Data Usage Going Very Fast

[rjsmith]

Hi, 

$40 / 4g+500mb / 30 days plan

Switched to PM in May 2019. 

I've been burning through my data almost every two - three weeks ever since switching to PM and keep having to renew early. Before PM, I was with Telus 4g/30 days and rarely hit above 75% usage. My usage habits haven't changed. 

Anyone else experiene this? If I have been using LTE instead of 3g, will that cause me to burn through my data faster? 

thanks,

[computergeek541 · Accepted solution]

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@bravo_md wrote:

Using LTE wouldn't burn thru your data faster than using 3 G speeds.  Actually, the $40 plan gives you 3G speed which is actually LTE throttled back to 3G speeds.

What phone are you using and what are the specs. 

You must have alot of APPS working overtime in the background that your not aware of.

You may not be on WIFI when you think you are.

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Having a faster connection can mean that data gets used faster.  It's not because of the faster speeds itself but because some programs/apps will transfer a higher amount of data when it deems that the connection is more capable. If we take an example such as watching Youtube videos or movies on Netflix when usuing cellular data, these software applications will stream content at a higher bitrate when there is a faster connection.  The Speedtest.net app also tends to use a lot more data with a faster connection because it appears to let the test run for a preset amount of time.

In the case of a "3g" plan, I don't usually see the latency as what these types of apps check for when deciding on streaming quality, but probably rather the overall available bandwidth.  If rjsmith is on a 3g plan, you're right that switching to an LTE connection wouldn't make it go faster than the advertised 3Mbps speeds.

[geopublic]

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@rjsmith wrote:

Hi, 

$40 / 4g+500mb / 30 days plan

Switched to PM in May 2019. 

I've been burning through my data almost every two - three weeks ever since switching to PM and keep having to renew early. Before PM, I was with Telus 4g/30 days and rarely hit above 75% usage. My usage habits haven't changed. 

@rjsmith That should not be happening unless your WiFi is going down on a regular basis and you end up using data. Also make sure that you use Autoplay for the popular apps only when on Wi-Fi.

Anyone else experiene this? If I have been using LTE instead of 3g, will that cause me to burn through my data faster? 

No, even though you are on LTE your connection is still throttled down to 3 Mbps (3G speeds).

thanks,

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[GinYVR]

@rjsmithIt would be useful if you do an audit of your system (and install a traffice monitor) to see if anything is amiss eg an app that is doing background data transfers etc. Switching between 4G / LTE shouldn't cause a huge jump in difference except in video sites which think you want higher resolution videos.

[bravo_md]

Using LTE wouldn't burn thru your data faster than using 3 G speeds.  Actually, the $40 plan gives you 3G speed which is actually LTE throttled back to 3G speeds.

What phone are you using and what are the specs. 

You must have alot of APPS working overtime in the background that your not aware of.

You may not be on WIFI when you think you are.

[rjsmith]

---

@bravo_md wrote:

Using LTE wouldn't burn thru your data faster than using 3 G speeds.  Actually, the $40 plan gives you 3G speed which is actually LTE throttled back to 3G speeds.

What phone are you using and what are the specs. 

You must have alot of APPS working overtime the the background that your not aware of.

---

iphone 6 16g running 11.4.1

[rjsmith]

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@bravo_md wrote:

You must have alot of APPS working overtime in the background that your not aware of.

You may not be on WIFI when you think you are.

---

re: APPS - as a solution I've now disabled systems updates and app updates from running unless on wifi

re: WIFI - it's possible. One thing I've notices since installing ios 11.4.1 was that my phone is not always latching on to wifi when it should be, i.e. when i'm sitting next to our router 😕 

[geopublic]

@rjsmith  Make sure that you data counter resets properly after each renewal by checking your selfserve landing page. Also check your usage history logs for anything unusual.

[bravo_md]

From talking to alot of co-workers, I've found that those using Iphones are indeed using more data then those using android phones.  Have't quite figured out why, other what I said before in my post.

[bravo_md]

I think your on the right track looking at the operating system.  That's why I wanted to know some of the specs   Closeness to router could very well be a problem too.

[computergeek541 · Accepted solution]

---

@bravo_md wrote:

Using LTE wouldn't burn thru your data faster than using 3 G speeds.  Actually, the $40 plan gives you 3G speed which is actually LTE throttled back to 3G speeds.

What phone are you using and what are the specs. 

You must have alot of APPS working overtime in the background that your not aware of.

You may not be on WIFI when you think you are.

---

Having a faster connection can mean that data gets used faster.  It's not because of the faster speeds itself but because some programs/apps will transfer a higher amount of data when it deems that the connection is more capable. If we take an example such as watching Youtube videos or movies on Netflix when usuing cellular data, these software applications will stream content at a higher bitrate when there is a faster connection.  The Speedtest.net app also tends to use a lot more data with a faster connection because it appears to let the test run for a preset amount of time.

In the case of a "3g" plan, I don't usually see the latency as what these types of apps check for when deciding on streaming quality, but probably rather the overall available bandwidth.  If rjsmith is on a 3g plan, you're right that switching to an LTE connection wouldn't make it go faster than the advertised 3Mbps speeds.