How much data do i need?
tl;dr: 1 minute of HD video = 1 MB. 1 hour of HD video every day = 17.6 GB of data in a month. Approximately.
This is my setup
- iPad Pro
- Zong Data SIM
I have a data sim in my iPad Pro, and i subscribe to a monthly internet package. I have tried various packages over the years. Sometimes it's 60 GB/month, sometimes it's 3 GB/month. Sometimes i max it out, sometimes i don't.
I was curious to see how much data i actually need. The main factors are:
- How much bandwidth i use
- How much time do i have
Time is an important factor because having the data doesn't matter if i don't have the time to use it. For example, if i work full time and only get 1 hour a day of entertainment, and say i spend that on watching Netflix, an hour watching high quality video would equate to apprx. 600 MB. One hour every day in a 30 day month would mean 18000 MB, which is 17.58 GB. My entire month's data usage is then less than 18 GB.
As far as bandwidth goes, i do have a PTCL DSL connection (12mbps) as well, which works well most days. And i also have 1.5GB of data on my postpaid mobile plan, which can serve as emergency backup for Slack calls. The internet SIM is not the only connection i have, so it's not the end of the world if i max out on data.. I can opt for a data plan that
What i use the iPad internet for
- watching Netflix content - i can't set video quality in the Netflix app but the video has to be crispy clear (4G LTE). if it's blurry (3G) i stop watching..
- watching videos on Youtube (1080p)
- watching course videos on PluralSight, Skillshare, Codecademy or Frontend Masters
- Soundcloud for music
- Google Photos (photo backups)
- Slack and Facetime calls
- Browsing (Safari)
- Hotspot for my PC as backup internet
All video content i watch has to be 720p minimum.
Calculations
- 1 documentary (The Creative Brain) = 52 minutes of HD video = 447 MB data used
- 20 minutes long Slack call (audio) = ?? MB
- 30 Photos backed up to Google Photos in High Quality = ?? MB
I can see how much mobile data an app has used on my iPad under Settings > Mobile Data