Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Only two things require cellular data and will not work with Wifi:

- MMS messages (NOT iMessage.. MMS is what's used when you text an image to a non-iPhone user)

and

- Visual voicemail.

Everything else can operate over Wifi. Just keep in mind if you turn off celullar data you will not receive any MMS messages and you will have to call your voicemail the old fashioned way to listen to messages.
Thanks mate, never use those 2 features so all good
When WiFi is on, mobile data isn't being used, so it's irrelevant.
Yeah I understand that, all I was wondering about if I will lose some of the features due to cellular data being off which is like 99% of the time on my device.
 
Now we're going to shift blame to some guys kids rather than consider maybe there's something wrong with iOS8 along these lines??? The old "I have no problem like that (so you must be at fault)" spin? Visit: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/6542316 11 pages and growing. I know, I know: cue 5 guys talking about tens of millions of units sold vs. only 11 pages of people with an issue (as if everyone with the issue are all participating in just that one thread).

There's some seemingly-random, cellular-eating bug in iOS8. It doesn't seem to affect all iDevices, nor does it seem to have a common cause, common data provider or even limited to iPhones vs. iPads. Some people think it's iCloud drive, others think it's other things associated with iCloud, some think it's App updates/iTunes store, etc. In one weekend with my iPad sitting on a shelf, it gobbled up most of my data (something that normally lasts for about 3 months). In my case, it was the Mail app and I don't get enough email in a month to justify the amount of data it consumed.

I know that Apple can do no wrong for most of "us", but I did not have this problem with the same iPad running iOS7 using the same cellular provider with the same plan in the same wifi (always available) environment. The one variable change for me was iOS7->8.

Now the change is to aggressively turn on cellular when needed, grab what I need, turn it off. I used to be able to just leave it on as my strong wifi signal would always be used for any data needs until I'd leave the home or office and then maybe I'd use a little cellular. In my case, I didn't even touch the iPad that weekend. The big problem with this approach is that timely things I like to get such as texts will have to wait until I manually turn on cellular or get to the home or office (or other wifi zone). That can be minutes but it can also be a few hours or more in some cases. Most texts/emails/etc don't matter but some really need to arrive ASAP after they are sent.

As you'll read in that thread, several think they solve the problem by manually turning things off that might use cellular in Settings, then the problem just surfaces again. Some go periods of time where it seems to work as expected and then boom. I hope Apple resolves this one soon.
 
Last edited:
I noticed this somewhat with my daughter's phone also.

She was turning it off at night, which, for some reason, still received data at time intervals (like 6 am).

I changed it so she keeps her phone on but in sleep mode.

I haven't done a close check but it seems to have improved.

I think AT&T sends data to the phone and if it doesn't see a wifi signal, it charges it against the cellular data.

What a country!

I think this was happening also, while asleep it would start updating apps using cellular. Weird that it just started doing this after months of no issues.

----------

It's the user bud.
Stop blaming the phone.
It's your daughters usage that increased.

But it wasn't. The data use was at times where she was asleep or at school (not allowed to use phones during school hours).
 
Hey whatever you say, it's the phone all of a sudden eating 7.5gb data on its own.
Keep paying the bill while putting no responsibility or accountability on your kid for her use.
That will turn out great down the road for you...
 
Now we're going to shift blame to some guys kids rather than consider maybe there's something wrong with iOS8 along these lines???

If it was iOS 8, we'd be seeing a LOT of people with massive cell phone overages from data charges. The outcry would be a lot louder than bendgate ever was.

But you don't have to blame the kid either if you don't want to. From the OP's own follow up, turning off cellular usage for background refresh and certain apps solved the problem. Shock! Surprise! iOS8's settings worked as expected.

----------

But it wasn't. The data use was at times where she was asleep or at school (not allowed to use phones during school hours).


FYI: Cellular data usage is billed "per session," not in real time. Sometimes a data session ends if the phone is dormant and has stopped using all data for a lengthy enough period of time. Other times, the connection is kept alive and the carrier must force-end the session in the middle of the night for billing purposes.

Bottom line: You can't rely on the billing itemization for data to be fully accurate on dates and times of usage.
 
Hey whatever you say, it's the phone all of a sudden eating 7.5gb data on its own.
Keep paying the bill while putting no responsibility or accountability on your kid for her use.
That will turn out great down the road for you...

Obvious troll is obvious
 
Oh yeah, you figured me out.
But can't figure out who's trolling your data plan using up 2gb on Instagram alone😀
 
Oh yeah, you figured me out.
But can't figure out who's trolling your data plan using up 2gb on Instagram alone😀

The 2 gb was total from when the phone was new, the stats had never been reset. Believe it or not some of us have kids that are actually responsible. Like I said, the data use was occurring at times she wasn't using the phone, at night and while the phone was sitting at home on the charger and not in her possession. Get it?
 
You obviously still don't get how and when carrier Data is calculated and reported on their billing system.
I'm not doubting that she is good and responsible but you need to teach and show her that data use goes quick, it can get expensive and she has to control it better when away from wifi that's all.
Instead you're blaming the phone, the carrier and making excuses instead of showing her what she needs to do and not do.
I'm a parent also and like you I love my kids but we shouldn't let them get away with everything and not hold them responsible for their actions.
That's all, hope you didn't take it the wrong way but you know she also has some blame in this that's all.
 
You obviously still don't get how and when carrier Data is calculated and reported on their billing system.
I'm not doubting that she is good and responsible but you need to teach and show her that data use goes quick, it can get expensive and she has to control it better when away from wifi that's all.
Instead you're blaming the phone, the carrier and making excuses instead of showing her what she needs to do and not do.
I'm a parent also and like you I love my kids but we shouldn't let them get away with everything and not hold them responsible for their actions.
That's all, hope you didn't take it the wrong way but you know she also has some blame in this that's all.

Ok, one more time. The billing data gets pulled every 3 hours. The 3 hour periods occurred when she didn't have the phone with her, or was sleeping over a 3 day period. There are many threads about this type of thing happening on the apple discussion boards, I'm not alone in this. To think that I'm "letting her get away with everything" is absurd, as well as the assumption that I have never talked to her about watching her data use. I watch our plan usage as there are 4 iPhones sharing the data and this is the only time something like this has happened.
 
Read what scaredpoet posted above.
Data posted and calculated is not real time or as simple as you think. It's not like an atm receipt or online real time bank processing.
Many times use from various towers throughout the day is collected, batched and reported many hours later or late at night all at once. Doesn't mean it was used at that exact time.
FYI: Cellular data usage is billed "per session," not in real time. Sometimes a data session ends if the phone is dormant and has stopped using all data for a lengthy enough period of time. Other times, the connection is kept alive and the carrier must force-end the session in the middle of the night for billing purposes.

Bottom line: You can't rely on the billing itemization for data to be fully accurate on dates and times of usage.
__________________
You should be concerned about privacy, even if you have "nothing to hide."
 
Read what scaredpoet posted above.
Data posted and calculated is not real time or as simple as you think. It's not like an atm receipt or online real time bank processing.
Many times use from various towers throughout the day is collected, batched and reported many hours later or late at night all at once. Doesn't mean it was used at that exact time.
FYI: Cellular data usage is billed "per session," not in real time. Sometimes a data session ends if the phone is dormant and has stopped using all data for a lengthy enough period of time. Other times, the connection is kept alive and the carrier must force-end the session in the middle of the night for billing purposes.

Bottom line: You can't rely on the billing itemization for data to be fully accurate on dates and times of usage.
__________________
You should be concerned about privacy, even if you have "nothing to hide."

Yes, but for those 3 days the billing shows totals at 3am, 6am, 9am, 12pm, 3pm, 6pm, 9pm, 12am to the minute. When this started she had been home the entire time, the phone never left the house, and is connected to wifi. The data polling is normal with sudden surges in usage, most likely when the phone was asleep and charging. My guess is that under certain conditions/settings the phone will do some sort of syncing/updating, and since it is asleep it uses cellular data rather than wifi.

This is more common than you think:
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/6542316
 
Yes, but for those 3 days the billing shows totals at 3am, 6am, 9am, 12pm, 3pm, 6pm, 9pm, 12am to the minute. When this started she had been home the entire time, the phone never left the house, and is connected to wifi. The data polling is normal with sudden surges in usage, most likely when the phone was asleep and charging. My guess is that under certain conditions/settings the phone will do some sort of syncing/updating, and since it is asleep it uses cellular data rather than wifi.

This is more common than you think:
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/6542316

So what you are saying is what happened is normal based on phone settings and you weren't aware the phone operated in this manner.

Friend had an issue where data usage was through the roof. Turned out to be a buggy nav app unlike the above. I have an unlimited data plan and turn off data at home, I also carefully tweaked my cell data settings.
 
So what you are saying is what happened is normal based on phone settings and you weren't aware the phone operated in this manner.

Friend had an issue where data usage was through the roof. Turned out to be a buggy nav app unlike the above. I have an unlimited data plan and turn off data at home, I also carefully tweaked my cell data settings.

It's never happens when you have unlimited data, just switch to shear data........
 
If it was iOS 8, we'd be seeing a LOT of people with massive cell phone overages from data charges. The outcry would be a lot louder than bendgate ever was.

But you don't have to blame the kid either if you don't want to. From the OP's own follow up, turning off cellular usage for background refresh and certain apps solved the problem. Shock! Surprise! iOS8's settings worked as expected.

Again, here's a link to a thread with a bunch of people with the problem: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/6542316 It doesn't effect everyone but it also doesn't appear isolated to just certain models of iDevices or carriers, etc. It's iPhones and iPads. It's 4s, 5s and 6s and various models of iPads. It's not all kids phones where we can imply rebellious youth going video-streaming crazy (in my case, I didn't even use my iPad for 3 days and it burned up most of my data sitting in the same (strong wifi) place it always sits when not in use, running on the same plan it's always on, etc).

Everything about my own usage & situation is exactly the same as it was when this same iPad was running iOS7. The ONE change was the "upgrade" to iOS8. If you go read that thread, you'll see that said by many others. And that's just one thread on this topic.

Called AT&T about it and they obviously have had many others experiencing the same problem. They gave me a data renewal because of it. However, they also recommended that I aggressively turn on and turn off cellular rather than just leaving it on as I've done prior to iOS8 (think about that: AT&T recommending turning OFF cellular data ASAP). AT&T giving data away does not imply it's isolated to just a few people. They are not exactly known for their generosity.

As to the OP "solving the problem", we'll see. If you read the thread, there's plenty of entries where others think they solve the same problem by changing things in Settings. And then it comes back again.

I appreciate the "Apple is always right" mentality around here but these various iDevices apparently didn't do this before iOS8. I doubt that everyone posting had a sudden change to their usage patterns... or that their wifi systems simultaneously started failing... or that all of their kids decided to start streaming video in the middle of the night and then denying they did so. What is the ONE thing that DID change for all of those people?
 
Last edited:
Again, here's a link to a thread with a bunch of people with the problem: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/6542316 It doesn't effect everyone but it also doesn't appear isolated to just certain models of iDevices or carriers, etc. It's iPhones and iPads. It's 4s, 5s and 6s and various models of iPads. It's not all kids phones where we can imply rebellious youth going video-streaming crazy (in my case, I didn't even use my iPad for 3 days and it burned up most of my data sitting in the same (strong wifi) place it always sits when not in use, running on the same plan it's always on, etc).

Everything about my own usage & situation is exactly the same as it was when this same iPad was running iOS7. The ONE change was the "upgrade" to iOS8. If you go read that thread, you'll see that said by many others. And that's just one thread on this topic.

Called AT&T about it and they obviously have had many others experiencing the same problem. They gave me a data renewal because of it. However, they also recommended that I aggressively turn on and turn off cellular rather than just leaving it on as I've done prior to iOS8 (think about that: AT&T recommending turning OFF cellular data ASAP). AT&T giving data away does not imply it's isolated to just a few people. They are not exactly known for their generosity.

As to the OP "solving the problem", we'll see. If you read the thread, there's plenty of entries where others think they solve the same problem by changing things in Settings. And then it comes back again.

I appreciate the "Apple is always right" mentality around here but these various iDevices apparently didn't do this before iOS8. I doubt that everyone posting had a sudden change to their usage patterns... or that their wifi systems simultaneously started failing... or that all of their kids decided to start streaming video in the middle of the night and then denying they did so. What is the ONE thing that DID change for all of those people?

It's not about an apple is always right mentality. It appears this behavior existed since IOS 7 except in IOS 7 cell usage would occur while connected to wifi. The difference here seems to be cell usage occurs whilst the phone is asleep, which disconnects from wifi but keeps 3G active.

It seems the remedy is careful tuning of cell settings and/or turning off cell service when you absolutely want to ensure no communication via 3G.
 
I can only offer the thread link again (where all those people are not saying it was doing the same with iOS7) and myself who also wasn't having this problem with 7. They and I upgraded to iOS8 and we then noticed a lot of cellular data feasting.

Mine was while the iPad was "asleep" (I didn't touch it) but others are seeing aggressive data consumption while they are using their iDevices (so not everyone's iDevice is asleep). And what they're doing is not data-intensive things like watching streaming video... just using the device as they have when it ran iOS7. If I leave cellular on while using the iPad (not let it go to sleep), it will begin to gobble data faster than it has historically done. For me, it seems to be tied to the Mail app (though I never get enough email to match the data usage) but for others it's iCloud, iCloud drive, iTunes Store/Apps, etc. Some think there's something about having an iDevice + 2 (but not 1) Mac using iCloud. Again, go read that thread.

The "remedy" is working for me (and apparently others) but what a remedy. Prior to 8, I could just leave cellular on and the iPad would always use wifi except when I was between locations with wifi. Thus any text or email sent to me could come right through immediately. Now, using the "remedy" means those texts & emails wait until I get back into a wifi zone or until I can manually switch on cellular, check, then switch it off. Can't trust using Maps with Cellular on, so I better stay on the exact route (no "rerouting") or use Google Maps offline map feature. Etc. That's a very poor remedy vs. how this same iPad worked prior to 8.
 
Last edited:
This has been reported in IOS 7:

HTTPS://discussions.apple.com/thread/5364520?tstart=0

HTTPS://discussions.apple.com/thread/2450738?start=2040&tstart=0

In iOS 8 I don't think this is unknown behavior, more like untuned behavior.

Edit: corrected first link.
 
Last edited:

When I click that link, it goes to a thread about "HT1933 I pre ordered an album and now it says purchased but has not downloaded."

HTTPS://discussions.apple.com/thread/2450738?start=2040&tstart=0

When I click this link, it appears to go to a relevant thread (page 137). However, it seems to be praising iOS7 for solving the problem that existed in iOS6??? I read on through to the last page (140) and I don't see much issue with iOS7. If anything, more praise for 7 solving this problem.

Personally, I used cellular with iOS6 too and didn't experience this problem. Only with the switch to 8 did it show for me. The link I provided seems focused on 8 too.

Hopefully it's not an even-numbered iOS problem😉
 
This exact thing happened on my mom's line. She watches a lot of videos, but ALWAYS has wifi on. I made sure of that.

I've been watching her data more closesly. I noticed we had 3 gigs of usage on the second day of our billing cycle. My wife and I eached used about 15mb a piece lol.

Brand new 6 (as of Christmas). It can certainly be user error, though my suspicion is wifi was dropping for one reason or another when it shouldn't have been.
 
It's been 2 days now after changing the settings and it has only used 50 mb, which is pretty normal.
 
The strange part is that it's been fine for months and this just happened in the last 3 days or so.

Mine just started the same crap, I looked back at my usage and averages 1.7Gb, and it started creeping up 3 months ago when ATT started roll over data, and even higher when they doubled everyone's data a month or two ago.

But Turned off most my apps access to cell data and should be good now.
 
Good.
Tell her to update apps when on wifi.
Instagram will eat up lots of data also.
I'd been w/o any iPhone since July and was excited when mine finally arrived yesterday afternoon. Needless to say,I had to update 64 apps and I forgot to turn on wifi. 1.7 gigs later,I received a notice from AT&T saying I'm near my limit and each add'l gig was $10. In a matter of a few hours.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.