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AppleTV data usage

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sdschell
Freshman

AppleTV data usage

We use our AppleTV to stream movies via Netflix, Hulu, Amazon prime.  It seems to use about 2gig per movie even with the movie streaming option turned on. Does this seem normal? That is 10% of our 20gig plan just to watch one movie. Is there a better way to use less data?

5 REPLIES 5
maratsade
Distinguished Professor IV

Yes, that seems normal.  Streaming is very data intensive, especially if you stream in high definition.  Streaming will eat a 20GB data package very quickly. You can try lowering the definition by  turning on the video data saver on your account, but that will still eat data.  

 


@sdschell wrote:

We use our AppleTV to stream movies via Netflix, Hulu, Amazon prime.  It seems to use about 2gig per movie even with the movie streaming option turned on. Does this seem normal? That is 10% of our 20gig plan just to watch one movie. Is there a better way to use less data?


 

GabeU
Distinguished Professor IV

@sdschell 

 

Something you might want to consider is PlayOn Cloud.  It streams a movie or TV episode for you, recording it to a "cloud based DVR", then converts it to an mp4 file.  You can then download that file either manually, automatically or by scheduling.  You can then play the MP4 on any device that supports MP4s, and most devices these days do, including computers, tablets, phones, and even smart TVs.  I play them on my smart TV, which has a built in app to play MP4s (as well as other file types), and from a USB connected external drive.  PlayOn Cloud also works with most of the popular streaming services, including the three you mentioned.  

 

I bring this up because you could schedule the file downloads during the Bonus Zone hours, taking advantage of that 50GB data bank rather than your normal plan data.

 

I've been using PlayOn Cloud for two years and it's worked very well.  Enough that I've built up a good little library of movies and TV shows.  

 

If you have any questions about it, feel free to ask.

I am definitely going to give that a try!  Thanks 

GabeU
Distinguished Professor IV

For reference, I don't use a monthly plan, nor their 30 credits per month for $2.99 deal.  I just buy Cloud Credits when I need them, as they never expire.  The only drawback is that, if you use only Cloud Credits without a monthly plan, you have to be sure to download the item within seven days, as anything older than seven days is purged from their 'cloud based DVR'.  Still, I find it better than having a monthly plan.  

maratsade
Distinguished Professor IV

I also buy credits and use them as needed, making sure to download the files within 7 days. Keep in mind that while recording items doesn't use data, downloading them does, so you need to plan for that. Also, the higher the definition, the larger the file, the more data used when downloading it. But once it's downloaded it's yours to play however many times you want, without any buffering.