Author Topic: how much data does a mobile phone use for internet ?  (Read 2462 times)

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Offline SimonTopic starter

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how much data does a mobile phone use for internet ?
« on: June 24, 2012, 12:58:23 pm »
so I'm going to get a decent phone at long last. I guess I'll soon find myself on the internet and using my data bundle up. How much do I realistically need ? will my current tarrif I can bolt on 500 MB for £2.50, will 500MB do ? I know webpages and the like are humungus these days but what sort of traffic do mobiles handle ? (I'm thinking the horrid flash adverts on all websites etc)
 

Offline PeterG

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Re: how much data does a mobile phone use for internet ?
« Reply #1 on: June 24, 2012, 01:22:26 pm »
This is a very complex question.
Data usage is made of 2 parts.
The first is your general internet surfing, a lot of sites now detect mobile devices and server lite pages to mobile devices.
The second part is the data used by Apps. This is the hidden data usage that catches a lot of people out.

It all comes down to how you use your phone, there is no easy was to pre determin the amount of data you will use. For me, 500mb is really small. For others it will me a huge amount.

Regards
Testing one two three...
 

Offline SimonTopic starter

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Re: how much data does a mobile phone use for internet ?
« Reply #2 on: June 24, 2012, 01:37:38 pm »
hm, to be honest I'd not surf the net much on a phone, I always carry my laptop with me and am generally near wifi, my main use would be for things like skype and free text apps
 

Offline joelby

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Re: how much data does a mobile phone use for internet ?
« Reply #3 on: June 24, 2012, 01:53:15 pm »
Probably not a lot then (unless you make loads of Skype calls, or video calls), so 500 MB might be sufficient. You should keep an eye on it using your provider's usage meter or phone's built-in data meter (bear in mind that telcos usually consider the sum of uploads and downloads toward your allowance) and top it up if it looks like you will exceed it.

The biggest contributors toward data use are:

  • "Tethering" a computer to your phone to provide Internet access on the go, and then browsing large or Flash-heavy sites (the mobile sites you would access directly from the phone are sometimes more streamlined than the non-mobile sites)
  • Viewing movies from streaming sites such as YouTube
  • Long, boring commutes on public transport
 

Offline Monkeh

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Re: how much data does a mobile phone use for internet ?
« Reply #4 on: June 24, 2012, 01:57:32 pm »
Be aware that ads in free apps can very, very rapidly add up to significant amounts of data.
 

Offline SimonTopic starter

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Re: how much data does a mobile phone use for internet ?
« Reply #5 on: June 24, 2012, 02:13:41 pm »
yea the free texts app is $0.99 for a year with no adds.
 


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