A Conversation for Ask h2g2

How much is 500 Mb of data?

Post 1

Just Bob aka Robert Thompson, plugging my film blog cinemainferno-blog.blogspot.co.uk

My new mobile phone contract includes 500 Mb data allowance. This is good because my previous contract did not include any data in the base rate, and yet I could not resist turning it on and browsing the internet, including on occasions when I was away from WiFi access, and therefore I was incurring charges which probably raised my bill well above the level at which I could include data.
The question is, how much is 500 Mb? I have no intention of downloading any videos or music, just browsing. Am I likely to be able to use Facebook and Wikipedia all the time, with impunity? Or will some restraint still be in order?


How much is 500 Mb of data?

Post 2

Bald Bloke

Depends on your circumstances...
I used to work away at sites all over the UK and used to get through 2 or 3 gb of data on my company phone, however a lot of the places we were staying didn't have wifi.


How much is 500 Mb of data?

Post 3

bobstafford

500mb is about enough storage for 100 Photos not much


How much is 500 Mb of data?

Post 4

Pink Paisley

It is hopeless really. 500MB is pretty meaningless. Your phone company won't be able to tell you either. And I have no idea, but I have 750MB of data included in mine. I use mobile data every day for wiki, H2G2, e-mail, BBC news, youtube and other stuff too. I've never got anywhere near my 750MB.

If you have an android phone, there is a data usage counter in settings. In the last month I have used a third of my allowance.

PP.


How much is 500 Mb of data?

Post 5

Orcus

Yep what PP said - my usage is much the same as that and ditto - never anywhere near 750 MB (let alone 2Gig - which is my allowance).

It gets bad if you start downloading things to watch like videos or games as far as I know. Keep it to Wifi for that sort of thing.


How much is 500 Mb of data?

Post 6

Still Incognitas, Still Chairthingy, Still lurking, Still invisible, unnoticeable, missable, unseen, just haunting h2g2

I have 250MB which I hardly use unless I'm away on holiday..I guess it really depends how much one is in contact with free WiFi in life when out and about.As it is I cannot get a decent mobile connection if I go for a walk along the local beaches and even in the local towns it's pretty poor.You can only find out by asking someone who is local to you.


How much is 500 Mb of data?

Post 7

Menthol Penguin - Currently revising/editing my book

I believe a lot of the mobile browsers (at least one of the Opera ones) do stuff like compressing the page and so on to take up less data.

Videos and images will take up the most data, text pages you should be okay for quite alot of them.

Take that with a grain of salt though, I've never had a data thingy for my phone. It's not even a smartphone.


How much is 500 Mb of data?

Post 8

winnoch2 - Impostair Syndromair Extraordinaire

Trouble is, smart-phones positively demand that you use oodles of data. Everything about them is designed to eat data. When I got my most recent phone, it used more than 500mb (according to the internal meter) in its first few hours reinstalling all my apps from google play and doing upteen phone system updates, etc smiley - erm

Also as soon as you start playing with the thing, you suddenly find data hungry things to do on it that you very quickly miss if you don't have them. I don't just mean watching films and videos (personally never seen the appeal of watching big-screen movies on a 7 inch screen smiley - weird).

For example, I use the Satnav function whenever i'm driving anywhere new (data for maps). I stream audio from napster and online radio stations every day I commute. Before smart-phones I would've stuck in a CD or listened to the fm radio, but now a choice 2 or 3 stations with nothing on I like and one CD, seems unduly restrictive.

And so on.. so in other words, if you can resist all the charms of a shiny new smart-phone and all it can do and just under-use it as a basic phone, 500mb is fine- you can browse normal text-based websites with impunity. But as soon as you start to play with lots of apps away from wifi, 500mb will vey quickly run out.


How much is 500 Mb of data?

Post 9

Orcus

Not my experience. I don't use my phone for satnav - I have a satnav for that smiley - winkeye

Streaming things over 4G or 3G is deadly. Do it over wifi at home before you leave and you have zero download data.

Never forget your home WiFi - this is what it is for smiley - winkeye


How much is 500 Mb of data?

Post 10

Still Incognitas, Still Chairthingy, Still lurking, Still invisible, unnoticeable, missable, unseen, just haunting h2g2



Good advice.Only use your data when you are away from home as an emergency..
smiley - smiley


How much is 500 Mb of data?

Post 11

swl

Twenty Shekels.


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