9 Tips and Tricks to Avoid Mobile Data Bill Shock

Take notes so you don't push your mobile data usage over the limit

Having fun today means a lot of online surfing. From 1-minute videos to cool inforgraphics on social media, we all turn to the internet to pass time. But it's only fun until your bill arrives and—what!?—you're being charged P5,000 for the month. You’ve obviously exceeded your mobile data usage hence the obscene amount. So, what do you do?

Suck it up and #adult, pay your dues and take note of these tips so you don't push your mobile data usage over the limit.

1. Browse mobile-friendly websites

Mobile-friendly websites are perfectly designed to load fast on your phone. Meanwhile, websites that are not mobile responsive drain data due to multiple website elements loading simultaneously.

2. Close all background processes

After going on social media and playing games, apps remain open and can still take a toll on your mobile data even when idle. To avoid this, go to your phone’s task manager and close previously running apps. For iPhone users, press the home button twice and swipe up to close programs.

3. Load all content beforehand

Buffering and loading content is the enemy of all users as this process takes a huge chunk out of your data. Preload and download all the necessary content via Wi-Fi connection so that you can access content without the need to connect and consume data usage.

4. Monitor your data usage

Once you have a reliable data plan, it’s easy just to surf the day away and forget to monitor your data usage. You think, I signed up for this plan or promo but as it turns out, it's not enough for your browsing habits. Monitor data usage daily and apply a limit per month (you can set your mobile data limit on many smartphones today) to ensure you have enough to last until month's end.

5. Identify what’s not best for your mobile data

Some apps and major browsing activities are best done over a Wi-Fi connection. Online gaming, streaming and downloading are greedy data eaters, so you have to do these on Wi-Fi. Otherwise, it's game over for you eve when the month has just begun.

6. Go for slower browsing speeds when possible

Certain places in the metro have a high data signal. Decrease your browsing speed in these places because in doing so, you can save a ton of mobile data and use it for more important activities when the internet is not readily available.

 Switch your browsing speed to a slower rate (from 4G to 3G or 2G) when inside areas where the data signal is high.

7. Turn off data for some apps

Some apps can be accessed offline while some can still eat up data even when not in use. Our advice? Turn off data usage for some apps manually. Go to Settings > Apps to turn off data usage for apps that don't need data spending.

8. Set updates on manual

Don’t you just hate it when apps auto update on their own? Not only does it take a long time (sometimes even restart on its own), but it also drains your data by downloading huge files.

 Set app updates all on manual. This way, you can choose when to update apps.

9. Turn off your mobile data!

When not in use, turn your precious mobile data off so that sneaky apps won’t consume your data.

While browsing on mobile data is a life-saver a lot of the time, it can also kill your finances when not used wisely. So, when on mobile, remember to keep your data in check with the help of our data-saving tips!