data is data...right?
ANewSmartPhoneUser
Enthusiast - Level 1

If I access my email or check the news and it uses 1 gig of data or if I view a movie or television show that uses 1 gig of data(I know not a valid amount of data comparison but 1 type of usage to another) and then store the resulting data on a memory card, this still amounts to 1 gig of usage each, right? a gig is a gig is a gig, no matter what you do with it after it is received. Does it cost more for Vz to send me the data for my email than it does to stream the movie?

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Re: data is data...right?
boringusername
Master - Level 1

Stuff on your memory card has nothing to do with you plan. But yes downloading 1 GB worth of e-mails( that would be A LOT ) and streaming 1 GB worth of movies is using 1 GB either way.

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Re: data is data...right?
vzw_customer_support
Customer Service Rep

, Your data is certainly important to understand. Data that is used on your plan, for e-mails, streaming, using apps, accessing Social Media, etc., that all flows through the network, using data from your plan.

 

Data on your device, such as pictures, videos, movies, (if downloaded), music, etc., is from your phone's memory/storage. It's not the same thing. And data from your plan allowance, cannot be stored on your phone.

 

Additionally, streaming certainly use more data than opening/reading an e-mail. Here is a short video on Data Usage: http://vz.to/2BMUDw5

 

VanessaS_VZW

Follow us on Twitter @VZWSupport

If my response answered your question please click the "Correct Answer" button under my response. This ensures others can benefit from our conversation. Thanks in advance for your help with this.

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Re: data is data...right?
ANewSmartPhoneUser
Enthusiast - Level 1

is twice the amount of data used when I tether my phone to my laptop? once when downloaded to my phone and then again going from my phone to my laptop? it seems that way.

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Re: data is data...right?
boringusername
Master - Level 1

ANewSmartPhoneUser wrote:

is twice the amount of data used when I tether my phone to my laptop? once when downloaded to my phone and then again going from my phone to my laptop? it seems that way.

That's not how tethering works. It's not downloaded to you phone. When you tether your phone is basically a router at that point. You're not being double charged. Of course using a laptop is going to use more data on a phone when you go to website you seeing the mobile version when you're on a laptop you're seeing the regualr version. Apps like Netflix restrict the bitrate on most phones so when you view video on a PC/laptop the bitrate is usually higher.

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Re: data is data...right?
ANewSmartPhoneUser
Enthusiast - Level 1

thanks for the response. I had hope that verizon support would answer. This is what I thought. Tethering may use data faster and that doesn't cost verizon any more than any other access. data is data. they have a 15g throttle and then a 22g throttle on their "unlimited" plan and that is a lie. They know that and that is why they did not respond. They then want to charge another 35? dollars to up the 15g throttle to 20 and that is double billing since every person not tethering/wi fi get that data at the higher transmission rate. Verizons 15g throttle and offer to upgrade at a cost changes "unlimited" to "limited". Again thanks for the response but you should not be the target of this. Verizon should be. I've spoke to support by text and they say the reason of the throttle is to allow others access so again I am being discriminated against just because I access the data differently and they are doing to me what they say they are trying to avoid doing to the none tethering/wi fi users.

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Re: data is data...right?
boringusername
Master - Level 1

You do get that no carrier and can unlimited tethering. If they did everyone would just cancel their wired internet and then uses hundreds of GB a month over Verizon's netowrk. Well they would try to because with so many people doing that the network would be slower than molasses in January. Then you'd complain about that. Mobile networks are not designed to be home internet replacements. Not yet anyway. If you have access to wired internet you need to stick with that.

The data is unlimited because you are not cut off from tethering it's just slower. No where does it a you have unlimited SPEED. Now you can argue the cap of 15 GB or throttle speed of 600 Mbps should be higher but you can't argue that Verizon should some offer full speed unlimited data with no restrictions it is not possible.

By the way deprioritization( not throttling ) on phone use after 22 GB does not happen automatically. You have to be over 22 GB and be on a congested tower. And the deprioritization only lasts until the congestion is gone. If your tower is never congested then you'll never experience it even if you use 500 GB.

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Re: data is data...right?
apexi055
Enthusiast - Level 3

Here are my thoughts on tethering.

I think a lot of mobile web sites use a lot less data than a traditional desktop web site would. Mobile web sites are optimized for mobile devices, they need to load quickly and they have less screen real estate to work with, so I think they'll contain less "stuff"  than the desktop web site does (yeah, super technical lingo there). Of course the layouts are different as well, but I think you will eat up your data faster tethering on a laptop or desktop pc, compared with browsing the same sites on a mobile device.

I've never tested any of this, just my theory.

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Re: data is data...right?
boringusername
Master - Level 1

apexi055 wrote:

Here are my thoughts on tethering.

I think a lot of mobile web sites use a lot less data than a traditional desktop web site would. Mobile web sites are optimized for mobile devices, they need to load quickly and they have less screen real estate to work with, so I think they'll contain less "stuff" than the desktop web site does (yeah, super technical lingo there). Of course the layouts are different as well, but I think you will eat up your data faster tethering on a laptop or desktop pc, compared with browsing the same sites on a mobile device.

I've never tested any of this, just my theory.

If you're suggesting a mobile website would somehow use more data via tethering on a PC vs a phone that doesn't make sense. If a website page is say 10 MB then it's 10 MB. Data is not magically being added.

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Re: data is data...right?
apexi055
Enthusiast - Level 3

I'm suggesting the mobile web site your phone loads will contain less data than the desktop website you will load while tethering on your desktop or laptop pc. So you're more likely to use more data while surfing the internet while tethering on your desktop or laptop.

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