Roaming with College Phone & Monitoring Data Usage

Owned by Florence Gonsalves (Deactivated)
Last updated: Aug 21, 2024 by Samantha Benacquista
3 min read

Avoid Roaming Charges

Use Wireless

Where possible, only browse or download when using your Wi-Fi connection. Users are not billed for data downloaded over Wi-Fi. The only charge might be if a particular Wi-Fi hotspot charges for access, and you should be informed of that before you can start using the connection.

Mind Your Email

It’s OK to check your email, as attachments aren’t downloaded until you tell the iPhone to do so by selecting that attachment. That being said, the text in the email is downloaded, so long lists of messages may start to cost more than you’d expect.

Check Your Settings

Don't panic. Apple has made things easier for you. Keen to ensure that its iPhone customers do not unintentionally incur data costs, Apple switches off data roaming as a default. This means that none of the iPhone applications that use data (maps, email, web browser, etc) will use a data connection while abroad. The user needs to consciously switch this on and is warned at that point that costs may be incurred.

It’s definitely worth checking this though. Go to Settings > General > Network > Data Roaming – make sure the button is switched to Off.

Android phone users should uncheck data roaming at Settings > Wireless & Networks > Mobile Networks.

Monitoring Data Usage

My Data Manager is an app that users can utilize to monitor their data usage on their College cell phones. It does not monitor the data itself, just the amount used. This tool will assist you in making sure that you do not exceed your monthly data allotment.

Setting Up Your iPhone

  1. You will receive a prompt to install My Data Manager from the App Store and you may be required to enter you Apple ID and password depending on your App Store settings. Tap on GET and the download will begin. Alternatively, you can just search for My Data Manager in the App Store and download it. Once the download is complete, tap OPEN to begin the configuration.

  2. Once you have read the terms of service, tap the square to agree and then tap Set Mobile Plan button to enter the details.

  3. The settings for the first page are: Plan Type = recurring, Data Renewal Period = monthly, Data Limit = 1 GB. Ensure GB has the blue box and tiny arrow, not MB.

  4. Tap Done, then Next.

  5. On the calendar, select the 7 as the renewal date. It’s not easy to find out how much data has been used already this month so tap on Do later at the bottom and this app will be accurate beginning on Sept 7.

  6. There are alarms created by default to let you know when you’ve reached 90% of your plan, when you reached 100% and it will even let you know if you’ve used a lot of data on any given day that puts you at risk for the month.

  7. After you tap close, you will have the option for a survey. Tap No, Thanks. You will also be asked to allow notifications. You need to hit OK so you actually get the warnings/notifications about your usage. You will then be prompted to allow the app to access your location. I suggest Don’t Allow but either is fine.

Data Roaming/Out of Country

If you plan on roaming, please submit a request to IT Service Desk to enable this for the duration of your travel: https://lambtoncollege.atlassian.net/servicedesk/customer/portal/9/group/12/create/83

You can configure the App for data roaming by going into Settings in the bottom right corner of the app, then My Plans, and Set Roaming Plan. Roaming plans are set for the duration of travel.

IT Service Desk

If you encounter any issues or require assistance with the above documentation, please contact the IT Service Desk through our Jira portal.

📧 itservicedesk@lambtoncollege.ca 

📱226-776-3096