Database Users

[Q] Tmobile Bandwidth Limit

Hello Everyone, I am currently with Tmobile and I have my G2 rooted and I love it. I use the portable hotspot feature quite a bit at work so I'm signed up for tmobiles "unlimited" internet on my phone. However Once I hit 5gb bandwidth for the month I received a text message saying that I had hit the 5gb cap for the month and for the duration of the pay period I would still have internet since I'm signed up for "unlimited" but I would have a reduced speed... Let me tell you right now its very reduced. So my first question is, do you guys have this problem? and my second question is, which service providers don't have this lame cap? My friend is on Sprint currently and he's used 12GB bandwidth so far this month and can still use his 4G speed which would be nice. So I may go with Sprint however I'd like to keep my options open so do you guys know if Verizon or At&T have the cap as well? Also what kind of phones would you guys suggest with the two? Preferably I'd like to fix the problem with Tmobile however I don't see that happening because when I went in the store they said I was already at the most internet /month.

Currently the only 2 providers that dont have a cap AFAIK are sprint and verizon. ATT used to have one, but was taken away back when the first ipad came out and now they only offer 2gb and charge you 10 dollars a gig over that. Sprint phones arent all that great right now ,probably the best phone on sprint right now IMO, would be the epic 4g. Verizons best phone is the thunderbolt, which ironically isnt for sale yet, but it will this month. they also have the iphone and some other android phones (fairly outdated at this point)
You got to remember that verizon is more expensive than t-mobile. Sprint is fairly expensive too and their 4g phones require an extra 10 dollar fee for bs reasons. If you want the unlimited data youre going to have to pony up the cash.
If i was you i would wait for the dual core phones to come to those carries, the droid bionic for verizon and who knows what for sprint.
Ps. I heard that verizon is throttling the top 5% of its users. I read it in engadget but alas, i dont have that carrier/problem so i havent looked into it.
Hope i helped a little
Edit: forgot to mention that if you want 4g you have to make sure that you are in an area that has the 4g specific for that carrier. Your friend has 4g on sprint so that means youre at least in a wimax (sprint 4g) area.
Verizon has a different 4g (LTE) that might not be in your area at this point in time.
Also sprint has 3 4g phones, t mobile has 3 and verizon has only 1 and it isnt even out yet.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA App

Nice break down.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

personally with the price per month my wife and i are paying for tmobile i would never leave.
best way to do it is to have 5 member family plan... cheapest way at least.

A T-Mobile tech support rep told me that he was told in a recent meeting that they were going back to the 10 gig cap. He said a date wasn't mentioned...who knows if this is true or not, I'm just sharing what I was told.

That was amazingly helpful and I have a lot to consider now. I do have it pretty nice with Tmobile right now because we have a 5 family member plan and if there is a prospect of 10gig coming out then I will probably wait it out. And if the new phones come out and I still want to change then I will. Thank you so much for your help!

There is a way to defeat the throttle. I've never hit the cap myself so haven't tried it. Five year old data plan with 10gb? Limit. But for root users it involved removing 3 files from the radio? Try searching the dev threads. I do remember that T-mo was the only carrier that this would work with. The throttle takes place on your device.

kgold708 said:
There is a way to defeat the throttle. I've never hit the cap myself so haven't tried it. Five year old data plan with 10gb? Limit. But for root users it involved removing 3 files from the radio? Try searching the dev threads. I do remember that T-mo was the only carrier that this would work with. The throttle takes place on your device.
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I was under the impression that method no longer worked. If I'm wrong, please correct me.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA Premium App

dynamikd said:
I was under the impression that method no longer worked. If I'm wrong, please correct me.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA Premium App
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Nope, my bad. I'm wrong on this one. Good luck!

Well Tmo finally saw what we were doing in data throttling and it did work realllly well..but all good things come to an end.
I have however managed to "defeat" throttling by....staying under the 5GB. Through wifi surfing. I have wifi at home and at work and those are the two places you find me . Simple.
But its a DAMN SHAME because I never rode wifi before because HDSPA is faster than wifi. Takes me twice as long to download a CM nightie on wifi.
Tmo has got to smarten up. Still they're still my favorite compared to the others.

androidcues said:
But its a DAMN SHAME because I never rode wifi before because HDSPA is faster than wifi. Takes me twice as long to download a CM nightie on wifi.
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Your broadband connection being shared via wifi must really be slow for HSDPA to be faster. What is it, DSL?
HTC Vision (G2) - CM7 RC1 B12

I agree,your broadband connection via wifi must really suck. I get an average of 13gb down & just under 3 gb up. Some day's I'll get a little over 15gb down. You should probably get a new router.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA Premium App

Tethering?

Does cm7 USB or wireless tethering cost extra on ur bill?
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA App

scr3wy said:
Does cm7 USB or wireless tethering cost extra on ur bill?
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA App
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as long as t-mobile doesn't catch you. yes it's free.

scr3wy said:
Does cm7 USB or wireless tethering cost extra on ur bill?
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA App
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IMO, it would count towards your data usage so it should cost if not on unlimited plan.

chem.manish said:
IMO, it would count towards your data usage so it should cost if not on unlimited plan.
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Even with the unlimited plans, T-mobile requires the tethering feature to be added. As was stated before, it's free until they catch it.

Tethering is extra on top of unlimited data.
Change your user agent on your computer to android, ie mobile, or iphone,etc etc and you are good to go.
I have not been caught yet. I did receive a txt before I changed user agent though.
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA App

I been using tethering on my phone since day one and I have never gotten charged for it. I use it intensively. It will use data though. You gotta watch out for the 5gb cap.
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA Premium App

Alrighty tanks for the info
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA App

so rooting and using an app is not required? For USB tethering that is

scr3wy said:
Does cm7 USB or wireless tethering cost extra on ur bill?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wireless tethering is included with the [MyTouch 4G] phone, per 2 T-Mobile reps, one who checked in to it after I told her what I had heard from the first. I asked her to annotate my record (case, ticket) Just In Case. 2 different reps said that tethering was not included, and was an extra cost. I didn't press them as I was calling about something unrelated.
I have tethered without charge and without problems before and after rooting/installing CM7. I don't tether much, but never hesitate when it is handy. My total usage is well under 5GB/month, FWIW.

excarnate said:
Wireless tethering is included with the phone, per 2 T-Mobile reps, one who checked in to it after I told her what I had heard from the first. I asked her to annotate my record (case, ticket) Just In Case. FWIW.
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They are right, but it's just like GM cars come included with ONstar but it'll cost you. There is no switch or button they can push to allow the tethering to continue after the message comes up unless you have the feature added. You can ask for supervisor, supervisor's supervisor, etc. but it's an automatic system programming. Before last December there was no tethering feature but it was also against the terms & conditions of T-mobile to tether and still is in there but now they have the feature.
Some people have found changing the user agent ID as a solution, don't know but using it regularly can definitely lead to the message and there's no options after that but to quit tethering or purchase the feature.

I've been tethering for the past 2 weeks now because I just moved into a new place and haven't been able to switch my internet over just yet. I haven't seen any changes in my bill, nor recieved any text messages from T-Mobile regarding tethering charges. I'm using CM7 and no other tethering apps. I haven't changed any user agents except on my phone's browser, and I changed it from Android to desktop. So far I've used 33,152.81 Mb (a lot of netflix streaming) according to the T-Mobile website. Although I've been throttled, it's not too bad because I'm in a 4G area and still getting around 2 Mbps.

themarshal80 said:
Although I've been throttled, it's not too bad because I'm in a 4G area and still getting around 2 Mbps.
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if you are seeing 2Mb download speed you are not throttled. Throttled speeds are around 56k, or about the same as EDGE.

neidlinger said:
if you are seeing 2Mb download speed you are not throttled. Throttled speeds are around 56k, or about the same as EDGE.
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Well I recieved a text message from T-Mobile that I have been, and I usually get around 4-6 Mb at my new place.

themarshal80 said:
Well I recieved a text message from T-Mobile that I have been, and I usually get around 4-6 Mb at my new place.
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they haven't tethered you yet then. according to their TOS, tethered speeds are around EDGE.
Consider yourself lucky..

neidlinger said:
they haven't tethered you yet then. according to their TOS, tethered speeds are around EDGE.
Consider yourself lucky..
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Yup. I pretty sure it's because I'm using CM7 and not the official stock app. Either way, this is just my temporary setup. Once I get my internet up and running I won't be tethering too much. It's nice to know that I can though.

when i get throttled my speeds drop so slow, noticably slower in web browsing
lucky you, it'd be nice to have 2mb download still

Tethering has been enabled on my phone since I got it, without it even being rooted it has the wifi hotspot option, and I don't remember there being an extra charge on my bill for it...and yes it works fine.

I don't know where some folks are getting there info. T-mobile does not charge for tethering. I tether every day on my Mytouch 4g and never been charged for tethering. Ive been doing this since Jan.

smooth3d said:
I don't know where some folks are getting there info. T-mobile does not charge for tethering. I tether every day on my Mytouch 4g and never been charged for tethering. Ive been doing this since Jan.
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According to their TOS they do charge for it. Read it sometime.

neidlinger said:
According to their TOS they do charge for it. Read it sometime.
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Where do I find this TOS? Because like I mentioned before, I also use my tether everyday, and for hours! I dont get charged any tether fees. My data usage does go down hill though.
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA Premium App

Tmobile throttling...nope

Just destroyed my 5 gig limit, currently at 11.56gbs and still hitting 9-10 mpbs down/ 1.5-2.1 mpbs up. What's up I keep hearing about people being throttled and yet I passed my limit without any consequences. Currently on stock gingerbread 2.3.4.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

Screen shots please. I wanna take your word, but a few months ago i got throttled.
Forgive my doubts. Please present proof.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA Premium App

How do I do screenshots without root. Ill do it for you
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

pierrekid said:
Just destroyed my 5 gig limit, currently at 11.56gbs and still hitting 9-10 mpbs down/ 1.5-2.1 mpbs up. What's up I keep hearing about people being throttled and yet I passed my limit without any consequences. Currently on stock gingerbread 2.3.4.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've gone over 5GB a few times before and not been throttled either. It seems they only throttle if you consistently go over 5GB. But I think that you'll find more people who get throttled than not.
pierrekid said:
How do I do screenshots without root. Ill do it for you
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you'd need to connect to your computer and use the SDK to take screen shots without root.

Heck if you don't want to take a screenshot by connecting to your PC just take a picture...wait, do people still use cameras?

I heard tmobile was planning on charging overage charges instead of throttling now? I remember seeing something on engadget about some changes.
Sent from my Virtuous Sense Desire Z 2.0.0

Athrun88 said:
I heard tmobile was planning on charging overage charges instead of throttling now? I remember seeing something on engadget about some changes.
Sent from my Virtuous Sense Desire Z 2.0.0
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I thought that was just for the 200 mb plan. They advertise "unlimited data" too much to just get rid of it.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

Athrun88 said:
I heard tmobile was planning on charging overage charges instead of throttling now? I remember seeing something on engadget about some changes.
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nivlac978 said:
I thought that was just for the 200 mb plan. They advertise "unlimited data" too much to just get rid of it.
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Yes, they're only going to start charging overages on 200mb plans, which aren't even for smartphones anyways. I think they're trying to crack down on people with smartphones who get in on the 200mb plan then just deal with the EDGE-like speeds because they save a lot of money with it.
There's a cap on how much they can charge you on overages too, I think it caps at $30 from what I've heard.

wth I got throttled! after going 41 MB over 2GB limit -.- I used to get 7-9 Mbps on downloads. now I get 0.05 Mbps. Its almost unusable!

frankth3frizz said:
wth I got throttled! after going 41 MB over 2GB limit -.- I used to get 7-9 Mbps on downloads. now I get 0.05 Mbps. Its almost unusable!
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why "wth"? Its pretty clear that they say they throttle after 2GB on new plans Not sure why you're caught by surprise lol.

martonikaj said:
why "wth"? Its pretty clear that they say they throttle after 2GB on new plans Not sure why you're caught by surprise lol.
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well these guys said they didnt. lol. thats why i said "wth"

frankth3frizz said:
well these guys said they didnt. lol. thats why i said "wth"
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If you have a grandfathered 10GB or 5GB plan, you're much less likely to get throttled unless you consistently go over 5GB.
New, 2GB plans are explicitly worded to be throttled at exactly 2GB.

I'm on the old 10gb plan and wasnt throttled for my last 3 billing cycles where I went over 5gb.
However I was on rooted 2.2 froyo then updated to rooted rom gingerbread 2.3.4 and now Im throttled to damn dialup. It was good while it lasted.

Yeah they got me the day before my billing cycle started over! Lol It actually wasnt that bad but i dont suggest any downloads. I did alot of downloading last month.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA App

Last billing cycle, they didn't throttle me. I got up to 9gb of data.
Now I'm capped at 57kbps till the end of my cycle. It ****ing sucks.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

Fermbiz said:
Last billing cycle, they didn't throttle me. I got up to 9gb of data.
Now I'm capped at 57kbps till the end of my cycle. It ****ing sucks.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
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I've been in the same position. Yes, it does suck, 'specially when you're going SLOWER than dial-up.
And 57kbps? When I got throttled, I only got 8kbps.
That's T-Mobile's way of saying F*CK YOU.

Their capping is terrible. Atleast give us a 1Mb instead of just giving us dial up speeds. Lol.
Sent from my HTC Vision using Tapatalk

frankth3frizz said:
Their capping is terrible. Atleast give us a 1Mb instead of just giving us dial up speeds. Lol.
Sent from my HTC Vision using Tapatalk
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it does suck, but at least tmobile tells you when it will happen and doesn't deny doing it. *cough* sprint.....
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA App

frankth3frizz said:
Their capping is terrible. Atleast give us a 1Mb instead of just giving us dial up speeds. Lol.
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PaganAng3l said:
it does suck, but at least tmobile tells you when it will happen and doesn't deny doing it. *cough* sprint.....
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Its not a cap. Its a throttle. And would you rather have a 5GB throttle or a 2GB cap with overages? Because those are your 2 options, and if I were you I wouldn't complain too much about having a throttle. Believe it or not, unlimited data is pretty much done for in the US.

martonikaj said:
Its not a cap. Its a throttle. And would you rather have a 5GB throttle or a 2GB cap with overages? Because those are your 2 options, and if I were you I wouldn't complain too much about having a throttle. Believe it or not, unlimited data is pretty much done for in the US.
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Yea that's what I meant , was reading something about capping on home internet on OCN but yea I guess it is better than the cap from at&t and verizon but then at&t did buy tmobile so I wonder what will happen.
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STILL Throttled

So, I was throttled last month for going over 5GB . But my New Billing Cycle Started Today & Im Still Throttled. I checked my account & it says over only used 10 MG. Any Ideas?
Sent from my T959 using XDA App

how u know u are throttled??

I tried Speed Test & only hit 54 KB downloading. I tried watching a YouTube video, wouldn't load, surfing the web, Slow. Basically everything. The internet is just Slow. & I'm in a 3G area with good Coverage
Sent from my T959 using XDA App

Seems like you can just call 611 and find out what's up.

Probably should call Tmo.

Why don't you change to another APN? I used to get throttle every month because I will go way over the 5GB cap. I started changing to a different APN after I receive the notification saying I'm going over the 5GB mark. I've been doing that for quite some time and I just recently change my data plan to 2GB instead because no need for me to pay an extra $10 a month for 5GB. Save money!

what do you change your apn FROM and TO?

No answer? Lol i dont buy it.....ive changed mine before to the suggested from an older post.....never worked and like this thread the guy that claims it to work never replies back.....go figure

Well, it figures itself out. I'm not throttled anymore .. but I'm up to 4 gigs so ill be throttled again pretty soon. Only 6 days into my cycle. But Im going to sprint starting on Christmas. So I can get some true unlimited data.
Sent from my T959 using XDA App

TMobile throttle :c

So I've searched and can't find the thread about being throttled and what some people have changed their apn settings to. I am being throttled and want to try some of them, this super slow connection is making me frustrated and my phone useless. I download tops 60Kb. Wtf :x

Not happening. T-Mobile wised up to the APN mod, and now, even after changing the APN, you're still throttled if you go over your limit.

Esevw said:
So I've searched and can't find the thread about being throttled and what some people have changed their apn settings to. I am being throttled and want to try some of them, this super slow connection is making me frustrated and my phone useless. I download tops 60Kb. Wtf :x
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tmobile searched before you. Lol
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium

tzbigworm said:
Not happening. T-Mobile wised up to the APN mod, and now, even after changing the APN, you're still throttled if you go over your limit.
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Click to collapse
really?
when did they wise up?

Few months ago.
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium

Not trying to be a jerk or an instigator here but, did you not read your contract first? I have a 2gb limit on my 4g service and have yet to exceed it. I manage my bandwidth just like it's money and I understand that going over will result in painfully slow speeds. So, instead of looking for a way to circumvent the agreement you made, which TMO is holding up on their end, why not be more careful with what you have and maybe even upgrade your plan? Just saying.

WiFi
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium

Esevw said:
So I've searched and can't find the thread about being throttled and what some people have changed their apn settings to. I am being throttled and want to try some of them, this super slow connection is making me frustrated and my phone useless. I download tops 60Kb. Wtf :x
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm hitting 75kbs... oh yeah, you're jealous.. But yeah, first time I ever got throttled and it happened after 5 days but yeah, I'm too cheap for faster than 2GB
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium

bobpantsspongesquare said:
Not trying to be a jerk or an instigator here but, did you not read your contract first? I have a 2gb limit on my 4g service and have yet to exceed it. I manage my bandwidth just like it's money and I understand that going over will result in painfully slow speeds. So, instead of looking for a way to circumvent the agreement you made, which TMO is holding up on their end, why not be more careful with what you have and maybe even upgrade your plan? Just saying.
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Agreed with various points that you touched on. However, I believe that T-Mobile "abuses" (for lack of a better word) of their throttling system. I get that after 2, 5 or even 10 GB of data T-Mobile reserves the right to limit the bandwidth throughput of specific users but to cap speeds at speeds slower than dial-up is just pathetic.
smellmyfingers said:
WiFi
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium
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Some of us don't have that luxury because of one of two reasons or both:
A) High-speed internet is not available in the area
B) High-speed internet is rather inaccessible (economic-wise)
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

UntamedDeviance said:
I'm hitting 75kbs... oh yeah, you're jealous.. But yeah, first time I ever got throttled and it happened after 5 days but yeah, I'm too cheap for faster than 2GB
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium
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Check out there specials I recently signed up 2 [email protected] limit for only $20 per line
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iLeopard said:
Agreed with various points that you touched on. However, I believe that T-Mobile "abuses" (for lack of a better word) of their throttling system. I get that after 2, 5 or even 10 GB of data T-Mobile reserves the right to limit the bandwidth throughput of specific users but to cap speeds at speeds slower than dial-up is just pathetic.
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Click to collapse
I agree that the speed at which TMO drops it's users to is quite horrific however, you do agree to the terms. That said, I'm seeing posts stating speeds around 70kbps. That would be a blazing 14kbps faster than dial-up. Where's the problem?

bobpantsspongesquare said:
Not trying to be a jerk or an instigator here but, did you not read your contract first? I have a 2gb limit on my 4g service and have yet to exceed it. I manage my bandwidth just like it's money and I understand that going over will result in painfully slow speeds. So, instead of looking for a way to circumvent the agreement you made, which TMO is holding up on their end, why not be more careful with what you have and maybe even upgrade your plan? Just saying.
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Click to collapse
I used to have the 5gig plan but decided to switch to the 2 gig to save a bit of cash but apparently I use allot more data then I thought. And also I do connect to wifi when I'm at home.

Yea I agree to that TMobile is slowing down the data after the cap way too low. It basically almost makes my phone useless and they should atleast give us a bit more bandwidth.

5gb. I've used 4.15 and my bills do on the 9th. I've never been throttled and from the looks of it I don't ever wanna be.
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Guys you are pretty naive if you think Tmo would increase the data throttle speed. It's to get you to upgrade to more data.
Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2

And that's why soon enough am going to cancel my data plan with them and go straight with wifi.. going to get me a portable mobile hotspot connect.. something I can put in my pocket and use...data plan is not tied to contract..
Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2

i must have doing a great job managing my data lately then, because around january/february i was catching pure hell with going over my 5GB data limit then i remembered about the apn trick started using that and didnt have any more problems going over my limit since then *Shrugs*

Turn off data when not using it. Disable auto sync. If on ICS rom, check the data monitor.
2GB should be enough, just have to manage it better
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium

bobpantsspongesquare said:
Not trying to be a jerk or an instigator here but, did you not read your contract first? I have a 2gb limit on my 4g service and have yet to exceed it. I manage my bandwidth just like it's money and I understand that going over will result in painfully slow speeds. So, instead of looking for a way to circumvent the agreement you made, which TMO is holding up on their end, why not be more careful with what you have and maybe even upgrade your plan? Just saying.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its not so cut and dry. . I get throttled at the end of my cycle every month. I exceed my 5 gig and it happens. That's not the problem. The problem is it makes your data unusable. So slow that nothing works and that is B.S.

Unless this doesn't work anymore, you can at least switch it to EDGE so that you can get at least that once you are throttled.