It is not uncommon for users with faster internet to use substantially more data than those with slower internet connections. If you think about it, this seems strange as 1MB of data remains 1MB of data regardless of the internet speed.
There is a correlation between Data usage and Internet speed.
The reason why people often use more data on faster internet connection can be categorized under two main categories. The one is user behavior, and the other is background data.
User Behavior
1. Human nature plays a big role in this. When the internet is slow, we often get impatient when things take too long to load and then click away from it. Faster internet is less frustrating and the ease of use in more likely to keep a person engaged.
2. Time is also a factor. If you only have a certain amount of time to browse, or scroll through your favorite social media, a faster internet connection will allow you to do more in the same amount of time.
When you have a slower internet connection, things like images and video takes longer to load. Sometimes it may seem like a fraction of a second longer for an image to load. When this happens, we tend to stop scrolling and wait for it to load to see if it is something interesting. With faster internet, it pops up immediately which allows us to see what it is and scroll past it much faster.
When we are not delayed in small intervals by slow internet, we get to cover more online ground in the same amount of time. This in turn leads to more data being used in the same amount of time than what a slower internet user would have used.
3. When we want to relax, we do not like to get frustrated during our well-deserved break. When your internet is slow, you may be less inclined to go onto the internet to relax, when you know that it will be frustrating.
You would rather do something that will be less stressful.
With faster internet, spending some time in cyberspace will be hassle free, which would make a person more inclined to choose this as an option for relaxation.
4. When we stream movies, movies with higher resolution may cause the movie to lag. We then often avoid this by choosing to stream it in lower resolution. Lower resolution means that the file size is smaller, and that less data will be used to stream it, than what would have been the case if a higher resolution option was chosen.
When the internet connection is fast, we tend to often only take the fact that it won’t lag into account and don’t think about the fact that higher resolution equals a bigger file size to download.
Background Data
Faster internet also brings about faster loading of background data. Because the data loads faster, more data will be loaded in the background.
The background data is not necessarily data that you will have any use for. An example of this type of data are ads. While you are browsing, ads will typically appear. Although you may only see a portion of an add before you click away the full add may have already downloaded.
Apart from ads, web pages often contain multiple images and in some cases video clips. You may only spend a few seconds on the page, before clicking away. Slower internet means that it would take longer for the entire page to load. When you have faster internet, the page will download faster and therefor more of the page is likely to be downloaded compared to slower internet connections.
Video streaming services may also adjust the resolution of the video that you are streaming. The higher the resolution (Video quality), the more data it will use.
An example of this is Netflix. Netflix has an Auto Resolution feature, whereby they will detect your internet speed and then adjust the video quality based on the speed. When you have a faster internet connection, they will stream higher resolution video, which in turn will increase your data usage. The good news is that you can change this setting and instead select your preferred video resolution.
Tips to Reduce Data Usage
Limit the number of Apps on your device
Apps typically run in the background, often using data, even when you are not actively using those Apps. More Apps increase the potential of more data being used in the background. Delete, or disable apps that you are not using. Be careful however, not to delete Apps that may be crucial to the functionality of your device.
Data Usage Settings
When you use apps, streaming services, or social media that download images and videos, chances are that a substantial portion of your data usage will be attributed to these. Check each of these for settings that can be used to reduce data usage.
Also use the Data Usage function of your device periodically to check which Apps are using the most data. Check these for settings to reduce data usage or consider disabling these apps if you do not use them and if they are not needed for the functionality of your device.
Guard against Malware
Malware like software viruses can hide themselves on devices and some types of malware can then use data while running in the background of your devices. This is covered in more detail in our articles Can a Virus make your Phone Slow and Can a Virus or Malware permanently damage your Phone.
Auto Update, Sync and Backup
If your concern is mobile data, then you will want to check your settings on applications that have features like Auto update, Auto Sync and Auto Backup. To save on Mobile data, check that these are set to Wi-Fi only.
Set Data Limit
If you are concerned that you may exceed the amount that you have budgeted for data usage, then set a limit to restrict further use. You may be able to set it with your service provider, or you can set it on your device. You would want to do this as a last resort however. Ideally you would want to limit your usage before you reach your limit.