Here at amaysim, we love data and reckon it’s important to make sure you’re using data on the things that matter to you and not wasting it on things that don’t. We’ve pulled together some handy tips to help minimise unnecessary data usage and maximise your usage on the things that make you happy.
It’s easy to bury your head in a good video or playlist without thinking about how much data you’re actually snacking away at and the last thing anyone wants is a hefty data bill. Don't worry, we're here to show you the ropes on how you can control your data use while doing what you love.
If you run out of the included data in your amaysim mobile or data-only plan, how you'll be charged will depend on the plan you're using.
Regardless of your current plan, if you plan to continue using the internet, we recommend adding extra data.
Yes - you can disable your internet access by switching your device’sMobile/Cellular data OFF.
Once data has been disabled, you won’t be able to use data from your amaysim mobile or data-only plan until you toggle the option back on.
We’d strongly recommend checking your app and software updates are set to download via Wi-Fi only - it might seem simple but it’s super important, since app updates can be quite large and use quite a bit of your mobile data.
Apple Users - Go to Settings > iTunes & App Store and turn OFF automatic downloads. You can also Turn Cellular Data off for particular Apps through Settings > Cellular by scrolling to the bottom of the screen.
Android Users - Set your apps to automatically update over Wi-Fi only by opening the Google Play Store app > Touch the Play Store icon and go to Settings > Under General select Auto-update apps > SelectAuto-update apps over Wi-Fi only.
A simple way to save data is to restrict the background data used by apps on your mobile device.
Background data is all the information that gets pulled from the internet when you're not actively using an app, including email syncing, feeds updating and weather widgets.
Apple Users - Go to Settings > General and Tap Background App Refresh. You’ll then be able to toggle Background App Refresh OFF for apps you’re not actively using.
Android Users - You can restrict background data on your Android device by going to Settings > Data usage > Restrict Background Data.
If you want to restrict data for individual apps, head to Settings > Apps
When possible, browse mobile versions of websites. They tend to be simpler, and as a result many will load faster and use less data. Also, avoid deleting your Internet cache (which is a common way to free up some storage space on your phone). By keeping your cache you won’t have to download the same images from websites every time you visit them.
If you don't want your iOS device to use data from your amaysim mobile or data-only plan when you have a poor Wi-Fi connection you can disable Wi-Fi Assist on your device.
Just head to Settings > Cellular and toggle Wi-Fi Assist OFF.
You can find out which apps use less data by researching them before you download them. A great example is Apple Maps, which uses only one-fifth the data of Google Maps (check out this CNet article on Apple Maps for more info).
Streaming services like YouTube, Soundcloud and Spotify are huge data killers if you don’t use them wisely.
If there's a tune or album you're constantly listening to at the gym or on the way to work, you'll use much less data by saving it to your phone so you can listen to it offline.
Whenever you’re home or at the office, there’s a good chance you can switch from your amaysim mobile connection to Wi-Fi.
It’s an easy life hack and allows you to make huge savings on the data included in your amaysim mobile or data-only plan.
It’s as simple as toggling Wi-Fi ON whenever you enter an area where you know there’s a reliable Wi-Fi connection. Your device should automatically connect once the network comes into range.
By default, videos on Facebook are set to auto-play when you scroll past them in your newsfeed, and this can use up your mobile data really quickly. Check out our blog on how to stop auto-play in Facebook.
When watching videos on YouTube, it will default to the highest available quality (HD), which can use over 400MB / hour. Luckily YouTube has a feature to allow you to show standard (SD) quality video when you're using your mobile data, and then HD video when you are on Wi-Fi. Keep in mind that even at SD quality, YouTube can still use around 180MB / hour so if you want to keep your data usage down, keep an eye on how much time you spend streaming videos.
Here’s how:
On your iPhone / iPad – In the YouTube app, go to Menu (three dashes) > Settings (the Cog Icon) > ensure “Play HD on Wi-Fi only” is ticked.
On your Android mobile / tablet - In the YouTube app, go to Menu (the three dots) > Settings > General > ensure “Limit mobile data usage” is ticked.