What is Jitter? Meaning, Causes, and Solutions

You need a good, fast, and interruption-free internet connection as a user. But do you know jitter is an important factor behind your internet connection? After all, jitter refers to the variability or deviation in the timing of a signal or data transmission. So, if you want to know what is jitter in networking? This article will provide important information on jitter definition, causes, and solutions.

What is Jitter Meaning?

In general, jitter is an important term within networking and communication technology. After all, it measures the time by which a signal’s actual arrival time differs from its expected arrival time. In simple terms, it refers to time delays in transmitting these data packets over your network connection.

The fact is data packets get utilized to transfer information from your computer through the internet. Meanwhile, the delays caused to these data packets in the process are called Jitter. Such delays often arise due to network congestion and occasional route alterations.

What is an Acceptable Network Jitter?

Jitter refers to the variation in packet arrival times on a network. Meanwhile, the acceptable network jitter depends on the specific application or service. Moreover, the jitter gets measured in ms (milliseconds). So, what is a good internet jitter? The approved level of jitter stands at around 30ms. Any delay exceeding this threshold will lead to disruption and distortion in a call.

Therefore, the jitter should remain below 30ms for efficient networking connectivity. Remember, some applications are extremely sensitive to latency and packet arrival time. Henceforth, a low jitter value is desirable in most networking use cases.

What Can Cause Network Jitter?

Network jitter refers to the variation in the packet delivery delay over a network. As a result, it issues disruptions in real-time applications like video conferencing, online gaming, and voice-over IP (VoIP). But what causes the jitter network in the first place? Find some of the crucial factors here:

Network Congestion: When the network experiences a heavy inflow of traffic, routers and switches get prioritized. This helps delay packets which ultimately leads to increased jitter.
Buffering Issue: The network devices use buffers to store and manage incoming data temporarily. Consequently, the buffer overflows or underflows can lead to jitter in the packet delivery.
Wireless Interference: In wireless networks, connectivity interference from other devices or nearby networks can cause delays and drops in packets. This ultimately results in a jitter network.
Hardware Issues: Hardware issues can cause the jitter test. This happens due to faulty or overloaded routers, switches, or other networking equipment, which results in jitter.
Packet Collisions: In a shared network environment, packet collisions can occur when two or more devices attempt to transmit data simultaneously. This causes jitter as the data packets get retransmitted.

How to Fix Network Jitter Issues

Jitter is the variation in the delay of received data packets, which may cause irregular or inconsistent data transmission rates. Subsequently, fixing the jitter can help stable, improve, and upgrade network performances.

Way 1: Fixing Jitter for Users

It’s essential to determine what normal users can do to address network jitter issues. For this purpose, find here important to-do things:

1. Prioritizing the Network Packets

You can prioritize voice packets over other applications by implementing QoS mechanisms in the network devices like routers and switches. This helps deliver packets to the destination in quick time. Moreover, it ensures that real-time traffic gets preferential treatment over non-real-time traffic.

2. Switching to the Wired Connection

Apparently, switching to the wired connection can help you fix jitter. It’s because wireless connections are more prone to environmental interferences that automatically disrupt the network. Meanwhile, make sure to use Ethernet cables for this purpose. After all, Ethernet cables can provide strong connectivity.

3. Disabling the Firewalls

The main reason for jitter in the delay and interruption within a network is the use of firewalls. This is because firewalls can limit the speed and performance of the network. So, consider minimizing your router’s workload by turning off the firewalls. This ultimately improves the network speed while also enhancing VoIP.

4. Testing Frequency of Device

Consider using between 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi connections. Generally, it’s because 5 GHz of connectivity offers a much faster connection, but you would have to sit near the router because of the shorter range.

In contrast, 2.4 GHz connectivity allows you to stay connected even if you are far from the router. Thus, adjusting your devices within 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz can help you reduce congestion, which minimizes jitter.

Way 2: Fixing Jitter for Developers

As a developer, you can easily fix jitter issues to enhance your network connectivity standards. But how is this executed? Find here the factors:

1. Install and Use Jitter Buffer

Adding a jitter buffer to your VoIP system can help you overcome the jitter problem. This happens by storing the packets for a particular time and reassembling them before sending them back to the receiver. Meanwhile, the length can vary from 30 to 200 milliseconds, which may not be noticeable in the long run but can solve most of the jitter problems.

2. Utilize ZEGOCLOUD API/SDK

By integrating ZEGOCLOUD API/SDK into your communication app, you can effectively extend the quality of video and audio calls within the network. After all, the platform leverages advanced technology that delivers ultra-low latency video and audio on a 300ms connection with 4K resolutions.

Meanwhile, with noise reduction technology, communication becomes smoother and seamless. In addition, there’s also an option to pursue live streaming and live conferences.

Conclusion

In general, jitters are a common issue in real-time communication scenarios affecting audio and video connections. After all, it causes instability in the arrival time of audio and video packets within the RTC network. Eventually, a better and more reliable RTC provider is ZEGOCLOUD.

This platform is developed on WebRTC protocol that ensures an interruption-free connection with stable communication. Furthermore, ZEGOCLOUD utilizes an advanced networking transmission system alongside a packet loss recovery rate. Thus, it helps prevent jitter’s impact on communication quality. Henceforth, ZEGOCLOUD offers more stable and seamless network connectivity.