Tech Tips for Non-Tech People!
Original Air Date: Mar 30, 2016
The Hidden Cost of FREE apps
Aren't free smartphone apps really great, especially if they're so useful that you use them just about every day.
Most of those 'free' apps are ad-driven to help pay for them, which is something you should be concerned about if you're on a limited data play or have contant battery life issues.
Those free apps could be costing you big by chweing up your data plan and battery serving all those ads.
Researchers at USC and a couple of other schools reported that the ads in many free apps can use up almost 80% more data on your plan than apps that aren’t ad driven.
The report also suggests that they also used 22% more memory and 16% more battery power in order to constantly deliver new ads .
So if your phone seems to die in the middle of the afternoon and you're constantly going over your data plan, those free apps may be why!
Throw in the additional permissions that many of them ask for and you can add privacy concerns on top of the pile.
The next time you're choosing between apps, it may be worth the 99 cents to avoid the hidden charges in many free apps.
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