102005 lte logo

The Wall Street Journal notes that some early 3rd Generation iPad owners are finding it a bit too easy to burn through their monthly bandwidth allotments when on the faster LTE network.

The new iPad offers a much faster wireless data network called LTE. The speed of LTE can be up to 10 times faster than 3G networks. As a result, some have found they've burned through entire monthly allowances in a matter of days.

"It's kind of a Catch-22," says Mr. Wells, a 31-year-old Web developer who decided to pony up for another gigabyte. "It streams really fast video, but by streaming really fast video you tend to watch more video, and that's not always best."

Besides just encouraging the consumption of video, the new iPad's Retina display also encourages the use of HD content which takes up more bandwidth than their non-HD counterparts.

Top Rated Comments

Tastydirt Avatar
174 months ago
In other iPad news, the Retina display has more pixels.
Score: 30 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Jimmy James Avatar
174 months ago
Also, driving faster gets you to your destination more quickly, and spending more money burns through you budget faster.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Menopause Avatar
174 months ago
Come, join hands, let's call this Bandwidthgate and forward it to Gizmodo to blow it out of proportions.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
notjustjay Avatar
174 months ago
I hope this helps drive the carriers to offer better data plans. Canadian carriers seem to be notoriously bad for this. Look at the current data plans for the iPad 4G LTE: Rogers, Telus and Bell start their plans at 10 MB per month.

That wasn't a typo. Ten megabytes. Per month.

You could burn through that in ten seconds by watching a single YouTube video.

But hey, these are the same carriers that offer off-plan and roaming data rates at 3 cents per kilobyte. That's over $31,000 per GB of data!
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
johncrab Avatar
174 months ago
Someone needs to tell the WSJ that if you install larger pipes you can get more water through them in the same amount of time. Apparently, this really is rocket science.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hobo.hopkins Avatar
174 months ago
That seems pretty straightforward; especially given that others had already discovered that iPhone 4s users used more data than iPhone 4 users (presumably because of HSPA+ availability for AT&T users).
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iphone 16 pro ghost hand

5 Reasons to Skip This Year's iPhone 17 Pro

Thursday July 10, 2025 4:54 am PDT by
Apple will launch its new iPhone 17 series in two months, and the iPhone 17 Pro models are expected to get a new design for the rear casing and the camera area. But more significant changes to the lineup are not expected until next year, when the iPhone 18 models arrive. If you're thinking of trading in your iPhone for this year's latest, consider the following features rumored to be coming...
apple tv 4k new orange

New Apple TV Expected Later This Year With These New Features

Saturday July 12, 2025 3:09 pm PDT by
A new Apple TV is expected to be released later this year, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the next Apple TV, according to rumors. Rumors Faster Wi-Fi Support The next Apple TV will be equipped with Apple's own combined Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. He said the chip supports ...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 16 New Features

Friday July 11, 2025 12:40 pm PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are only two months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models. Latest Rumors These rumors surfaced in June and July:A redesigned Dynamic Island: It has been rumored that all iPhone 17 models will have a redesigned Dynamic Island interface — it might ...
macbook pro blue green

M5 MacBook Pro No Longer Coming in 2025

Thursday July 10, 2025 12:38 pm PDT by
Apple does not plan to refresh any Macs with updated M5 chips in 2025, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Updated MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models are now planned for the first half of 2026. Gurman previously said that Apple would debut the M5 MacBook Pro models in late 2025, but his newest report suggests that Apple is "considering" pushing them back to 2026. Apple is now said to be...
iphone 16 pro pro max

iPhone 17 Pro Models With BOE Displays Will Be Sold in China Only

Thursday July 10, 2025 11:59 pm PDT by
iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max models with displays made by BOE will be sold exclusively in China, according to a new report. Last week, it emerged that Chinese display manufacturer BOE was aggressively ramping up its OLED production capacity for future iPhone models as part of a plan to recapture a major role in Apple's supply chain. Now, tech news aggregator Jukan Choi reports...
Apple Watch Ultra 2 Complications

Apple Watch Ultra 3: What to Expect

Sunday July 13, 2025 10:30 am PDT by
The long wait for an Apple Watch Ultra 3 is nearly over, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the Apple Watch Ultra 3:Satellite connectivity for sending and receiving text messages when Wi-Fi and cellular coverage is unavailable 5G support, up from LTE on the Apple Watch Ultra 2 Likely a wide-angle OLED display that ...
apple wallet drivers license feature iPhone 15 pro

Apple Says iPhone Driver's Licenses Will Expand to These 8 U.S. States

Tuesday July 8, 2025 11:26 am PDT by
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps. Unfortunately, this feature continues to roll out very slowly since it was announced in 2021, with only nine U.S. states, Puerto Rico,...
iPhone 17 Air Colors Thumb 2

iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Air Rumored to Come in These 9 Colors

Friday July 11, 2025 12:30 am PDT by
The iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Air will be available in a total of nine color options, according to new information coming out of Asia. The iPhone 17 Air's expected color options. According to the leaker going by the account name "yeux1122" on the Korean blog Naver, accessory manufacturers are now producing camera protector rings for the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Air in colors to match their...