T-Mobile’s newest plan to subvert data caps, Binge On, may come with a nasty downside. According to YouTube, the carrier is throttling all video streams down to 480p, even if the service isn’t included in Binge On and still counts towards your data cap.
For the uninitiated, Binge On works like this: according to T-Mobile, as long as a video service meets certain “technical requirements,” it can enter into Binge On. Then, T-Mobile customers can stream video from that service as much as they want, without it counting towards their data cap.
The trade-off is that, in order to fulfill this demand, T-Mobile throttles all video in Binge On down to 480p. Of course, this feature is entirely optional, so if you’re not comfortable with that sacrifice, you can turn it off. Unlimited low-quality streaming, or limited high-quality. Not the worst choice in the world.
The problem, as YouTube explains it, is that T-Mobile is throttling video services that aren’t included in Binge On. Meaning that T-Mobile customers who watch YouTube videos can’t get any higher than 480p and any video they stream counts against their data cap, unless they disable all unlimited video streaming. Despite not being included in the special unlimited club, YouTube still gets the quality penalty.
If you’re using YouTube on T-Mobile and you’ve noticed that YouTube’s quality level has gotten noticeably suckier lately, here’s how to fix it:
Log in to your T-Mobile account online.
In the upper-right corner, click Profile.
In the right-hand panel, click Media Settings.
Disable the “Binge On” toggle.
Keep in mind this will increase your data consumption when you use services like Netflix, Hulu, HBO, or most video streaming services besides YouTube. However, if you want to temporarily get better quality, you can turn this feature on and off at will.
YouTube Says T-Mobile Is Throttling Its Video Traffic | Wall Street Journal via Android Police