Five ways to optimise your mobile data

Telecom service providers are offering recharge plans that come with ‘unlimited data’ benefits, but most of these plans come with the Fair Usages Policy (FUP) limit on high-speed data.

With 5G on the rise and 4G already a mainstay, users can access good quality internet speeds. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan.

With 5G use on the rise and 4G already a mainstay for a few years now, users can access good quality internet speeds even when they’re on the move. But the increase in speed coupled with ultra-low latency and greater bandwidth are exhausting users’ monthly data packs fast. And telecom companies are not necessarily offering extra data plans.

Telecom service providers are offering recharge plans that come with ‘unlimited data’ benefits, but most of these plans come with the Fair Usages Policy (FUP) limit on high-speed data.

For instance, a 1 GB data/day plan slows down to 64 kbps, or 32 kbps after the data pack is depleted. So, to counter this issue and optimise mobile data use, people can take these precautionary steps.

1. Data saver mode

Most Android phones come with a built-in Data Saver mode. Activating this feature will ensure that apps and services that are not actively used, will be restricted from streaming mobile data in the background, unless you are connected to Wi-Fi. Additionally, users can choose key apps that will be exempted from this mode, so they do not miss out on important notifications.

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2. Optimise notifications

It is possible that you get a lot of notifications and other alerts on your Android device which can end up consuming a large amount of data. While some notifications are important, others may be spam and can drain your data plan. Users can disable push notifications, automatic app updates and their device’s GPS to save their cellular data.

3. Restrict background data

Users can manually control app data usage on their Android phones by setting limits. Menu options may differ depending on the phone manufacturer, but the process remains similar. Access phone’s settings by swiping down from the top of the screen and tapping the settings icon.

From there, navigate to the appropriate menu such as Network & Internet > Data usage or Connections > Data usage. This menu displays data usage summary. Within this menu, users can find the data consumption of individual apps and identify those that use the most data.

People can view detailed usage statistics for specific apps, including background data usage. By disabling the “Allow background data usage” option, you can prevent certain apps from consuming cellular data.

Additionally, it is recommended to turn off the “Allow data usage while Data saver is on” feature to ensure that apps do not use mobile data when the data saver mode is active.

4. Closing apps manually

Various apps continue to send and receive data even when your device is locked. This not only reduces your mobile data but can also drain your battery. Closing apps that you are not using will aid you in significantly cutting down on data usage.

5. Avoid using hotspot

Avoid using hotspots whenever possible. A device connected to a hotspot may recognise the Internet connection as coming from a Wi-Fi network and it may end up updating all the apps and allow unrestricted data access. This can in turn deplete allotted data in no time.