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A first look at Spotify’s redesigned free mobile experience
As rumored, Spotify today unveiled a redesigned app that's geared toward users of its free music-streaming service at an event in New York City. The new mobile experience is all about personalized on-demand listening, with 15 playlists that are curated by Spotify based on your listening habits. That includes sets like the Daily Mix, which feature songs you've "hearted" (aka liked) and Discover Weekly, which is designed to help you expand your music taste with artists and tracks you may not be too familiar with. The Release Radar playlist, meanwhile, will let you keep up with all the new music popping up on the service. Spotify says that the more songs you "heart" or "hide," the smarter its playlists will get and others will begin to populate as a result.
Microsoft confirms Windows Phone's Twitter feature is causing excess data use, says it'll be fixed
Noticing that your Windows Phone device is using more data than usual? You're not alone. As The Verge reports, Microsoft has confirmed that a recent backend change on Twitter's part has caused the built-in Twitter feature of Windows Phone to eat up data a far higher than expected rate; specifically, it's caused it to frequently re-download profile images. In an effort to fix the problem, Microsoft has made a change to sync Twitter accounts just once a day, but a fix will need to be implemented on Twitter's end to completely remedy the problem -- that, Microsoft says, will take a few more weeks. In the meantime, the only other alternative is to unlink your Twitter account from the device -- or accept the data charges.
Data hungry apps revealed with Onavo Count, free usage tracker for iOS
Yes, you can currently snag a data usage tracker for iOS, but if you're wanting to know exactly which apps are sapping your monthly data, then Onavo Count is where it's at. The free app just debuted in the App Store, which allows users to pinpoint the most data hungry titles with a handful of lovely graphs. Like other apps, Onavo Count will help you from exceeding your monthly allotment by tracking your last 30 days of mobile data usage, and if you really want to geek out, you can even break it down by week. Not to stop there, the app is also integrated with Onavo Extend, which compresses unencrypted data in order to help users squeeze a bit more from their data plan. If your interest is now piqued, be sure to hit up the video after the break, or simply head over to the App Store, where you can snag it for yourself.
Chitika: iPhone 5 beating out Samsung Galaxy S III in web usage already
The latest report from mobile marketing firm Chitika notes that the iPhone 5 has already supplanted the Samsung Galaxy S III in general web data usage after only a few weeks on the market. The Galaxy S III shipped in May 2012 and the iPhone 5 hit shelves in late September, yet Apple's handset is consuming more web data, according to Chitika's research. There are a few reasons for this. First, the iPhone 5 is enormously popular, and has been selling very quickly already. Second, I've personally found that the iPhone 5's 4G and LTE connections make for faster web browsing in general, which could prompt users to spend more time on a data connection as opposed to WiFi. Finally, many of the iPhone 5's apps are easy to use, which means almost all iPhones see more bandwidth usage than their non-Apple counterparts. Given those points, these numbers aren't all that surprising. But it is interesting to note just how quickly the iPhone 5 is rising through the ranks in overall usage. [Via All Things D]
NPD: Android users chew an average 870MB of cellular data per month, youngest gobble the most
Ever wonder how much data you burn through every month on average? If you're an Android user within the US, odds are that it's quite a lot. The NPD Group estimates that Americans of the Google persuasion typically consume about 870MB of data on cellular networks every month. While it's not an extreme amount next to the 2.5GB of WiFi usage, it's enough to give anyone second thoughts about coasting on a basic data plan -- and a reflection of how both 4G and media apps have changed our behavior. Not surprisingly, it's a younger crowd more comfortable with smartphones that's the most aggressive: the 18-24 set races through 1.05GB a month where the 55-plus audience uses a more modest (if still healthy) 750MB. We don't yet know how iOS stacks up in current conditions, but the NPD is promising a comparable look soon. Something tells us the iPhone 5's LTE will lead to just as much voraciousness.
24 wireless operators agree on data roaming alert mechanisms, do nothing about actual roaming rates
GSMA, also known as the entity that produces Mobile World Congress and Mobile Asia Expo each year, seems to be onto something. And by "something," we mean "getting 24 carriers around the globe to agree on a single point." That's no easy feat, mind you, and the latest release from Shanghai asserts that 24 operator groups have agreed to implement new measures in order to better inform jetsetters about data roaming rates when they land. America Movil, AT&T, China Mobile, China Unicom, Deutsche Telekom, France Telecom-Orange, Hutchison 3 Group, SoftBank Mobile Corp., Verizon Communications, VimpelCom and Vodafone Group (among others) are all onboard, with the following measures to go into effect by the end of 2012. For one, texts will be sent to remind customers of their data roaming tariffs when they arrive in another country, and there will also be a monthly data roaming spending limit paired with the ability to "temporarily suspend" one's data when usage exceeds said threshold. Of course, alerting users to how they're about to be hosed only seems like part of the issue. Till that's addressed, we'll keep carrying an Xcom Global MiFi or hunting for a local SIM upon arrival.
Two-thirds of Americans unwilling to spend over $50 a month on mobile data, says Parks Associates
In a recent report titled Mobile Data and Applications, research outfit Parks Associates found that a large chunk of Stateside consumers aren't willing to pay more than $50 per month for a mobile data plan. What's also interesting here -- but not surprising -- is the study shows nearly 50 percent of smartphone users are completely oblivious to the amount of data they're consuming every month. Parks Associates says this highlights the "risk" networks like AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile are taking by making the transition from all-you-can-have to those tiered data plans we're so fond of. The firm's Mobile Research Director, Harry Wang, sees this as a necessity for carriers, though, expressing that "moving mobile users to usage-based plans will be difficult and painful, but changes are necessary for operators to maintain revenues." So, are you part of the two-thirds keeping bits under 50 bucks? Let your voice be heard in the comments below.
iPhone 4S owners use almost twice as much data as iPhone 4 users
Update: Subsequent review of the actual study shows that Arieso is not claiming that Siri is to blame; that was introduced in the Reuters story and other media reports. We have updated our coverage. A new study by telecom network tech firm Arieso shows that owners of Apple's new iPhone 4S are using almost twice as much data with their devices than iPhone 4 users, and almost three times as much as iPhone 3G users. The report, covered by Reuters, shows that the primary driver of the data usage is the Siri intelligent assistant. iPhone 4S users are even consuming more data than iPad 2 users, who are probably more tied to Wi-Fi networks for their consumption of a steady diet of web pages, email, and media. Arieso's CTO, Michael Flanagan, noted that "I use the iPhone 4 myself and when I first heard of the iPhone 4S features I was not compelled to rush out and get one. However, the data usage numbers I am seeing make me wonder what I am missing." Since Apple's introduction of the original iPhone in 2007, the usage of mobile data has roughly doubled each year. Cloud-based services like Siri are widely expected to boost growth of data usage, which will be an issue until more efficient and speedy LTE networks become more widespread worldwide. At this time, Siri is still in beta and has limited functionality outside of the U.S. That's expected to change in 2012, as AppleInsider reports that Apple is hiring software engineers to help with porting Siri to other languages and to work on an API that will expand the natural-language interaction to other applications.
Average US smartphone data usage climbs 89%, cost per MB drops 46%
Using your iPhone more and more? You're not alone. Data usage on all smartphones is soaring, according to new research by Nielsen. In a monthly analysis of cell phone bills for more than 65,000 lines, smartphone users, especially iPhone and Android users, are using more data than ever. Nielsen notes that 37% of all US mobile users have smartphones. Comparing data from a year ago, smartphone data consumption is up 89%, averaging a monthly 435 MB. Nielsen also notes that users are paying about the same for data as they were a year ago, so when factoring in the increased usage, the cost per unit has dropped about 50%. These numbers have huge implications for carriers who are surely going to want to increase prices to make up for the explosion of data consumption. Most carriers, including AT&T, have dropped unlimited data plans, and it's likely that when new models of phones come out, AT&T and the others will force those who are grandfathered with unlimited plans to give them up.
Yahoo! fixes iPhone IMAP data leak
Earlier this year, a report surfaced that suggested Yahoo! Mail was the cause of spurious data usage by Windows Phone and iPhone owners. The root cause was the Yahoo! IMAP mail servers, which were transmitting more data than was necessary for each email request. Occasional email checking was not problematic, but individuals who checked their email frequently could easily accrue enough data to push them over their plan's limit. Yahoo! confirmed this problem, told affected users to check email manually and promised to work on a solution. A month after this discovery, Yahoo! has reportedly pushed out an update that fixes this issue. Rafael Rivera, who initially identified the culprit as Yahoo! Mail, now reports that Yahoo! sends back the appropriate information during an email fetch request. Instead of sending the full message header, the Yahoo! mail servers now send back only the message ID. All you iPhone users with a Yahoo! mail account and a limited data plan can now check your email freely. [Via BGR]
Microsoft investigating errant Windows Phone 7 data use
Worried about your Windows Phone 7 handset chomping down megabytes of 3G data when it should be asleep or utilizing WiFi instead? Microsoft hears your telegraphed fears, and has pledged to sleuth such suspicions of "phantom data" immediately. While Redmond wouldn't confirm whether its operating system was misbehaving to the tune of 2MB per hour like we've heard, the company told BBC News it would find out soon: "We are investigating this issue to determine the root cause and will update with information and guidance as it becomes available," reads Microsoft's statement on the matter. If it's all true, here's hoping we see some refunds or credits for the extra data usage, too.
Windows Phone 7 using lots of 3G data while idle, even on WiFi?
Complaints seem to be growing among some users that Windows Phone 7 is consuming an abnormally plump quantity of data when you're not doing anything. Granted, there's lots of stuff on the platform that might need data continuously -- email accounts and live tiles, for example -- but folks are reporting consumption measuring in multiple megabytes per hour, which can add up pretty quickly: 2MB per hour over a month is nearly 1.5GB, which can be a bummer for anyone with a 2GB data plan. The real issue, though, is that at least some of the data seems to be ignoring available WiFi networks and choosing 3G instead, so there's no great way to definitively avoid the leak even when you're in the comfortable confines of your own home. Our money -- our hopeful money, that is -- is on this being fixed in Microsoft's first big update that should be coming any day now, but in the meantime, users look to be getting at least some relief by setting mail accounts to manual update and turning off location services. Anyone out there seeing this? [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Validas study finds Verizon smartphones consuming more data than iPhones
You know how we've good reason to believe that Verizon Wireless is at least mulling the switch to capped / tiered data plans? Yeah. An independent Validas research report has found that, between January and May of this year (pre-AT&T caps), Verizon's stable of smartphones collectively averaged more data consumption per month that Apple's iPhone. Of course, this quite literally compares an Apple to every smartphone on Verizon save for BlackBerries, but given how much squalling we've heard from Ma Bell about this rampant iPhone data usage, we're pleased to see a few facts that spin things the other way. The company's full report is due out in September, but investigation of over 20,000 wireless bills found that VZW smartphones "are consuming more wireless data than AT&T iPhones by a ratio of roughly 1.25:1," with the average Verizon user eating up 421MB per month and the average iPhone user consuming 338MB per month. It also points out that "nearly twice as many Verizon Wireless smartphone users are consuming 500MB to 1GB per month compared to AT&T iPhone users." You learn something new everyday, right?
Droid X users gobbling up 5x the data of other Verizon smartphones
Been wondering why Verizon would seek to curb its unlimited data plans with bogus restrictions? Wonder no more. Jennifer Byrne, a business development executive director at Big Red, has shared with us the shocking stat that early data usage from Droid X owners is five times what other smartphones are suckling down. Clearly, the jumbo screen is being used to the fullest by those lucky enough to get an X when they wanted one, and Verizon is (outwardly, at least) really, really excited to see such keen use of its network. Enjoy it while it lasts, Droidsters!
Data usage sticker shock: How I learned to freak out when my daughter used my iPhone 3GS
I tend to be a pretty light data user. As the chart here shows, my monthly data consumption rarely exceeds the 200 MB mark. After all the events of this week, with AT&T announcing its new, and quite limited, data plans I decided to hop over to my iPhone account page and see how I was doing in terms of overall consumption. What I discovered over there shocked me. After month after month of limited data use, my June numbers (actually starting May 23rd) were through the roof; about 3GB to date. It didn't take me long to figure out why: it's because for the last few weeks my teenage daughter and I have been stopping by Starbucks in the evening. I play my Mother's Day gift of Field Runners on the iPad while my daughter has been surfing the 'net on the iPhone. We chat, we zone, we compute. Add to that, I've also been letting her surf while we run errands in the car.
Dear Aunt TUAW: Which 3G plan should I opt for?
Dear Aunt TUAW, I'm getting a new iPad 3G. I understand the bit about no contract and $15 a month for 250mb but wonder about how does 250mb relate to web usage. I have heard some say the web surfing can consume a lot of "bandwidth" but have no idea what that means relative to 250mb of data plan use. I am not an AT&T fan (still waiting for Verizon or Sprint to get the iPhone) and am always reluctant to sign up for a 2 year contract for anything. My wife has an iPad wireless model and she has had no trouble web surfing, e-mail etc, at the house or our apartment in the city.
AT&T to offer 'incentives' to customers willing to limit data usage
AT&T exec #1: You know, our network's really getting slammed with all these people using their unlimited data plans to download things and do stuff online all the time. Any ideas how we can fix it? AT&T exec #2: We could put out more WiFi hotspots. People seem to use those. Sometimes. AT&T exec #1: Sure, but that's not going to make a dent in places like New York City. I mean, have you used an iPhone there? AT&T exec #2: We have these things called MicroCells that people can use at home, if they live in North Carolina. Maybe more people could use those? AT&T exec #1: Yeah, that's good. But people like to use their cellphones outside their house too. What happens then? AT&T exec #2: Well, what if we offered customers incentives to use less data? AT&T exec #1: Now you're talking! What sort of incentives could get them to do that? AT&T exec #2: Hmm.... Well, readers, are there any incentives that would get you to use less data? Feel free to offer your suggestions for AT&T in the comments below. And don't worry about actually paying more for data (yet, anyway), as AT&T 's Ralph de la Vega is now saying that "we have not made any decision to implement tiered pricing," which is a slight backtrack from previous hints to the contrary.
