My phone is using an unusual or high amount of data. Why?

The amount of data your phone uses may vary depending on how you use it, which native installations are running on it, and which applications you have installed.

Some applications, native or not, can use your mobile data in the background.

For example, cloud-based apps such as Google Drive or Apple iCloud could be using your data to automatically backup your photos, videos, and documents.

Some streaming music or video services can also download content in the background.

Fizz provides you with handy tools to keep you informed about your mobile data usage:

  • A usage metre (visible when you first sign in to your account) tells you how fast you are consuming your minutes and your data, compared to the amount available in your plan.
  • Notifications at 75%, 90% and 100% of your usage.

Note: You must log into your account and activate notifications at 75% and 90% usage. If you do not, you will only receive a notification when you are at 100% of your usage.

You can also check your mobile data usage directly via your phone.

The steps to follow to check your data usage can vary depending on the type of phone you have. Here are two examples:

Android: Settings → Connections → Data usage → Mobile data usage

iPhone: Settings → Cellular → Cellular data usage

Here are some examples of average usage:

Type of service Bandwith Data Consumption
YouTube
  • UHD 4K: 6 to 10 Mbps
  • 1080p: 4.5 Mbps
  • 720p: 2.5 Mbps
  • 480p: 2 Mbps
  • UHD 4K: 2.7 to 4.5 GB/hour
  • 1080p: 2 GB/hour
  • 720p: 1.1 GB/hour
  • 480p: 450 MB/hour
Music streaming
  • Audio quality: 320 Kbps
  • Audio quality: 96 Kbps
  • Audio quality 320 Kbps: 50 MB/hour
  • Audio quality 96 Kbps: 44 MB/hour
Video streaming
(Other than YouTube)
  • High video quality: 5 Mbps
  • Medium video quality: 2.5 Mbps
  • Low video quality: 256 Kbps
  • High video quality: 2 GB/hour
  • Medium video quality: 1 GB/hour
  • Low video quality: 115 MB/hour

Video conference

(Skype, Facetime and others)

  • 7 people: 8 Mbps
  • 5 people: 4 Mbps
  • 3 people: 2 Mbps
  • 7 people: 8 Mbps: 3.6 GB/hour
  • 5 people: 4 Mbps: 1.8 GB/hour
  • 3 people: 2 Mbps: 900 MB/hour

 

The information provided here above is when the wireless connection is optimal, without interference or congestion.