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I have the samsung vibrant and recently downloaded pda net so I can tether my phone. then this morning I wake to a discouraging text message that says my data has been slowed for the billing cycle. definitely a problem for me. because according to my contract I have unlimited 3g data not capped 3g. is there any way around this.
Sent from my futuristic phone
Yea I got that too but I still got 3g connection
Sent from my SGH-T959 using Tapatalk
Wrong, the contract says unlimited data. It doesn't specify a speed.
evilkorn said:
Wrong, the contract says unlimited data. It doesn't specify a speed.
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And being that that contract actually says unlimited I should the able to call them and have them give me back my full speed
Sent from my futuristic phone
ironlood said:
And being that that contract actually says unlimited I should the able to call them and have them give me back my full speed
Sent from my futuristic phone
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u dont get it right?
unlimited data doesnt mean unlimited full speed
Sent from my rooted 030 x10i using XDA App
I don't think they're capping your data. They're capping your speed, slowing down your data connection. So when they say unlimited data, it still is unlimited data. I'm no longer a T-Mo customer, but from what I remember, they don't guarantee speeds.
Just so it is clear. Read your T&C for more details.
T-MobileUSA recently started enforcing data throttling. This is different from a data cap. Specifically, if you use more than 5gb of data in your billing cycle, T-mo may throttle your speed down to a slower speed. This is to discourage people from tethering their phones to their computers for internet, and push the use of their usb data rockets.
A simple google search for "tmobile data throttling" will provide you with even more information.
Yea thats right. After hitting the 5gb data usage you get that txt msg and supposedly they will throttle to a lower speed. But like I mentioned before. They didnt do that to me. So OP. Check first before you want to complain. And yes its unlimited data. Just be glad tmo doesnt charge us more for hitting past 5gb. Other carriers throttle past 2gb. I know before our cap was 10gb.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using Tapatalk
tribalb said:
Yea thats right. After hitting the 5gb data usage you get that txt msg and supposedly they will throttle to a lower speed. But like I mentioned before. They didnt do that to me. So OP. Check first before you want to complain. And yes its unlimited data. Just be glad tmo doesnt charge us more for hitting past 5gb. Other carriers throttle past 2gb. I know before our cap was 10gb.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using Tapatalk
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Yeah definetly must have over looked that part in a fit of I just got throttled rage
Well I think in turn all t-mobile users should tether their phones and attack data intensive sites and devour the limitless data
Hopefully they add a solution for tethering because the vibrant is due to get froyo and the ability too tether is included without apps even a 5 dollar fee to prevent throttled data would be nice
Sent from my futuristic phone
Give me a break, using >5G of data on your mobile phone is CLEARLY not using the data ON the phone, therefore they should have the right to do whatever they want to limit you at that point.
I'm sure T-Mobile has a plan that's intended to be used as your main internet connection. What you have is intended to feed your phone, not your torrents.
khaytsus said:
Give me a break, using >5G of data on your mobile phone is CLEARLY not using the data ON the phone, therefore they should have the right to do whatever they want to limit you at that point.
I'm sure T-Mobile has a plan that's intended to be used as your main internet connection. What you have is intended to feed your phone, not your torrents.
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that's not true, I have used well over 5 gb and have never tethered my phone. downloading roms takes a lot of usage. I am on verizon though and never been throttled
Sent from my ADR6300 using XDA App
khaytsus said:
Give me a break, using >5G of data on your mobile phone is CLEARLY not using the data ON the phone, therefore they should have the right to do whatever they want to limit you at that point.
I'm sure T-Mobile has a plan that's intended to be used as your main internet connection. What you have is intended to feed your phone, not your torrents.
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Click to collapse
I don't tether or download torrents or anything like that with my data plan. I dont even download ROMs. What I do use it for is to use applications on my phone like the MediaHUB, beyondPOD and amazonMP3 and i watch tv shows, movies and pod casts and buy music. you know, like the Avatar movie that came with my phone so they could show off how great it is for doing that sort of thing.
To then throttle my speed because I use the phone to download content from apps that come installed on my phone when I bought it is bull. They claim that only 1% use over 5GB a month, but that is the same thing they said when it was at 10GB throttle point. Is that 1% counted from only the people that have unlimited data plans? do they include phones that don't have really have many apps that are data centric, like the sidekicks, blackberrys and even winmo... Are they going to throttle everyone that exceeds 5GB a month on the Galaxy S Tab too?
camalot said:
I don't tether or download torrents or anything like that with my data plan. I dont even download ROMs. What I do use it for is to use applications on my phone like the MediaHUB, beyondPOD and amazonMP3 and i watch tv shows, movies and pod casts and buy music. you know, like the Avatar movie that came with my phone so they could show off how great it is for doing that sort of thing.
To then throttle my speed because I use the phone to download content from apps that come installed on my phone when I bought it is bull. They claim that only 1% use over 5GB a month, but that is the same thing they said when it was at 10GB throttle point. Is that 1% counted from only the people that have unlimited data plans? do they include phones that don't have really have many apps that are data centric, like the sidekicks, blackberrys and even winmo... Are they going to throttle everyone that exceeds 5GB a month on the Galaxy S Tab too?
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I don't download torrents I tether my phone to my home computer because its easier to work with a full keyboard (not too mention streaming netflix).
The fact that they cripple or cap the functionality of the data is unfair. I understand that they have a data modem that they try to promote but they shouldn't force you into its arm's.
I still ask what they will do when FroYo introduces tethering ... Will they cap everyone who exceeds the 5 gb limit
Sent from my futuristic phone
You did agree to the terms and conditions of their service, right?
It may have changed since you signed up, but here is the current one:
http://www.t-mobile.com/Templates/P...&PAsset=Ftr_Ftr_TermsAndConditions&print=true
Some of the highlights that I believe have not changed for a few years now are:
Number 1. Acceptance.
Number 5. Our Rights to Make Changes.
Unfortunately those two topics are seen with almost any provider. You can continue with T-mobile and pay less per month, or you can always go to Verizon where they (so far) haven't put a throttle in place and pay more per month.
I thought they already announced a tethering plan for an additional 15$ with the unlimited data so 40$ a month is what it still cost .well in my neck of the woods
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
T-mobile is planning on charging for tethering just like every other company is already doing..You should be happy your able to get more than 2gb unlike at&t..The cap was 10gb before they introduced Hspa+ I'm not complaining..Like i said be happy you actually have unlimited data
Wow I don't think you realise how lucky you are being capped at 5gb.... here in the UK most networks cap "unlimited" at 500mb! I'm with vodafone and I get 1gb, if I exceed that then I instantly get charged £5 per 500mb (even 1kb over and I'm charged!)
sent from my Dell Streak (rooted 2.2 v1.0 by dj_steve) using Tapatalk
Im on vodafone uk and theu told me i had unlimited data but its only one gb cap ****ing lying scum bags
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
ironlood said:
I don't download torrents I tether my phone to my home computer because its easier to work with a full keyboard (not too mention streaming netflix).
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Wait...so you use your phone as your home internet connection?
Edit: Also, saying you want everyone to start tethering their phones and basically flood their network, to punish them? More than likely that would just cause them to put a data cap on their plans, like every other provider is doing. I'm on Verizon, so I don't care, but shooting yourself in the foot isn't exactly smart.
khaytsus said:
Give me a break, using >5G of data on your mobile phone is CLEARLY not using the data ON the phone, therefore they should have the right to do whatever they want to limit you at that point.
I'm sure T-Mobile has a plan that's intended to be used as your main internet connection. What you have is intended to feed your phone, not your torrents.
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Click to collapse
it is SOOOOO EASY to get that much data usage ON a phone. Simply just keep pandora or other internet radio constantly running along with the fact that you can multi-task and use data for other **** too and before you know it you're over 5gb
I would like to be able to tether my HTC View to my iPhone 4 via bluetooth to share the internet connection. It works successfully via MiWi with the wireless hotspot. I would like to use the bluetooth instead though since the wifi hotspot kills my battery and makes my phone physically hot to the touch after a few hours of it. Is this possible?
The 2 devices do pair through mywi using bluetooth. But when i click to connect and use for internet access the View just sits there and says connecting.
iPhone is running 5.0.1 and is jailbroken
HTC View is running 3.2.1 and is rooted and s-off
jonesychris said:
I would like to be able to tether my HTC View to my iPhone 4 via bluetooth to share the internet connection. It works successfully via MiWi with the wireless hotspot. I would like to use the bluetooth instead though since the wifi hotspot kills my battery and makes my phone physically hot to the touch after a few hours of it. Is this possible?
The 2 devices do pair through mywi using bluetooth. But when i click to connect and use for internet access the View just sits there and says connecting.
iPhone is running 5.0.1 and is jailbroken
HTC View is running 3.2.1 and is rooted and s-off
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Click to collapse
Sorry, I don't have a solution for you. I was just more curious if your wireless carrier has found out about you tethering and tried to force you into a tethering plan? I really want to jailbreak my iPhone for tethering but it sounds like there isn't a fullproof way of not letting carriers find out you are doing this.
I would like to do the same. I've read on other forums that some have success with honeycomb connecting to 4.0 miwi
I've been using tethering for about 6 months now. In the beginning it was only when wifi wasn't available for my laptop, or my wife's iPhone on trips (she has 200mb data)
They have not complained yet but it was very low data usage before. I'm sure my data will increase now so I will have to see. I work in IT, everywhere I go has wifi. I've used 702mb of data this month (1/2 through cycle). I'm normally around around 300 - 400mb of data a month. I'm also grandfathered into unlimited plan, so they get $30 a month from me for data. I doubt they are complaining much since i'm such a light user. This bill will be my first full month with the view, so we will see if I ever get any complaints.
jonesychris said:
I've been using tethering for about 6 months now. In the beginning it was only when wifi wasn't available for my laptop, or my wife's iPhone on trips (she has 200mb data)
They have not complained yet but it was very low data usage before. I'm sure my data will increase now so I will have to see. I work in IT, everywhere I go has wifi. I've used 702mb of data this month (1/2 through cycle). I'm normally around around 300 - 400mb of data a month. I'm also grandfathered into unlimited plan, so they get $30 a month from me for data. I doubt they are complaining much since i'm such a light user. This bill will be my first full month with the view, so we will see if I ever get any complaints.
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Ah ok, well keep us updated. I too am grandfathered in on unlimited data on my iPhone 4. And I also am a fairly light user (< 1GB/month), but everyone makes it sound like the carriers are jumping on illegal tethering pretty hard. Regardless of how much data is actually used, they know from the ports that tethering is happening. I almost wouldn't mind paying for a tethering account, but the worst part about doing it is that you lose unlimited regular data.
Reading your posts, I can't understand why tethering is "illegal" or forbidden. I you pay for a data plan, why can't one use it on any device?
Because they want to charge for it. Not sure
No one has successfully tethered with bluetooth?
Sent from my PG41200 using Tapatalk
I found this article with some searching.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1374213&highlight=bluetooth+tether
I wonder if this would work with the View. Same WPA file work?
tito12 said:
Reading your posts, I can't understand why tethering is "illegal" or forbidden. I you pay for a data plan, why can't one use it on any device?
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Its not "illegal", in that I don't think you can get thrown in jail or sued for it.
But you agree to the carrier's Terms & Conditions when you sign up to use their network, whether you like it or not (or bothered to read them). Violation of the Terms means that the carrier can terminate your service, add charges to your account, or other repercussions, depending on what the Terms state.
Not sure what carrier's policies are in Israel. But in the US, most of the big carriers have specific statements in their Terms of Use, that prohibit tethering other devices to your phone without a tethering specific plan. If you are caught violating this policy, they reserve the right to add that plan to your account, or even drop your account if they want.
And yes, its of course so they can charge you extra. I completely agree that data should be data. And if you pay for a certain amount of data, or on an unlimited plan, then ideologically it should not make a difference if you are tethered or not. But there are many times in life where the most logical or fair concept is not what happens in reality. Especially in the for-profit business world.
No one has any ideas? Surely i'm not the first person who has tried to do this.
I just posted a possible solution related to this except I did it on the View:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1469997
Since most of us who use this forum are aware of AT&T's draconian policies regarding tethering, especially the one whereby they bump you from unlimited to crappy tethering plan policy, I'm going to ask those of us who are successfully tethering their Atrix with an unlimited data plan to help correct some information.
Basically AT&T is changing their plans, and with 3gb HSPA and 5gb LTE throttling the reality for us unlimited data plan users, I and others would like to know what this has wrought for our tethering capabilities.
Previously AT&T was monitoring our accounts to see if we were tethering, seeing if our phones were using ports and protocols for checking windows update for example(used to determine that your phone is tethered to a PC), or user agent strings, or other means of packet inspection. They were hitting people with the 45$ tethering plan left and right 12 months ago, but now, Verizon has just gotten the smackdown on their charge-for-tether practices, and I recall hearing that AT&T doesn't care about tethering anymore because they are putting most people on the unified data package where a whole set of devices use one pool of allotted bandwidth. Which would mean AT&T can ream those people with encouraged tethering.
But that leaves those of us with an unlimited plan......uninformed. Are they still doing the plan bump if they detect an unlimited user tethering? Furthermore, can they even detect the kind of tethering I've tried before, namely Atrix CM7 connected to HP touchpad CM9, I think built in tethering app. Can't they tell from the amount of hops, its one further on the Time to live?
Or do I have to use PDANET for the encryption?
Surely there must be someone out there using their unlimited with tethering who can chime in, maybe you can say what rom and tether app/built in your using/technique.
And if it's safe, this would make my job so much easier to tether with my laptop. And since that work is volunteer search and rescue flying, this could be invaluable information for me and my team.
Thanks, TL ; DR, AT&T sucks. But they have a fat data pipe and large network...
Grandfathered unlimited plan here. I'm running neutrino and tether to my iPad mostly and some pc tethering I used about 2 gigs in 3 days and so far so good. No scary text or anything.
Of course ymmv but that's been my experience with tethering so far.
Btw located in more rural southeast
Interesting
Thanks for the reply, I've tethered roughly 3-4 gb using netflix and some web browsing from Atrix to Touchpad, but that was last Thanksgiving, so I'm sure AT&T's network has changed since then. I guess I'll start off with trying to push 3gb+ using netflix on the touchpad, followed by browsing on the touchpad to see if any warning bells go off at AT&T. Because frankly having freedom to tether is a joy, I used to use my HTC Touch Pro to tether like mad on AT&T going through 5gb with a laptop easily. But that was 2.5 years ago
Anyone else get slammed?
I thought they just throttled you after you used more than 3gb+. Are they guys not getting throttled anymore?
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jarsh92 said:
I thought they just throttled you after you used more than 3gb+. Are they guys not getting throttled anymore?
Sent from my MB860 using xda app-developers app
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I have tethered on my unlimited plan, using my Nintendo 3Ds, and my laptop which is running linux, so they probably wouldn't be able to detect the devices easily.
No text messages yet.
[Q] tethering caught with fox fi- with proxy
i have been a big fan of tethering since my old iPhone days.
the switch to android has been a big step and i am not telling anyone to tether so please don't abuse this.
i used foxfi with proxy for about 4 months until last night. got a email from AT&t stating that i would be moved to a tethering plan for 65 dollars more a month and one less gig than i had before. so for all those that use foxfi with proxy, it doesn't work. i know pda net dosent work from friend who also got a letter, before me.
so i am stuck .. no more tethering for me.. i am actually retiring from it. but i still keep the option on my phone if such an emergency arises.
hears where i am asking for the opinions of the xda members. i am not sure how at&t knows, but they did, and it doesn't make sense that they scan all every packet of data. any ideas how they know?
i did do one thing that i found hidden on my samsung notei717. under network settings it only shows ONE apn. but... if you download a apn-manager it shows a hidden APN-att-entitlement. is this how they know? i thought it was only used for people who pay for tethering? is it also used to track tethering?
i ended up using a sql editor and removed the line for this APN from the(/data/data/com.android.providers.telephony/databases/telephony.db) rebooted phone and now its gone, phone works well and i havent seen any problems yet. ( i did make a copy if anyone wants to see the original)
might anyone in here have any ideas of how at&t knew ?
i am more curious if anything.. even my wife told me, that i have a big enough screen, just use it as a computer from now on.
was it this APN that gave it away? (i tethered a android tablet for internet and games)
I'm on T-Mobile and have been caught tethering, I use chrome extension user-agent switcher. Choose the Android user-agent. If some pages require IE then just precede with HTTPS.
Try it.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using xda premium
Another thought you could use the tether, establish a VPN tunnel to a home machine and then use the internet that way. it'll encapsulate your traffic from your laptop to your home PC so AT&T could see is traffic but not what and where. From what I've read it's either 1 of 2 ways how AT&T detect if you're tethering:
1) by detecting what type of response headers and ports your connecting on. A VPN tunnel would protect you.
2) the other rumor is that by using a tethering program (or one that's built in for that matter) uses a tethering specific APN which AT&T tracks that way. So in theory if you could specify which APN you use for tethering that would protect you.
I haven't wanted to test out these theories because I have unlimited plan and don't want to risk it.
Theoriginalgiga said:
Another thought you could use the tether, establish a VPN tunnel to a home machine and then use the internet that way. it'll encapsulate your traffic from your laptop to your home PC so AT&T could see is traffic but not what and where. From what I've read it's either 1 of 2 ways how AT&T detect if you're tethering:
1) by detecting what type of response headers and ports your connecting on. A VPN tunnel would protect you.
2) the other rumor is that by using a tethering program (or one that's built in for that matter) uses a tethering specific APN which AT&T tracks that way. So in theory if you could specify which APN you use for tethering that would protect you.
I haven't wanted to test out these theories because I have unlimited plan and don't want to risk it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i have deleted the alternate APN ( which is hidden even from root users) so i am not sure if that is it.
is it possible to alter the TTL ? and if so how?
- also how would i tweak my note to use a VPN?
mac1845427 said:
i have deleted the alternate APN ( which is hidden even from root users) so i am not sure if that is it.
is it possible to alter the TTL ? and if so how?
- also how would i tweak my note to use a VPN?
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Click to collapse
Personally I'd handle the VPN on the laptop/computer instead of the phone itself. Inherently there's an overhead for a VPN and requires processing power which would slow down your throughput on your phone if the phone was handling that.
Here's a link that has a decent walk through if you want to use the phone for the VPN.
http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/smartphones/securely-connect-your-android-smartphone-via-vpn/3321
What APN did you delete? can you post the values of it? Also why do you want to change your TTL?
I do not know how at &t does it, but a friend was one of the first owner of a 10" tablet with internal 3g years ago. His provider accused him doing tethering.
We assumed that they check the screen resolution of the browser which some web sites use to optimise the layout.
After short discussion, he could convince them and they droped the case.
Not that I'm in any way knowledgeable in the context of this topic, but when you mentioned the alteration and/or deletion of hidden APN data...
Bear in mind that a stock GB build for the ATT note, contains 1352 separate APN's....
And I'm not sure if the hidden file will capture the additional data or not to prevent detection, but I thought I'd post anyway just in case it helps at all ...g
Edit : I can't say for sure where these APN logs are stored or how/when they are accessed, but I know they exist as they can be seen when backing or restoring the GB or ICS UCLF6 Builds when tracking the line by line process.
Good luck to you gentlemen, I have nothing else to offer on the subject ....sorry ....g
xblosa said:
I do not know how at &t does it, but a friend was one of the first owner of a 10" tablet with internal 3g years ago. His provider accused him doing tethering.
We assumed that they check the screen resolution of the browser which some web sites use to optimise the layout.
After short discussion, he could convince them and they droped the case.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If that's the case, that sort of data can be masked by a VPN tunnel. But I think it's a little more complex than that because there's quite a few tablets on AT&T now.
Theoriginalgiga said:
If that's the case, that sort of data can be masked by a VPN tunnel. But I think it's a little more complex than that because there's quite a few tablets on AT&T now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sure, they will have improved their detection, but it will be based on fingerprinting for the traffic of commonly used desktop applications. VPN will avoid this, but using VPN all the time might be suspiscious per se.
xblosa said:
Sure, they will have improved their detection, but it will be based on fingerprinting for the traffic of commonly used desktop applications. VPN will avoid this, but using VPN all the time might be suspiscious per se.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed, it would look suspicious, but suspicion isn't enough to warrant AT&T to switch your account.
I got the email from AT&T about a year ago warning me about tethering and I called the number and she said their system looks for many thing and throws up red flags when it can prove you are tethering. She said they have to have proof before they can warn people. I was using my device to tether an iPod touch and she told me the reason I was caught was because I had downloaded apps from the App Store on an I device but my sim card was never shown to be inside an Idevice. It was crazy because I used several devices to tether for at least three years without being caught and within a week of using the iPod I was caught.
How dare we use the services we pay for! Such arrogance I have never seen to think att shouldn't be able to double dip. Vote Romney 2012 and deregulate more!
I got a warning once after watching Netflix... on my phone. They're usually bull****.
Sent from my SGH-I717 using xda premium
Earlier this month, I was on vacay and decided to use my phone to tether to my laptop (wasnt going to pay $12 at the hotel for damn sure), and I forgot and left it on thru one night. I didn't really "tether" per say, I turned my phone to a hotspot actually and it's not like my internet usage was higher than normal neither.
Why does at&t trip when you gotta pay anyway? (if no unlimited plan of course)
SayWhat10 said:
Why does at&t trip when you gotta pay anyway? (if no unlimited plan of course)
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Click to collapse
Well because AT&T wants to get you for every single penny they can. They want to charge you for a data plan, then a tether plan and roaming plan, and idevice plan, a non-idevice plan, a gps plan, a navigation plan, a text to speech plan, your grandma is a dirty girl plan, your connected to more than one tower at a time plan, a video chat plan. I'm sure you get the point, if they can squeeze that extra penny from the people and force them to pay higher prices, even though it alienates their consumers, they know people aren't going to leave. The market isn't who has the best service gets the most customers anymore. It's you will use us because we're all owned by the same company and we just give you the illusion that you have choices, but in reality all your money are belong to us.
/climbs off of soapbox
I have a 3 gig plan and use about 8 gigs a month.. I tether my ps3 and play online and stuff like that.. I have never heard from AT&T..
Surely they can see when I'm connected to Playstation Network using massive amounts of data..
Its powered by Jellybeaned AOKP!
Did you delete the tethering manager program?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using xda premium
johnrippa said:
How dare we use the services we pay for! Such arrogance I have never seen to think att shouldn't be able to double dip. Vote Romney 2012 and deregulate more!
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Exactly !!..g
drnecropolis said:
I have a 3 gig plan and use about 8 gigs a month.. I tether my ps3 and play online and stuff like that.. I have never heard from AT&T..
Surely they can see when I'm connected to Playstation Network using massive amounts of data..
Its powered by Jellybeaned AOKP!
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Click to collapse
aside from charging you for tethering...they dont charge you for the overage from the 3gig to 8gig? that has to be a lot
I know this question is very subjective to each individual, but how much data do you guys use on a monthly basis? It would be awesome if you included the average number of things you do each month with your phone (internet time, emails, videos, etc.) I am unsure whether or not to go with a Verizon plan on the GS4 because I have no idea how much data I will use (yes, I have looked at usage calculators), but your averages would be greatly appreciated!
10 - 15 gbs on average
Sent from my SCH-I545 using xda app-developers app
Imprezive13 said:
10 - 15 gbs on average
Sent from my SCH-I545 using xda app-developers app
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I fluctuate between 1.5 gb and 8 or 9GB depending on how often I use my Vulkano box to placeshift my TV. Many things use little data, but streaming video forget about it. It's a data hog and I'm not giving up my unlimited until forced to. It's a BS money making farce. Case in point.......Last week had to take my wife to the ER at 1 am. Kids had to be with us (young). To keep them entertained and not a total mess I tethered my tablet so they would watch the Disney channel. Vulkano is like a sling box......allows you to watch your TV on your device. In the time we were there while my wife was in the ER (she's fine btw) I used almost 2gb of data with them watching TV on the tablet.
The argument against unlimited is that there not enough "bandwidth" to go around, so they limit you to keep the network unclogged. 90% of my data comes at non peak times like this. There is no bandwidth shortage when I'm using it, so to charge me extra for data is nothing more than profiteering.
so, how much data? 2gb is standard. Do you have access to a lot of wifi, or will you be stuck on the network most of the time? That can HIGHLY influence your data usage. If wifi most of the time, you can go as low as 1. I do believe with the shared data, they update you before you go over so you can bump up the plan and not pay outrageous overages fees, and just pay for the extra data for that month.
I use between 2-4gbs a month depending on how much I'm working (work wifi sucks)
I used to have Unlimited data and ditched it to save over $120. I was using a total of 4 devices and paying over $300.00. I'm now down to 3 devices and paying around $200.00. I have the 6GB plan and we average maybe 2GB if that. I'm always using WiFi. All the hospitals I go to have WiFi and I go to many a month. Other public places have WiFi as well.
I use an average of 1 or 2gb a month. I probaly use about 1&half hours on internet/social networking apps and about 1 hour of watching youtube. But I am on wifi most of the time.
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DarkMenace said:
I used to have Unlimited data and ditched it to save over $120. I was using a total of 4 devices and paying over $300.00. I'm now down to 3 devices and paying around $200.00. I have the 6GB plan and we average maybe 2GB if that. I'm always using WiFi. All the hospitals I go to have WiFi and I go to many a month. Other public places have WiFi as well.
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If all the public wifi was reliable I would be more apt to let go of my unlimited (except on a 4 phone plane with only 2 smartphones I'd pay $10 MORE for a limited plan), but in the hospital story above, there was an xfinity wifi available, and I am a customer so I can use it free, but they all limit your bandwidth, and the video stream wouldn't work.
I used to take wifi over the network when I could just to save battery life on my rezound, but the S4 lasts me a full day no problem, and if it needs a slight charge in the evening, it charges so darn quick, so I take whatever data is giving me the fastest speeds
Data Usage is never over 4 gb
I feel your concern for Data usage averages and I just wanted to tell you what I wish someone would have told me before I switched to Sprint from AT&T. Most companies that offer unlimited Data plans aren't entirely unlimited anyway. For example Sprint only allows 300 mb roaming Data. The unlimited Data connection that sprint provides in my area (Georgia) is totally garbage. Verizon 3G was honestly much faster than Sprint's 4G LTE. The point I'm trying to make is: If you have unlimited but it takes the entire month to load a YouTube video (not true of course but Sprint is EXTREMELY slow) why even bother? Just connect Wi-Fi! Sprint offers unlimited Data to reel in customers but never talk about the real speed compared with other providers. I have my own theory: the people who have unlimited Data must abuse the heck out of it. There are people who average close to 20-30 gb a month on Sprint. I honestly applaud Verizon for not allowing people to upgrade and get a discount without changing their plan. Makes my connection faster for when I need it.
Checkm8 said:
I feel your concern for Data usage averages and I just wanted to tell you what I wish someone would have told me before I switched to Sprint from AT&T. Most companies that offer unlimited Data plans aren't entirely unlimited anyway. For example Sprint only allows 300 mb roaming Data. The unlimited Data connection that sprint provides in my area (Georgia) is totally garbage. Verizon 3G was honestly much faster than Sprint's 4G LTE. The point I'm trying to make is: If you have unlimited but it takes the entire month to load a YouTube video (not true of course but Sprint is EXTREMELY slow) why even bother? Just connect Wi-Fi! Sprint offers unlimited Data to reel in customers but never talk about the real speed compared with other providers. I have my own theory: the people who have unlimited Data must abuse the heck out of it. There are people who average close to 20-30 gb a month on Sprint. I honestly applaud Verizon for not allowing people to upgrade and get a discount without changing their plan. Makes my connection faster for when I need it.
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No it doesn't, and that's what the carriers want you to believe. True there is only so much bandwidth to go around, but when I'm using 2 gb between 12-2am while your asleep......it doesn't do anything to your connection, just costs me more without unlimited. If they were honest and upfront, they'd go to peak time limits like they used to do with minutes. And if I'm at a football game in the city with 60,000 fans in the stands, limit or unlimited the phone is still unusable because of all the people connecting to the same tower. Bandwidth is just a pipeline, whether it's a gush or a trickle, the data coming through is the same. It's not a commodity that they charge for.
I use roughly 60 gigs of data per month. I tether everyday while I'm at work. I stream plenty of movies and music. I'm on the unlimited plan.
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20 - 30 gig on netflix and thethering. Downloading new roms and music playing games etc. I refuse to use wifi tho because I pay to keep unlimited.
PhotonSean said:
20 - 30 gig on netflix and thethering. Downloading new roms and music playing games etc. I refuse to use wifi tho because I pay to keep unlimited.
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I am the same way, I avg 60-70 gigs a month just because i can. I travel for work , for me to watch netflix on my ps3 and to send out my reports. Its bad enough I pay 168 $ a month on one phone, so yes I take advantage
250 g per month grandfather unlimited plan. ....
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WhiteRice said:
I know this question is very subjective to each individual, but how much data do you guys use on a monthly basis? It would be awesome if you included the average number of things you do each month with your phone (internet time, emails, videos, etc.) I am unsure whether or not to go with a Verizon plan on the GS4 because I have no idea how much data I will use (yes, I have looked at usage calculators), but your averages would be greatly appreciated!
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I'll assume you're asking because you need to choose a data plan. Thus, you may need to disregard the folks who are running 10-250GB/month on their unlimited plans, because you can be sure that most would not be running those levels without 'unlimited' plans.
You also need to discount a bit for the fact that this board is chock full of enthusiasts, and probably not representative of the general population.
Personally, I had the same question when I switched from Sprint. On Sprint, I was using under 1GB/month, but not b/c I'm a low-user, it was b/c Sprint's data service s*cked so bad that I could (or would) never use it. So I had no real frame of reference when I switched to Verizon.
I chose the 2GB plan, and have found that, provided I use wi-fi where possible (home, work), I can live within the confines of that plan* (more on that in a bit).
As a user, I do maybe 30-40 minutes of web surfing a day, check FB maybe 2 or 3 times, occasionally watch a youtube video, push several email accounts multiple times per day, use Google Maps regularly (mostly weekends), download a podcast or two, listen to Pandora (10-15 mins/day), probably spend another 15-30 mins in misc. data consuming apps, and have a variety of apps running that pull background data such as weather apps, calendar sync, twitter, etc.
* So, 'living within the confines' of the 2GB plan requires some level of 'awareness' on my part, which would likely not be necessary with a larger plan. That doesn't mean heavy restrictions, just certain things I make a conscious effort to do only on wi-fi include updating Google Apps, streaming Netflix or HBO, downloading multiple podcast episodes, etc. If I had a child that had to be entertained (as another poster indicated) anytime-anywhere, I could see where the data usage could pile up. IMO, streaming video is probably the biggest consumer.
Of course, your mileage will vary
On a related note, I think it's great that the S4 allows you to track your data usage on the device, and not only tells you your cumulative monthly total, but also totals for any period and exactly which apps are using data.
Capp5050 said:
I'll assume you're asking because you need to choose a data plan. Thus, you may need to disregard the folks who are running 10-250GB/month on their unlimited plans, because you can be sure that most would not be running those levels without 'unlimited' plans.
You also need to discount a bit for the fact that this board is chock full of enthusiasts, and probably not representative of the general population.
Personally, I had the same question when I switched from Sprint. On Sprint, I was using under 1GB/month, but not b/c I'm a low-user, it was b/c Sprint's data service s*cked so bad that I could (or would) never use it. So I had no real frame of reference when I switched to Verizon.
I chose the 2GB plan, and have found that, provided I use wi-fi where possible (home, work), I can live within the confines of that plan* (more on that in a bit).
As a user, I do maybe 30-40 minutes of web surfing a day, check FB maybe 2 or 3 times, occasionally watch a youtube video, push several email accounts multiple times per day, use Google Maps regularly (mostly weekends), download a podcast or two, listen to Pandora (10-15 mins/day), probably spend another 15-30 mins in misc. data consuming apps, and have a variety of apps running that pull background data such as weather apps, calendar sync, twitter, etc.
* So, 'living within the confines' of the 2GB plan requires some level of 'awareness' on my part, which would likely not be necessary with a larger plan. That doesn't mean heavy restrictions, just certain things I make a conscious effort to do only on wi-fi include updating Google Apps, streaming Netflix or HBO, downloading multiple podcast episodes, etc. If I had a child that had to be entertained (as another poster indicated) anytime-anywhere, I could see where the data usage could pile up. IMO, streaming video is probably the biggest consumer.
Of course, your mileage will vary
On a related note, I think it's great that the S4 allows you to track your data usage on the device, and not only tells you your cumulative monthly total, but also totals for any period and exactly which apps are using data.
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That's kind of the exact same boat that I am in at the moment. I currently have Sprint, and their data speeds are awful. I consistently end up on roaming in buildings and what not, so I cannot judge the amount of data that I might actually use. So when you mentioned the things you do regularly (web, social media, maps, etc.), are those mainly done via their LTE network? And thank you for this post; it was right on track in regards to my same mindset.
It's not hard to restrain yourself to a certain plan. Like I was saying I had a 10GB plan but switched to the 6GB plan. The only reason I keep the tablet active is because they used my tablet to upgrade my primary phone to the S4. Even though the tablet never leaves my house usually I still don't use a lot of data. I never used a lot of data while on unlimited either. It;s down to personal preference and that is up to you. Everyone can say what they use and you would never have an ideal. You should have made the post say no unlimited plan since you can't get a true feeling with the unlimited's poking in.
DarkMenace said:
It's not hard to restrain yourself to a certain plan. Like I was saying I had a 10GB plan but switched to the 6GB plan. The only reason I keep the tablet active is because they used my tablet to upgrade my primary phone to the S4. Even though the tablet never leaves my house usually I still don't use a lot of data. I never used a lot of data while on unlimited either. It;s down to personal preference and that is up to you. Everyone can say what they use and you would never have an ideal. You should have made the post say no unlimited plan since you can't get a true feeling with the unlimited's poking in.
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Yeah I didn't think about the grandfathered unlimited plans before I posted it, my mistake haha.
WhiteRice said:
Yeah I didn't think about the grandfathered unlimited plans before I posted it, my mistake haha.
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Edit your post and change the title
WhiteRice said:
That's kind of the exact same boat that I am in at the moment. I currently have Sprint, and their data speeds are awful. I consistently end up on roaming in buildings and what not, so I cannot judge the amount of data that I might actually use. So when you mentioned the things you do regularly (web, social media, maps, etc.), are those mainly done via their LTE network? And thank you for this post; it was right on track in regards to my same mindset.
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All I can say is WOW are you going to be in for a pleasant surprise. The short answer is yes, almost all of my non-wifi usage is via 4G LTE. I live near NYC and work in Philly, and with Sprint, I kept 4G toggled 'off' b/c whenever it was 'on', there'd rarely be a 4G signal available, and when there was, it wasn't very impressive.
With this phone, the first thing I'm asking is, "Where's my 4G toggle?" Truth is, I never needed it, because a) 4G LTE is pervasive by comparison to Sprint and b) it doesn't burn battery on my S4 as it did on my S2. In fact, because of my 'conditioning' on Sprint, I always look to see what signal I'm at whenever I'm about to use data. I'd say (unscientifically), 8 or 9x out of 10 it's 4g LTE...
good luck
Capp5050 said:
All I can say is WOW are you going to be in for a pleasant surprise. The short answer is yes, almost all of my non-wifi usage is via 4G LTE. I live near NYC and work in Philly, and with Sprint, I kept 4G toggled 'off' b/c whenever it was 'on', there'd rarely be a 4G signal available, and when there was, it wasn't very impressive.
With this phone, the first thing I'm asking is, "Where's my 4G toggle?" Truth is, I never needed it, because a) 4G LTE is pervasive by comparison to Sprint and b) it doesn't burn battery on my S4 as it did on my S2. In fact, because of my 'conditioning' on Sprint, I always look to see what signal I'm at whenever I'm about to use data. I'd say (unscientifically), 8 or 9x out of 10 it's 4g LTE...
good luck
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Thank you very much! Also, I know you mentioned it in your first reply to some extent, but exactly what all do you have syncing during the day while on LTE, and what do you think a solid estimation is for the amount of data you use in a day?