Tips to save data

Unlike many other countries, data is still very expensive in South Africa and smartphones and tablets just love using it. Google offers five tips on how Android users can save data without locking their devices down too much.

Worry less about exceeding your data limit by following these five simple tips for Android users:

1. Reduce the amount of data used by your Android mobile device or computer by turning on Chrome Data Saver Mode. From compressing web pages to removing images when loading a page on a slow connection, you’re able to save up to 70% more data.

2. Offline YouTube videos and watch them as often as you like without using data or buffering each time with YouTube Offline.

3. Whether it’s your neighbourhood or a weekend getaway destination, there’s a way to use Google Maps without using any data. Download an area of the world and seamlessly use Maps features like turn-by-turn navigation and access useful location information without a network connection using Google Maps Offline.

4. Identify and remove data intensive apps by going to Settings > Data Usage on your Android device. You may be surprised to see data being used by apps you hardly touch!

5. Disable auto-updating apps on your Android device by opening Google Play and tapping the hamburger icon (three horizontal lines) on the top left of the screen. Go to Settings > tap Auto-update apps > select Do not auto-update apps or Auto-update apps over Wi-Fi.