What impact does high latency have on voice communications?

High latency significantly impacts voice communications by causing delays and resulting in poor call quality. Latency refers to the time it takes for data to travel from the sender to the receiver. In voice communication, this delay can lead to noticeable interruptions between speakers, making conversation difficult and frustrating. When latency is high, it may cause echoes, overlaps in speech, or "talking over" each other, preventing smooth dialogue flow. Consequently, users may experience a degraded quality of service, which can affect the effectiveness of the communication, especially in scenarios requiring real-time interaction, such as customer service or emergency calls. Therefore, the recognition of latency issues is crucial for ensuring effective voice communication.