AT&T announced today they will be implementing a 150GB data cap on residential DSL customers and 250GB for U-verse customers. For those of you unfamiliar with data measurement here are some helpful benchmarks. 1GB = 1024MB Watching a video on YouTube for ten minutes runs about 10 to 50 megabytes One could download about 50 full-length, HD movies for 150GB The following limits suggest how data will be used under the caps. From Home Media Magazine: 100 hours per month of TV for DSL users 200 hours per month of TV for U-verse users 20 movie downloads in standard definition 10 movie downloads in high definition Send/Receive 10,000 emails; 3,000 photos; 2,000 songs; 5,000 one-minute YouTube videos AT&T reports the average user only uses 18GB a month, far from the precedent now set by the service provider. So yes, the average user is safe from overextending their usage and racking up overage charges. Those who may worry and could possibly be affected are professionals constantly backing up and securing data to cloud networks from home – often without realizing the fact. Perhaps even serious gamers will have to face the fee of $10 charged for every 50GB over the limit. AT&T assures that only 2% of users will even notice the cap and plans to provide regular updates to customers on usage, noting when they reach 65%, 90% and 100% of their allotted data usage. Critics of the data cap insist this is a ploy to take down streaming services like Netflix and Amazon which currently present formidable competition to cable service providers. Broadband services only cost providers millions, and yet return billions in revenue from customers – we’re not entirely sure of the point of data caps if not to take a stab at sites like Netflix and Amazon. AT&T suggests this will be a way for the company to prevent performance blockage by eliminating uneven usage among customers. How do you feel about data caps on your DSL and cable services?

As Japan was slammed with a colossal earthquake followed by a tsunami in March and aftershocks continuing into April, the world watched in fear and concern. While we may not see as much regarding the disaster blasted on our television screens and online news sources, the country and its people are still suffering. Death counts have reached beyond 12,000 with countless others still missing. Those who have made it to evacuation centers are provided with food, shelter and a safe place to sleep. Yet, evacuees are now in need of communication. Survivors want to communicate their safety to friends and family and hopefully connect with others who are still missing. In March, major cell phone service providers Verizon, AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile allowed users to make phone calls and send text messages for free to and from Japan and major corporations have made significant donations in aid of helping with immediate and future costs of the disaster. Also on the mobile side of things, several text-to-donate campaigns have been set up, allowing cell phone users to send simple SMS messages with contributions to the cause. Thanks to a group of tech companies led by Intel, evacuation centers are being outfitted with laptop PCs connected to the internet with WiMAX, an IP based wireless broadband access technology that provides performance similar to Wi-Fi networks with the same kind of coverage and quality of cellular networks. These laptops are giving evacuees access to social networks, news sources and YouTube to make understanding their circumstances and communicating with the rest of the world easier. The events in Japan have shown technology to be a beneficial resource in a crisis. Technology and its services have provided people with answers and a sense of solace in a time of confusion and distress.