Buzz
A South Korean model demonstrates the wireless data speeds on two Galaxy S4 phones through SK Telecom's latest mobile network in Seoul. See more photos of telecom networks and mobile phones.
UNG YEON-JE/AFP/Getty ImagesBy 7 a.m., I'm already exchanging texts with my colleagues. After my third cup of coffee, I'm busy transferring a huge batch of iPhone photos documenting my family's weekend adventures. Later, I download a new album onto my laptop to accompany my workday. Like clockwork, every email I send or receive gets archived in my online system, and during lunch, I read through stock forecasts on my tablet. By dinner, I’m debating whether I’ll have time to stream the latest episode of 'Hell on Wheels' or catch up on Pinterest.
From smartphones and tablets to laptops, mobile devices have become an essential part of everyday life, often with minute-to-minute data usage.
Mobile ads contribute to your data consumption, using up about 1 percent of a standard smartphone plan. As media-rich advertisements grow in popularity, this number is likely to rise. For instance, video ads consume ten times more data than non-video ads [source: Mobithinking].
With all this data usage, how can you track how much you have left? Whether you're using up the data on your smartphone or tablet plan, or wondering if you've reached your Internet provider's data limit, there are ways to monitor it. While you're at it, you can also check how much memory your devices have left.
How much data is available on your computer?
There are 2.4 billion Internet users worldwide. In the U.S., this translates to nearly 80% of people regularly accessing the Internet, with content that is shared, tagged, and increasingly includes photos, videos, and audio. For instance, in 2007, almost no one uploaded videos to YouTube. By 2013, however, the site was seeing 100 hours of uploads every minute [source: Meeker and Wu].
Whether you're uploading LOLCat videos to YouTube or not, it's important to be aware of your data usage. Monthly Internet data usage includes everything you send, receive, stream, download, or upload through your Internet provider, from images and movies to photos, videos, and other files. If you exceed your provider's data cap, you'll face additional charges. While these caps vary by plan and provider, a typical plan usually limits usage to around 150 GB per month.
Though this might not seem like a lot, it's sufficient bandwidth to download about 40,000 MP3s per month or transfer around 35,000 12-megapixel images [source: Gruener]. Considering that in 2011, the average household used around 26 GB of data monthly, this seems generous. In fact, some projections suggest that by 2016, the average household's monthly data usage will still be well below this cap, averaging about 84 GB [source: Yu].
Most internet providers give you access to view your data usage directly on their websites. Some also send email or text alerts when you're nearing or have exceeded your data limits, and you can set up these notifications by logging into your account.
You can install a bandwidth monitor (many are free) on your computer to track your data usage. These monitors are available for major operating systems — Windows, Mac, and Linux — and they can calculate daily, weekly, and monthly usage. For example, free or low-cost options include Networx (Windows), iStat Pro (Mac), and BandwidthD (Linux). It's also worth mentioning that Mac’s OS X includes a built-in Activity Monitor, found in the Utilities folder. While it doesn’t display bandwidth data, it shows real-time total data consumption. Keep in mind that most data monitors only track the computer on which they're installed. If you have multiple devices, you’ll need separate bandwidth monitors for each one.
As part of your data audit, it’s useful to also check how much memory your computer has left. For PC users, right-click the My Computer icon, select Properties, and open the system window. Under the General tab, you’ll see the amount of installed memory (RAM). To check your memory usage, right-click the taskbar, select Task Manager, and go to the Performance tab. Mac users can click the apple icon in the top left corner of the screen, select About This Mac to see installed RAM, and then access the Activity Monitor program in the Utilities folder to check memory usage by clicking System Memory [source: PC Help Center].
How much data do you use on your mobile devices?
To conserve data, only watch TV shows on your smartphone when connected to WiFi.The next major technological breakthrough is expected to involve wearable mobile devices, such as Google Glass and Samsung's Galaxy Gear smartwatch, all of which will consume significant amounts of data [source: Meeker and Wu]. With these devices on the horizon — and in some cases, already here — it's a smart idea to start tracking data consumption on your mobile devices.
Some mobile carriers offer e-mail or text notifications when you’re approaching or have exceeded your data limit, and you can set up these alerts by logging into your account. For instance, AT&T will notify customers via e-mail when they’re close to their data cap, including a reminder that exceeding the limit will cost an additional $20 for every 300 MB (as of October 2013). You can also check data usage on other devices by dialing *DATA# for a text update or by downloading the AT&T app. Verizon and Sprint offer similar services. Of course, your monthly bill will also show how much data you’ve used and what charges apply.
You can also check your mobile device to find out how much data you're using.
iPhone/iPad: Go to Settings/General/Usage to see how much data you've sent and received. Be sure to reset these statistics every month (or week, depending on your tracking period) [source: Korcz]. This section also shows which apps are using the most memory.
Android smartphone/tablet: Navigate to Settings/Wireless & Networks/Data Usage to view your data consumption. You can also set alerts and limits to avoid exceeding your data cap [source: Egan].
Third-party apps provide another way to monitor your data usage. Apps like 3G Watchdog, My Data Manager, and Onavo Count track your data consumption and let you set warnings when you're approaching your limit. It's also wise to connect to WiFi networks instead of relying solely on your mobile provider’s network. This way, you can enjoy playing Candy Crush or sending Snapchat messages without using up your precious data [source: Fitzgerald].
