What is internet usage?

Internet usage is the amount of data which is transferred between your computer or other device (e.g. smart phone, tablet) and the internet over a certain amount of time. This amount of data is measured in bytes, kilobytes, megabytes and gigabytes.

Data can be transferred in two ways:

  • From the internet to your computer or device (download – e.g. watching a video online)
  • From your device or computer to the internet (upload – e.g. uploading pictures to a social media site)

However you use the internet on your computer or device, all activities that use the internet contribute to your overall usage, which includes uploads and downloads.

What is the difference between download and upload?

A download means data is transferred from the internet to your computer or device.

Examples of Downloads:

  • EMAIL: Opening emails involves opening files such as PDFs, Word documents, photos and other attachments as well as written messages within the body of the emails themselves.
  • NAVIGATING THE WEB: Every site visited sends data to your computer so that it can display the information correctly.
  • WEB-TV AND WEB-RADIO: These online media send a stream of data every second and require much more bandwidth than standard web surfing.
  • CHATTING: This activity involves messages received in an online conversation, with video conference chatting using more bandwidth than typed messages.
  • NOTE: Downloading songs, movies, software or images also uses bandwidth.

An upload means data is transferred from your computer or device to the internet.

Examples of Uploads:

  • CHATTING: Each video conference or message sent in an online conversation is an upload, with video chatting involving larger amounts of data transfer than text chatting.
  • EMAIL: Any message or attachment (photos or Word, Excel or PowerPoint files) sent in an email is an upload. The larger the file attachment, the larger the upload.
  • FILE EXCHANGE SITES (PEER-TO-PEER): Some tools used for downloading files, songs and videos are based on file exchanges which involve other users accessing your library to download songs from it, which can count towards internet usage as an upload for you.
  • NOTE: Most people tend to download more than they upload.

What is a gigabyte (GB) of data?

A gigabyte (GB) is measurement unit for computer data that is technically about 1,048,576 kilobytes (KB) and around 1000 megabytes (MB). In the real world, this equates to approximately:

  • 1.5 hours of video conferencing;
  • Around 200 music tracks (5MB each);
  • Approximately 1000 images or photos (1MB each);
  • 1.4 standard definition movies (700MB per movie); or
  • 2 hours of streaming TV (500MB an hour)

What can cause unexpected high usage?

The most common culprits for data disappearance are:

  • VIDEOCONFERENCING: Communicating with other offices and/or your customers for extended periods via a video conferencing application.
  • STREAMING: Video or audio content on YouTube, illico.tv, smart TVs, etc.
  • ONLINE GAMING: Playing XBOX LIVE or using sites such as miniclip.com and games.com.
  • AUTOMATIC UPDATES: Updating software such as Adobe, Windows, Explorer, etc.
  • EXCHANGING FILES Sharing via iTunes, LimeWire, zik.ca, Kazaa, BitTorrent, etc.

How much data does it take to…?

Below are some general estimates of common amounts of data used for everyday internet activity.
The guidelines below are only approximate, so please be aware that actual usage could be far greater. This is especially likely if you use high definition video conferencing, download high definition movies or images instead of standard definition versions or if you receive or send a large amount of emails with large attachments.

So, hopefully that gives you a better idea of what exactly you’re using your internet for. Contact Arrow today to learn more about our great internet plans.