Thinking of downloading a popular mobile app, but afraid it might be a data hog? Now you can find out just how much of your data plan the app will eat by using a new website called KnowMyApp.org. The site, launched after Christmas by the U.S. Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association (CTIA), lists estimated data usage for the most popular apps for Android and Apple iOS devices.
Unlike apps that tell you about the data usage for apps you’ve already downloaded, the KnowMyApp website lets you estimate an app’s data usage before you decide to download it.
The website also includes “best practices” to help mobile developers with conserving their apps’ data usage and when possible, also conserving battery life.
KnowMyApp shows you a birds-eye view of the top 50 paid and free apps in the App Store and Google Play, and you can also search by name, operating systems or categories. The site tells you how much data is used when the app is downloaded, during start-up, when actively running, and when running in the background. It also provides information on how the app was tested, how much of your data plan the app will use up, and how you can conserve data usage.
At launch, KnowMyApp.org included test results for only the 50 top paid and free apps from Apple and Google stores, but CTIA says it’s adding more tested apps each month. Developers are invited to submit their apps for testing and inclusion in the website’s ratings.
For developers, the website lists “best practices” for maximizing app content and functionality while minimizing impact on customers’ data plans and network resources.
CTIA developed KnowMyApp in partnership with its Application Data Usage Working Group, which is comprised of Apple, AT&T, Brightstar, Ericsson, HTC, LG, MobileComm, Microsoft, Nex-Tech Wireless, Qualcomm, SAP, SouthernLINC Wireless, Sprint, T-Mobile, U.S. Cellular, and Verizon Wireless. The group’s members worked with Intertek to develop the site’s app data usage benchmark testing using AT&T’s Application Resource Optimizer, an open-source diagnostic tool that reports and analyzes network app data usage.
