This Is Officially The Best Voice Note Length – And You've Probably Been Oversharing

Woman listening to a voice noteI’m ashamed to say it, but voice notes have been the death of many of my would-be friendships.It’s not personal, I swear! I see a voice note in my notifications, get distracted or am unable to listen to it at that moment, forget it exists, and accidentally ghost my mates for days (if they’re less close, we may never text again). But apparently, Brits are, on average, more lenient than me. Sky Mobile’s research found that “most people admit they’d prefer to keep things closer to the 2-minute mark,” though their own voice notes last about three minutes. Whenever I share my own ideal voice note limit (45 seconds ’til I file an invoice), I hear outrage, though mostly from those who like recording rather than getting them. Indeed, Sky Mobile’s 2000-person-strong polling found that “91% would rather send than receive a voice note.” So, I thought I’d ask both voice note lovers and haters what their ideal duration would be.It varies from 20 seconds to multiple minutesMy partner and I are united. “30 seconds” was his immediate response when I asked how long a voice note should run.Another friend was more brutal: “20. Max,” they texted. But we are among the more merciless. Sky’s polling found that 73% of Brits find voice notes to be a “heartfelt” way to stay in touch; 71% say it helps them to strengthen emotional connections.And my cruel cabal of voice note sceptics don’t, crucially, have kids. “I’m one of those awful people who send longer voice notes – a quick scour of my WhatsApp reveals I’m probably averaging about 4-5 minutes,” Parents editor Natasha Hinde tells me. “I only started sending them when I had children because I’d be feeding my little one and would have one hand free, so I’d voice note my mates whenever I had a quick 5-10 minutes.”It helped her to defeat the communication backlog parenting often brings, she says: “Usually I’d not responded to loads of their messages, so I would basically offer a bit of a life update and ask lots of questions back.“Since then, I’ve managed to clip them down a bit, but I still end up waffling. Sorry to all my friends.”76% of respondents say the major benefit of voice notes is that they work hands-free.I have to say, that’s a pretty compelling argument for the amateur podcasters keen communicators; I’ll up my limit to a minute.“Double-speed has been a lifesaver” Though the average voice note length is about three minutes, Sky Mobile found 44% of us listen to the recordings on double speed, halving them to well under the two-minute upper limit.“It’s a lifesaver,” a relative tells me. “I couldn’t listen without them.” Sky’s polling found that there are some simple etiquette rules we can all follow to make one another’s listening experiences more enjoyable; sticking to the point, avoiding loud backgrounds, and speaking clearly can all help. If all those rules were followed, and with the sweet invention of double speed, I suppose my voice note ceiling can be raised to a minute and a half.But I’m a grump. “Anything over five minutes is pushing it,” Sky ruled.Related...Here's Why Boomers Keep Using Ellipses In Text (And Why It Makes You Panic)I Can't Stop Cackling At This Relic That's Basically A Teen's Angry Note To His Mum'I Don't Want It' – WhatsApp Users React To New Feature You Can't Turn Off

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