Method to limit mobile data usage on a daily basis?

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jonathan18

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#288848 27-Jul-2021 16:27

My son’s phone plan has a pretty low data allowance (250MB a month, I think?), which is more than enough for the essential purposes. But… he’s also good at wasting it when he doesn’t mean to - typically I think it’s when he thinks he’s connected to WiFi but he’s not. So…

How can I set it so that:
* specific apps simply aren’t allowed to use any mobile data (the only control I can see if stopping them from using ‘background data’ - it’s only a couple of apps that actually need to be able to use data) and/or
* his use of mobile data is limited on a daily basis (ie, x MB a day), and it is automatically disabled at that point?

I understand Datally allowed for this daily limit control,but that’s not compatible with Android 10. Other apps I’ve seen will monitor usage but not disable data.

Thanks for any ideas…

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#2750767 27-Jul-2021 16:32

smart phones are designed to eat a lot of data, 250mb per month will be very difficult to manage.

1024kb

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#2750868 27-Jul-2021 17:00

Smart phones are designed to eat data full stop. That’s the smart part of smart phone - pulling data from a variety of internet sources & presenting it in a useful manner. Taking away that capability leaves him with a phone - for POTS ringing & text-only SMS.

What could possibly go wrong? Well, if your son had run out of data & then lost his phone, Find My Android would not be of any assistance whatsoever. That one would impact on you, as the handset provider.

If he was lost he could use the smart part of the smart phone to find out where he was & how to get home, quickly & easily. But Google Maps does use data, & with none available then he’s suddenly in a vulnerable situation.

App stores are jam-packed with apps for all purposes. “There’s an app for that” is so true these days. The reason why there’s no standout app to suit your requirement? Because it’s not a very good idea.

Megabyte - so geek it megahertz

richms

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#2750873 27-Jul-2021 17:06

Vodafone are constantly offering the smallest unlimited plan for $30 to prepay users - at that price I see no reason to limit data usage. Once the full speed 3 gigs is used its still very functional.

Richard rich.ms

jonathan18

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#2750901 27-Jul-2021 19:05

Possibly replies have focused on the title and the second bullet point, but my preference is that covered in the first bullet - to simply control which apps can use mobile data.

I don’t think that’s an unreasonable request - for example, particularly data-hungry apps such as Spotify already give me the option of not using mobile data. I’m pretty sure earlier versions of Android did allow this, as opposed the current version that simply restricts background data usage.

If I was able to do that then, yep, 250MB a month would be absolutely ample for the purpose we want him to put it to, eg Google Maps.

So any options for that or am I going to still be out of luck?!

hhan

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#2750908 27-Jul-2021 19:49

richms:
Vodafone are constantly offering the smallest unlimited plan for $30 to prepay users - at that price I see no reason to limit data usage. Once the full speed 3 gigs is used its still very functional.

Which plan you talked about?

Linux

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#2750917 27-Jul-2021 20:25

It's on account my friend moved from Prepy flex to unlimited $30 4GB full speed then restricted speed after the 4GB is used up

hhan

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#2751027 28-Jul-2021 08:42

Linux: It's on account my friend moved from Prepy flex to unlimited $30 4GB full speed then restricted speed after the 4GB is used up

It shows $40 on their website. How do you get it $30?

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Linux

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#2751034 28-Jul-2021 08:50

hhan:
Linux: It's on account my friend moved from Prepy flex to unlimited $30 4GB full speed then restricted speed after the 4GB is used up

It shows $40 on their website. How do you get it $30?

Ask retention very nicely

nzgeek

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#2751038 28-Jul-2021 08:55

I thought that Android's built in mobile data limits might help here, but they're based entirely off a monthly quota. It can't do per day.

If you want to prevent certain apps from using any mobile data, one option is AdGuard. The Apps Management feature is what you're looking for here.

It doesn't help with daily data quotas, but it will stop the use of data-heavy apps when not on wifi.

1101

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#2751066 28-Jul-2021 09:38

My phone has a 'data saver' setting , which restricts data usage in the background
I can also disable auto data syncing
Every Android phone will have slightly different options for managing data usage .

From googling
Tap "Network access."
In the list of apps, clear the checkbox for any apps you don't want using cellular data.

To be brutally honest, its about self control. There is no app for that :-)
I have 1Gb of monthly data & I am often running out
If he wants to get by with 250M a month, he will need to mange that very carefully & constantly
Start by turning OFF Mobile Data in settings & only turn on when absolutely needed . Thats what I do when my monthly data is running out .

A data plan with 1.25G of data is only $16 month. That wont be much more than what hes paying for 250M
With Skinny , if you run out of data , you can buy very cheap (.50c) time limited top ups for emergencies (data binge top up)

jonathan18

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#2751099 28-Jul-2021 10:56

Please note, this was a query for technical solutions to a specific problem, not for parenting advice; if that’s what I’m after I wouldn’t post in an Android-specific forum!

And, anyway, as said in the OP, it’s not a matter of deliberate mis-use, but more not actively being aware when not connected to WiFi (eg, it could be something as basic as there being patches on his school grounds where WiFi is poor). My son is a teenager. Need I say more?

Thanks, nzgeek, for the name of an app that should do what I want to achieve; I’ve given it a go on my phone and sadly I can’t get that specific function working (ie, even when a specific app is set to not allow mobile data usage it still works fine).

richms

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#2751101 28-Jul-2021 10:58

hhan: Which plan you talked about?

https://www.vodafone.co.nz/pay-monthly/

Small - 4 gb one. Almost everyone I know on prepay has been offered it at $30 a month to upgrade thru the vodafone app to it,

And I have got one of mine moved over to that with the discount by asking for it.

Richard rich.ms

nzgeek

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#2751112 28-Jul-2021 11:25

jonathan18: I’ve given it a go on my phone and sadly I can’t get that specific function working (ie, even when a specific app is set to not allow mobile data usage it still works fine).

One important thing to note about AdGuard is that it acts as a VPN, which is how it's able to capture and process all network traffic.

When the VPN is working, you should have a key icon in your phone's status bar, probably up near the wifi and mobile connection strength icons. If you don't have this, go into AdGuard and make sure that protection is enabled on the main screen. You might need to go through some extra steps when enabling it for the first time.

Once everything is setup correctly, you can go into Settings > General and get AdGuard to start automatically when your phone boots.

alavaliant

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#2751122 28-Jul-2021 11:48

For android I've been happy with NetGuard for controlling what apps can access the internet - I'm pretty sure you can only allow access via wifi for apps as well. Like most filtering solutions for android it works as a vpn to ensure it captures/controls all outgoing connections.

jonathan18

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#2751174 28-Jul-2021 13:45

Thanks, nzgeek, yeah it’s all set up and the Adguard and key icons are showing in the status bar, but still no luck with it restricting mobile data. Could still give it a go on my son’s own phone, though. Edit: Tried with other apps and the results are different; won’t block Stuff or Mi Home app for example, but successfully stopped access to Netflix and Spotify. So there’s hope still, but weird why some work and others don’t.

Thanks, also, alavaliant - will give NetGuard a go to see how that goes for me.

Second edit: I initially thought NetGuard was similarly letting through the same apps as Adguard, but it may well have simply been accessing cached content as it appears to be restricting those same apps - it’s also a much easier to use product for my purposes, given its focus is on the very area I wanted control over - its main interface is a list of all apps with the ability to restrict WiFi and/or cellular access from that screen. I’m sure this will do the job well enough to sort the problem, so thanks to those who have provided practical solutions - much appreciated.

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