{"id":446927,"date":"2022-05-14T14:00:28","date_gmt":"2022-05-14T11:00:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/why-unlimited-mobile-data-isnt-actually-unlimited\/"},"modified":"2022-05-14T14:00:28","modified_gmt":"2022-05-14T11:00:28","slug":"why-unlimited-mobile-data-isnt-actually-unlimited","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-unlimited-mobile-data-isnt-actually-unlimited\/","title":{"rendered":"#Why Unlimited Mobile Data Isn\u2019t Actually Unlimited"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_84 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a299163ae125\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a299163ae125\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-unlimited-mobile-data-isnt-actually-unlimited\/#%E2%80%9CWhy_Unlimited_Mobile_Data_Isnt_Actually_Unlimited%E2%80%9D\" >&#8220;Why Unlimited Mobile Data Isn\u2019t Actually Unlimited&#8221;<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-2' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-unlimited-mobile-data-isnt-actually-unlimited\/#Throttled_Speeds\" >Throttled Speeds<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-unlimited-mobile-data-isnt-actually-unlimited\/#Video_Quality_Caps\" >Video Quality Caps<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-unlimited-mobile-data-isnt-actually-unlimited\/#De-Prioritization\" >De-Prioritization<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-unlimited-mobile-data-isnt-actually-unlimited\/#Whats_Actually_%E2%80%9CUnlimited%E2%80%9D\" >What\u2019s Actually \u201cUnlimited\u201d?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-unlimited-mobile-data-isnt-actually-unlimited\/#Do_Truly_Unlimited_Plans_Exist\" >Do Truly Unlimited Plans Exist?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h1><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"%E2%80%9CWhy_Unlimited_Mobile_Data_Isnt_Actually_Unlimited%E2%80%9D\"><\/span>&#8220;Why Unlimited Mobile Data Isn\u2019t Actually Unlimited&#8221;<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n<div>\n<figure style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"type:primaryImage size-full wp-image-782140\" data-pagespeed-lazy-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/iphone-lock-screen-date-time-box.jpg?width=398&amp;trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1 400w, https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/iphone-lock-screen-date-time-box.jpg?width=1198&amp;trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, 400w, 1200w\" data-pagespeed-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/iphone-lock-screen-date-time-box.jpg?width=1198&amp;trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1\" alt=\"An iPhone standing against its box and showing the lock screen with the date and time.\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"\/pagespeed_static\/1.JiBnMqyl6S.gif\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"type:primaryImage imagecredit\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-photo\/mykolaiv-ukraine-july-10-2020-new-1882018561\">New Africa\/Shutterstock.com<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cUnlimited\u201d is a big word in the mobile world. Everyone wants a data plan with no limitations. That\u2019s why carriers love to use the word, but \u201cUnlimited\u201d rarely means truly\u00a0<em>unlimited<\/em>. There are a few reasons for that.<\/p>\n<p>There was a time when <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reviewgeek.com\/77626\/should-you-pay-for-an-unlimited-data-phone-plan\/\">unlimited data plans<\/a> were truly unlimited. You paid a certain amount every month and you could use as much data as you wanted. However, as more of the world has adopted smartphones, these plans have gone away.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RELATED:<\/strong> <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reviewgeek.com\/77626\/should-you-pay-for-an-unlimited-data-phone-plan\/\"><strong><em>Should You Pay for an Unlimited Data Phone Plan?<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Throttled_Speeds\"><\/span>Throttled Speeds<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>The biggest catch in most \u201cunlimited\u201d data plans is speed limits. It\u2019s common practice for unlimited plans to only allow access to high-speed data for a set amount, such as 25GB. After you use that much data, your speed gets throttled down.<\/p>\n<p>In reality, the only thing that\u2019s actually \u201cunlimited\u201d is <em>how much<\/em> data you can use. It says nothing about the limits placed on the data speeds. You\u2019re more than welcome to use more than those 10GB, but the connection is going to be much slower after that.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Video_Quality_Caps\"><\/span>Video Quality Caps<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<figure style=\"width: 654px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-751058\" data-pagespeed-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/youtube-logo-on-a-smartphone.jpeg?trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1\" alt=\"YouTube logo on a smartphone\" width=\"654\" height=\"368\" src=\"\/pagespeed_static\/1.JiBnMqyl6S.gif\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"imagecredit\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-photo\/ternopil-ukraine-january-11-2020-man-1634542264\">Mykolastock\/Shutterstock.com<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Another common tactic that \u201cunlimited\u201d plans use to limit your data usage is video streaming quality caps. Certain \u201cunlimited\u201d plans won\u2019t allow you to watch <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">YouTube<\/a> or Netflix at their highest quality.<\/p>\n<p>It makes sense from the perspective of the carrier. Streaming video at 1080p or 4K resolution uses a lot more data. By c<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>ing the quality they can offer \u201cunlimited\u201d data while still limiting how much data you use.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"De-Prioritization\"><\/span>De-Prioritization<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>What happens when a lot of people are trying to access a network at the same time? That\u2019s when de-prioritization kicks in. Carriers will throttle speeds to ease the congestion on the network, but it\u2019s not always fair.<\/p>\n<p>This is typically more of a problem on MVNOs than it is on major carriers. However, it\u2019s still a way to limit how much data you\u2019re using. If you\u2019re on a lower tier of \u201cunlimited\u201d plan, you may be\u00a0de-prioritized in favor of those who pay more.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Whats_Actually_%E2%80%9CUnlimited%E2%80%9D\"><\/span>What\u2019s Actually \u201cUnlimited\u201d?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-715381\" data-pagespeed-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/stop-data-usage.png?trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1\" alt=\"data usage chart\" width=\"644\" height=\"297\" src=\"\/pagespeed_static\/1.JiBnMqyl6S.gif\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Clearly, there are a lot of limits on these \u201cunlimited\u201d plans. Limits on speed, limits on video quality, and limits on priority. So what part of it is truly unlimited? As mentioned, it\u2019s typically only the amount of data you use.<\/p>\n<p>There could be nothing stopping you from burning through 50GB of data in a month, but that doesn\u2019t say anything about <em>how<\/em> you get to that 50GB. It could be on slow speeds with 480p video and constantly being de-prioritized for higher-paying customers.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Do_Truly_Unlimited_Plans_Exist\"><\/span>Do Truly Unlimited Plans Exist?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Does all of this mean there are no truly unlimited plans available? No, but they\u2019re harder to find and they\u2019re not cheap. For example, AT&amp;T has a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.anrdoezrs.net\/links\/3607085\/type\/am\/sid\/802289\/https:\/\/www.att.com\/plans\/unlimited-data-plans\/\">truly unlimited plan<\/a> that has no data speed limit or video quality caps. The catch? It\u2019s $85 per month for one line.<\/p>\n<p>Carriers are willing to offer truly unlimited plans, but you\u2019re going to pay a lot for it. The \u201cunlimited\u201d plans are cheaper and often sound better to most people. Just make sure you know what you\u2019re paying for.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RELATED:<\/strong> <strong><em>How to Save Money On Your Cellphone Bill with an MVNO<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script>\n setTimeout(function(){\n  !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)\n  {if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?\n  n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};\n  if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';\n  n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\n  t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];\n  s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s) } (window, document,'script',\n  'https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');\n   fbq('init', '335401813750447');\n   fbq('track', 'PageView');\n  },3000);\n<\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Technology category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/802289\/why-unlimited-mobile-data-isnt-actually-unlimited\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Why Unlimited Mobile Data Isn\u2019t Actually Unlimited&#8221; New Africa\/Shutterstock.com \u201cUnlimited\u201d is a big word in the mobile world. Everyone wants a data plan with no limitations. That\u2019s why carriers love to use the word, but \u201cUnlimited\u201d rarely means truly\u00a0unlimited. There are a few reasons for that. There was a time when unlimited data plans were&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":446928,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/iphone-lock-screen-date-time-box.jpg?height=200p&trim=2,2,2,2","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-446927","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/446927","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=446927"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/446927\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/446928"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=446927"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=446927"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=446927"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}