Mobile data usage plan: It’s a call that most people take after careful consideration – opting for a mobile data plan that meets their needs while not putting stress on the wallet. After all, the days of unlimited data plans are over. Yet, much before the month is over, most people are shocked to get a ping from the service provider saying that 100% of the data usage limit has been exceeded. Surprisingly, while this is a regular feature, it is a problem that most mobile users face almost on a monthly basis.
1. So why is this happening? What can you do to change this? For starters, you need to check what all applications are always running on your device. A quick check on data usage will tell you which applications are consuming the most data. In most cases it is Facebook if you have that on your phone. The problem is that each time you open Facebook to see what your friends are up to, there are videos playing in the background, many a time in mute mode. Yet, they are consuming data like nothing else. Disable the auto-play function and see a sharp fall in your data usage immediately. A better bet would be to have videos play while in a wi-fi zone.
2. Compressing videos: Of course, videos are the biggest data guzzlers. The more videos you watch, the faster your data pack is over. One way out is to ensure that you watch videos only while in a wi-fi zone. That may not be always possible. That’s where the video compression in the Opera app comes in handy. Download Opera and opt for video compression in Settings. That makes for faster downloads of videos ensuring that less data is consumed while you watch the same videos.
3. Auto-update: The other problem is when the Google Play Store decides its time to update your apps. That can happn quite frequently. Apart from taking more space on your mobile device, it eats into your data plan without you realising it. Ensure that you do not opt for auto-update. Do that only when you are in a wi-fi zone. That also ensures that you update only some apps. That ensures there is more space on the device apart from keeping a check on data usage.
4. Music downloads: All of us have those favourite songs and videos that we love to hear/watch over and over again. Instead of opting for streaming audio/video, why not download it onto your device. That reduces the data burn for you, while ensuring that you can listen to your favourite music whenever you want even if data connectivity is bad.
5. Restrict background data: Even when you are not using an app, it is working. This includes syncing of emails, updating feeds and weather information. By opting to restrict background data, you can keep a check on the data you consume at any given point of time.