network conditions."
The lightweight version of the video chat app should be available globally in the next few weeks.
Benefit
We need more apps optimized for older Android versions
In a time when every app wants to be compatible with the latest OS to remain relevant and run smoothly on high-end phones like the iPhone X or Samsung Galaxy S9, older devices are often left behind.
In such a scenario, popular apps optimized for low-end phones ensure that devices without powerful processors or extra storage space remain useful in all geographies.
Background
Facebook, Twitter have done the same with their apps
This isn't the first time a major communications platform has taken this route.
In the past, Facebook had rolled out its Messenger Lite for low-end Android devices and Twitter had introduced a lite version of its mobile app.
These versions cut off some of the extra clutter from the app, use less data, and are smaller in size.