News Sending a Steam sticker 'burned through a month of data in five minutes' complains unhappy gamer

[Admin]

A Steam Chat user who “burned through a month of mobile data in 5 minutes” blames Valve's animated stickers.

Sending a Steam sticker 'burned through a month of data in five minutes' complains unhappy gamer : Read more

 

[Konomi]

While it would be wonderful if Valve took the time to care about their apps, I do have to question why the person uses Steam's chat in the first place when the majority of people are on Discord or something..

 

[Roland Of Gilead]

Those price plans are ridiculous. In my country (Ireland), We have plans from €9.99 per month. Unlimited data, calls, and texts. And the contracts are guaranteed for ilfe! I can't believe that those plans only provide for only include 600mb of data. It's a joke.

 

[hypnoticlya]

While it would be wonderful if Valve took the time to care about their apps, I do have to question why the person uses Steam's chat in the first place when the majority of people are on Discord or something..

Discord basically has the same problem though. If you use gifs for reactions, instead of emojis/stickers, then it redownloads those *every single time*. Even ones that you fave, it redownloads them every single time you pull up the gif list. It's insane that they REFUSE to let you cache those gifs.

I do a lot of 1-on-1 personal paid interactions, and I heavily use gifs for that in DMs. I have unlimited data and usually do this at home anyway, so the data part doesn't bother me; the part where it takes 3~5 minutes to load the gif that I'm looking for, really sucks.

But even if you are doing stickers/emojis on Discord, it still redownloads those. It's just that they're (probably) more strict with the file sizes of those, than Steam seems to be.

I'd try to get around that with Google Drive; but that also won't retain the files forever. It constantly seems to wipe them from my device, despite telling it over and over to keep them local on my phone.

 

[hwertz]

So they have a ridiculous Australia style data plan with almost no data then used up their data. Don't use your mobile data for anything if you only have like 500MB a month.

 

[nrdwka]

Discord basically has the same problem though. If you use gifs for reactions, instead of emojis/stickers, then it redownloads those *every single time*. Even ones that you fave, it redownloads them every single time you pull up the gif list. It's insane that they REFUSE to let you cache those gifs.

I do a lot of 1-on-1 personal paid interactions, and I heavily use gifs for that in DMs. I have unlimited data and usually do this at home anyway, so the data part doesn't bother me; the part where it takes 3~5 minutes to load the gif that I'm looking for, really sucks.

But even if you are doing stickers/emojis on Discord, it still redownloads those. It's just that they're (probably) more strict with the file sizes of those, than Steam seems to be.

I'd try to get around that with Google Drive; but that also won't retain the files forever. It constantly seems to wipe them from my device, despite telling it over and over to keep them local on my phone.

Discord basically has the same problem though. If you use gifs for reactions, instead of emojis/stickers, then it redownloads those *every single time*. Even ones that you fave, it redownloads them every single time you pull up the gif list. It's insane that they REFUSE to let you cache those gifs.

I do a lot of 1-on-1 personal paid interactions, and I heavily use gifs for that in DMs. I have unlimited data and usually do this at home anyway, so the data part doesn't bother me; the part where it takes 3~5 minutes to load the gif that I'm looking for, really sucks.

But even if you are doing stickers/emojis on Discord, it still redownloads those. It's just that they're (probably) more strict with the file sizes of those, than Steam seems to be.

I'd try to get around that with Google Drive; but that also won't retain the files forever. It constantly seems to wipe them from my device, despite telling it over and over to keep them local on my phone.

just curious, if you is aware about issue, why to continue to use GIF? even light text smile are fine

 

[A Stoner]

Starlink looks like it should be a winner for people in the more costly places. Mostly offering unlimited plans for people, but roaming can be had for $10 with 10 GB and $2 per GB thereafter.

Now that I look at that option, I am almost tempted to add that to my household... $10 a month to cover for emergencies seems reasonable. Too bad I did not get the free starlink system when Hurricane Helene came through...

 

[hwertz]

just curious, if you is aware about issue, why to continue to use GIF? even light text smile are fine

I imagine it's like if I would complain about an issue like this -- I have unlimited data so it's not a PROBLEM problem, and more like a nuisance (the inefficiency + the small wait for stuff that could be cached and pop up instantly.) I don't use animated GIFs but if I did, I'd have the same complaint but keep using them.

Starlink looks like it should be a winner for people in the more costly places. Mostly offering unlimited plans for people, but roaming can be had for $10 with 10 GB and $2 per GB thereafter.

Now that I look at that option, I am almost tempted to add that to my household... $10 a month to cover for emergencies seems reasonable. Too bad I did not get the free starlink system when Hurricane Helene came through...

They used up the data on their cell phone. Australia also has home broadband plans with ridiculously low data limits, but not THAT low. Although Australians also suffer (courtesy of NBN -- "National Broadband Network" -- which the ISPs all resell services off of) with ridiculous data caps on their home broadband connections too, they aren't QUITE low enough to worry about GIFs going through the monthly allowance. Maybe.

(More or less, Australia and Canada have some of the worst pricing on the planet... companies and regulators in both countries use the excuse of the countries being large... but it's really a matter of them ending up with non-competitive markets in cell phones... letting the existing incumbents buy up all new wireless spectrum as it comes out for bid so no new competitor can get any spectrum to start a new network with and perhaps drive prices down... and, in the case of Australia, their NBN ("National Broadband Network") which virtually all ISPs ultimately use has ridiculously low data caps on basically all services; and subsidize the very rural areas by jacking up prices everywhere else so prices are high too. )

 

[USAFRet]

Those price plans are ridiculous. In my country (Ireland), We have plans from €9.99 per month. Unlimited data, calls, and texts. And the contracts are guaranteed for ilfe! I can't believe that those plans only provide for only include 600mb of data. It's a joke.

Newsflash - Prices and plans differ around the planet.

'prepaid' plans are generally more expensive per minute or GB, but potentially cheaper monthly, if you don't use it that much.
I know mine is.

 

[Roland Of Gilead]

Newsflash - Prices and plans differ around the planet.

I get that 👍

The point I was making is that 600mb is very low, even for a bottom line plan.

 

[BallsOTron137]

Is this some sort of joke. People complaining about nothing. Get a better data plan. That's like 500MB per month... And I get 30GB a month.

 

[Alex/AT]

Using mobile data for Steam Client connection that can download gigabytes in the background?
This guy literally called it upon himself, nothing to complain for.

 

[Daniel15]

Why are they still using GIF files? Video files (like MP4 files) can serve the same purpose. They have higher fidelity video (not just 256 colours) with a significantly smaller file size.

On a lot of sites these days, a "GIF" is really just an MP4 without sound.

 

[abufrejoval]

Those price plans are ridiculous. In my country (Ireland), We have plans from €9.99 per month. Unlimited data, calls, and texts. And the contracts are guaranteed for ilfe! I can't believe that those plans only provide for only include 600mb of data. It's a joke.

In Germany they used to think that auctioning off mobile frequency spectrum was a cool way for the overextended federal government to make extra money rather than raising taxes.

TelCos had to spend a ton of money for a chance to participate in the gamble and as a result mobile air time became "gold plated" and never the commodity it's since become in technical infrastructure.

While that money has long since been recovered and recent auctions were quietly cancelled, none of the TelCos has since felt the need to offer mobile data really cheap or actually uncapped: good ole Thatcherism at work...

The clever ones here use international mobile roaming from some minor EU TelCo, I guess, I've enjoyed an unlimited global mobile coverage from my employer for two decades so I never had to look: from hearsay those privately negotiated corporate rates are rather more reasonable than what any consumer can buy from a German TelCo.

Yet for the longest time Telekom has throttled domestic data transmission even for corporate rates probably to offset the lack of caps or still squeeze a premium on speed. Only on my frequent trips to France did I notice just how much faster than any on-site WIFI mobile data had become. That's where I easily get better than 100Mbit/s in both directions, whilst domestically I get single digits most of the time.

There is no extra money to be made in throttling roaming mobile traffic, so the local TelCos won't waste effort enforcing somebody else's backyard bullying, making their shenanigans all the more transparent.

 

[InnatelyAcidic89]

How is this news? 500mb is a pathetic amount of data. I didn't know they even offered that small of an amount anymore. Grow up and buy unlimited data

 

[Alvar "Miles" Udell]

In 2023, cable.co.uk concluded U.S. citizens paid an average $6.00 per GB.

And in 2025 you can get unlimited, unthrottled data in the USA for under $35 a month and tens of gigs of priority data for less than that. The only reason it costs more than that is if you choose to pay it, and there are plenty of people who will willingly pay many times that just to keep from switching.

The rest of the world, though, is a different story,

 

[USAFRet]

How is this news? 500mb is a pathetic amount of data. I didn't know they even offered that small of an amount anymore. Grow up and buy unlimited data

Prepaid plans can be very low for data, etc.

But if you do not use your cellphone that much, it can, in fact, be "less expensive' per monh.

This person, however, did not fall into that "do not use your cellphone that much" category.

 

[Hundvd7]

Starlink looks like it should be a winner for people in the more costly places. Mostly offering unlimited plans for people, but roaming can be had for $10 with 10 GB and $2 per GB thereafter.

Now that I look at that option, I am almost tempted to add that to my household... $10 a month to cover for emergencies seems reasonable. Too bad I did not get the free starlink system when Hurricane Helene came through...

It definitely isn't. Maybe in the US, but not everywhere in the world.

And first: this article is about mobile plans, which Starlink doesn't even do.
Most of the world doesn't have any data limits on home internet, so this is not an issue at home.

Example: my country ranks 141th on the list that one UK site posted. Though I'm sure our home internet ranking is better.

BUT, I am paying about $25 for my 1000Mb /sinternet at home.
The cheapest plan Starlink offers is $80, at a speed between 100-270Mb/s.

Plus if you don't want to be stuck for a year, the installation fee is very expensive. Like around $300.
And installing the antenna is not as trivial as getting a cable in your home, either.
Not to mention the decently large power usage: about $3-7/month (to be fair my country is expensive in that)

And all this in a country where both minimum wage and median salaries are about a ¼ of the US's, so those $ differences matter much more.

 

[DingusDog]

I pay $15/mo USD for unlimited talk & text 5gb thanks Ryan Reynolds.

 

[randomizer]

Australia also has home broadband plans with ridiculously low data limits...

Only if it's 4G/5G. No NBN connection has data limits (ignoring "fair use" policies). Not even awful Skymuster satellite connections have limits.

 

[uplink-svk]

Wow, New Zeland is really bad for Data Programs. I'm from the hole in the ground Slovakia and have 2TB for 20 eur, most of the people have 100 - 400 GB for 10 - 15 eur. We're talking Slovakia. I thought that New Zeland was miles ahead from the ex-Soviet satellite country....

 

[Jmes]

I imagine it's like if I would complain about an issue like this -- I have unlimited data so it's not a PROBLEM problem, and more like a nuisance (the inefficiency + the small wait for stuff that could be cached and pop up instantly.) I don't use animated GIFs but if I did, I'd have the same complaint but keep using them.


They used up the data on their cell phone. Australia also has home broadband plans with ridiculously low data limits, but not THAT low. Although Australians also suffer (courtesy of NBN -- "National Broadband Network" -- which the ISPs all resell services off of) with ridiculous data caps on their home broadband connections too, they aren't QUITE low enough to worry about GIFs going through the monthly allowance. Maybe.

(More or less, Australia and Canada have some of the worst pricing on the planet... companies and regulators in both countries use the excuse of the countries being large... but it's really a matter of them ending up with non-competitive markets in cell phones... letting the existing incumbents buy up all new wireless spectrum as it comes out for bid so no new competitor can get any spectrum to start a new network with and perhaps drive prices down... and, in the case of Australia, their NBN ("National Broadband Network") which virtually all ISPs ultimately use has ridiculously low data caps on basically all services; and subsidize the very rural areas by jacking up prices everywhere else so prices are high too. )

You do know New Zealand and Australia are different countries, right? I also don’t think there are any internet plans available in Australia that AREN’T unlimited, so I’m not sure where you’re getting your information from.

 

[Kal Zekdor]

Funny, considering how browsing this story on my phone literally made my phone get hot from all of the auto-playing video ads on this site.

I really need to get around to setting up an ad blocker on my phone, this is just ridiculous.

 

[razor512]

Stream could easily offer an optional low bandwidth mode with some caching options when on WiFi. For example, add an option to not load embedded images or other user uploaded content unless the user selects the image's download button where the file size is listed.

Then offer an option to cache all canned animations, emojis and other more data intensive content locally, so that no additional data is used for that content.

 

[bradhouser]

I pay $15/mo USD for unlimited talk & text 5gb thanks Ryan Reynolds.

He sold Mint Mobile to T-Mobile in 2023 and is estimated to have earned $300-340 million. I have been on Mint Mobile for 3 years. Let's hope T-Mobile keeps it alive. Did they spend $1.35 Billion for Mint to keep it running or eliminate the competition? It's been two years, so it must be making money.