A wireless communications group is trying to help consumers by showing the amount of data used by the world's most popular mobile apps. This can help data watchers control and manage their monthly capped data plans effectively.
Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association (CTIA) - The Wireless Association, an industry trade group that represents the international wireless telecommunications industry, including mobile wireless carriers, has finally found a way to combat the ever increasing data usage on a wireless device. The organization has come out with a website, "Know My App," which puts together the world's most popular mobile apps and their respective data requirements in one place.
The website, which is backed by different wireless communication companies, simplifies managing mobile data plans, especially in cases where consumers are limited to certain amount - 300MB, 1GB, 2GB, and 4GB. The average data usage by each app installed on a mobile device will show how much data users are spending on a monthly basis and the impact on their monthly data plans. Consumers can control plans better by using the high-data-consuming apps' services when connected to a secured Wi-Fi to avoid exceeding the given limit.
"An app is mobile software that adds a function or feature to a wireless device; popular apps include games, social networks, maps, and music/video sharing," CTIA's Know My App description page reads. "Whether you have an unlimited plan or a monthly allotment, it's important to understand how apps use data before you purchase or download them since your wireless experience - from the app, data usage, battery life and network speeds - will be impacted."
CTIA compiled the data with AT&T's Application Resource Optimizer, an open-source data usage tool. The information on the website is based on long-term testing and an average of those results. The company also warns that the actual data usage may vary from the information detailed on its website. As precaution CTIA advises data watchers to connect to a Wi-Fi network when available, change apps' settings to update only over Wi-Fi networks, and uninstall unnecessary apps from the mobile device.
CTIA has divided apps into different categories, similar to how these apps are found on Google Play Store or Apple App Store, such as games, music apps, business apps, navigation apps, news and magazines, sports and lot more. But if users know the name of the app, they can simply search for the app directly by entering the name in the website search.