T-Mobile will let you stream Netflix and other video services without using data, but there’s a catch
T-Mobile just took the cover off of its latest Uncarrier initiative, Binge On, which will allow customers who pay for at least 3GB of data to stream Netflix, ESPN, Hulu, HBO Now, Sling, and other popular video streaming services without it counting against monthly data usage.
If that sounds a bit crazy, then we’re right there with you. T-Mobile has done similar things with music streaming already, but video is a whole different animal altogether.
But unsurprisingly, there is one small catch. T-Mobile will essentially cap the maximum quality of the video streams participating in its plan through what it calls “optimization”. Basically, it’s reducing the amount of bandwidth used for videos, which will result in at least some quality degradation for most modern smartphones.