I'm thinking of getting an iPad with 3G to 5G for the Internet. Does anyone here have a ballpark idea of how much time one can spend on the Internet per day if they have...say...3G or 5G? (I spend lots of hours a day on the Internet.) Also, is Verizon or AT&T better (consistent up-time, etc)?
iMac, Mac OS X (10.6.5)
3G (etc.) refers to connection speed, not how much you use. 4G lets you use more, faster, than 3G. Since you pay by the amount you use then it is really a matter of how you use it, not what connection you have. I guess the only limit is really if you have a slower connection and are on 24-7 then you simply cannot be using as much over a slower connection.
Check your wireless plan. Some have an "unlimited" rate, but you should really think about how much you will need. If you're downloading 3 movies a day you need a lot. If you check e-mail and browse a few web pages then you probably don't need unlimited and even a 2GB plan will be adequate.
Also note that some unlimited services are a bit tricky because some have been accused of throttling. In other words when you start going way over what they think is "fair" they slow down your connection. They don't limit you but suddenly your fast connection won't let you transfer things as quickly.
I don't know the details of the plans. For some the AT&T vs. Verizon thing is coverage. If you travel to particular areas a lot find out how coverage is in those areas.
Thanks for your quick response. I thought the "3G" (or whatever) just meant you could have access to the Internet if you don't have WiFi at home. And the more "G's" the more time you get. Am I wrong? I'm not too tech saavy when it comes to this kind of thing. I don't watch Movies per-say...or do I...I watch Netflix stuff a couple hours every other day. Does Netflix eat up G's? Also, I have Safari loaded all the time....is that also eating up G's because I don't ever exit out of the Safari App? I appreciate all you can offer me in understanding.
The 'G' can either refer to your connection speed, and to the amount of data (GB or gigabytes) - Verizon and AT&T will both offer 4G services in the US, but potentially with different sized data plans (I'm in the UK so I don't know what they offer).
Approx figures (from O2, one of the providers here in the UK) is that 1 gig will give you approximately 10000 web pages (if the sites that you go to have video and/or pictures then it will be less), or 200 song downloads or a 2 hour video download. If the sites that you go to on Safari have an auto-update option on them the page will continue to use some of your data allowance even if you aren't tapping the refresh button).
AT&T and Verizon amy have info on their sites about what each of their plans may give you
Think of it like walking. 3G is like walking at 3 mph, 4G is like walking at 4 mph. This isn't saying how much you can carry, just how fast. Yes, in 10 hours walking at 4 mph you can make more tripsand end up moving more stuff than at 3 mph, but in the end you pay for how much you transport, not how fast you transport it. This is referred to how much data you use and the "G" plans are referred to as data plans. When we got an iPhone with AT&T we had the option of the base package with 0.2 GB data/month, the 2 GB package, and the unlimited. We got the 2 GB package and never come close to it. If we downloaded movies we'd exceed it with 4 movies easily.
Yes, it allows Internet access when you don't have wireless. However, the access may be limited to some items. Netflix would gobble up data. I don't know if you could even use it over a data plan. They restrict some of that heavy duty use to proper wi-fi. For example, you cannot Facetime with 3G, you have to do that with standard wi-fi. Data plans are a convenience but not a true replacement for WiFi. (In case somebody reads this, I am not going to go into hotspot use right now.)
There's also cost considerations. I haven't calculated it but I bet if I started downloading at the maximum rate for which we pay I could probably download over 100 GB per month. We pay $14 for our Internet service with 100 GB potential. We pay $20 (I think) for the 2 GB data plan with AT&T.
Thanks for that info. Because of you guys I'm getting a better understanding of all this. When I say "G" in this present context I'm talking about connecting to the Internet. So that confusion is fixed. It's got nothing to do with how much time I can spend on the Net, but simply that I am 'able' to connect. I'll go call Verizon and see what kind of plan they think I might need according to my hours of use. Thanks again!
Most data plans don't base charges on time online, but amount of data downloaded/uploaded. How that translates will,depend on your needs. Also worth noting, you can always use WiFi if a connection is available and conserve 3/4g.
Yes....this helps me even more. I thought that having a G plan would be the exact same as having WiFi. Just a base understanding of how all this works is an awesome thing but how in the world the 'systems' at Verizon or AT&T calculate all the usage with all the possible variables boggles my mind.
Thank you....I'm sending this page to a couple of friends who also want better understanding!
You mean if I happen to be at Starbuck's, which has Wifi, I could turn off my "G's" and save some money.... or usage time on the Net?
amember wrote:
You mean if I happen to be at Starbuck's, which has Wifi, I could turn off my "G's" and save some money.... or usage time on the Net?
Yes.
That is correct.
How much time on Internet is 3G?
