CTIA-The Wireless Association, along with its members, has created the Know My App website which helps users become aware how popular apps consume data.
Smartphone usage has increased in the last few years and so has internet usage on mobile handsets. Customers can download an array of apps to run on their smartphones such as games, media, news, and more. However, many customers are not aware of how much data these apps can consume.
With the help of Intertek Testing Services North America, Know My App is offering data usage estimates of some of the most popular apps, both free and paid, in the Apple and Google stores.
CTIA suggests that customers may have unlimited data plans or monthly data allotment, but It is significant for customers to understand how apps use data before they download or purchase them. An app may impact data usage as well as battery life and network speeds on a handset.
Apart from compiling information on how some of the most popular and commonly used apps on handsets can consume data, the website also details some of the data plans provided by certain U.S. carriers and the percentage of data consumed by an app from a user's monthly data allotment.
For instance, Know My App tested WhatsApp Messenger running on a Samsung Galaxy S3 connected to Verizon Wireless. The website tested one day usage of the app in three sessions. The test included navigation through the menu options, send or receive two text messages, send two animated icons, send or receive one voice message, send or receive one picture message and send or receive one video message.
Over a month's regular usage of WhatsApps Messenger, a customer is expected to end up spending around 749.88MB, which is 73 percent of 1GB data plan or 18 percent of 4GB data plan.
Know My App's result is based on rough estimates only and it may change depending on individual usage.
Even though the website provides just tentative guidelines of data usage on smartphone, it may be an important tool for new smartphone users to keep their wireless bills in check.
