3 Mobile Internet Saving Tips for Capped Data Plans in NZ

Scrolling through Facebook while listening to your favourite playlist on Spotify is all well and good... until you realise that your mobile data is capped!

For Kiwis who have capped data plans, it can be a nightmare to run out of data in the middle of the month… but the good news is, it can be avoided. With these 3 mobile internet saving tips, you can ensure that your mobile internet lasts until your next billing statement.

1. Connect to wi-fi as much as possible

If wi-fi is available, then it’s best to connect to it instead of using your mobile data. It’s the easiest way to avoid too much consumption of your mobile data. This is particularly recommended if you’re doing heavy online tasks like streaming videos or downloading and updating mobile apps.

The bonus is, you can save your precious battery life too by connecting to wi-fi! As your phone doesn’t have to work as hard to receive mobile internet signals, you can ensure minimal work for your battery.

2. Set limits for your mobile data

We’ve all had those moments when we’re scrolling through our phones, watching cat or dog videos, only to realise that an hour has already passed by! This not only means a lost hour, but also a loss in your mobile data.

It’s important to limit usage for each of your apps, and follow it strictly. For starters, here’s how much data your favourite mobile apps consume:

Facebook

Facebook uses around 1.5MB per minute for regular browsing, which includes reading your news feed and viewing photos. It uses around 2.7MB per minute for watching video content, depending on the quality of streaming.

Instagram

As a photo and video social network, Instagram actually consumes more data than most other apps. Even for regular browsing, it can consume approximately 12MB per minute. If you’re uploading a photo or video, it can range anywhere from 15MB to 18MB per minute.

Snapchat

Snapchat uses around 2.7MB per minute for regular usage. For sending or receiving a snap, it consumes about 1MB of data.

Youtube

The great thing about Youtube is its feature to automatically adjust video streams, so it won’t consume too much mobile data. For every video you watch on standard definition, it consumes about 5MB per minute.

Spotify

For standard audio quality streaming, it consumes about 2.5MB per minute. However, if you like to stream with higher quality audio, it can consume about 3-3.5MB per minute.

3. Let your phone warn you on your mobile data usage

The great thing about newer phones is the option for real-time notifications about your mobile data usage. It can warn you if you’re using too much internet, so you can start budgeting your remaining data accordingly.

To activate this feature, simply go to your phone’s settings and enter the amount of data usage that you want to be notified about. If you have 50GB of mobile data every month, you can set the notification to 30GB several days before your next billing cycle.

However, if what’s holding you back from going unlimited is the price, there’s some good news for you. There are plenty of affordable mobile phone plans offered by the leading providers in NZ. To take advantage of the plan that gives you unlimited data at an affordable price, then check out the latest unlimited mobile phone plans here at glimp!

Our mobile comparison tool can help you decide on which mobile phone plan ticks all the right boxes. Compare now and make your switch today!