Watching House of Cards on the train is a quick way to burn through your 4G monthly data allowance, so Netflix has introduced a way to apply the brakes.NetFlix's adaptive streaming technology adjusts the picture quality on the fly to ensure the picture looks its best regardless of your download speeds.

It's one of the streaming giant's greatest strengths, especially if you're stuck on flaky DSL, but it's also a risk when you're on a fast broadband connection with a low data limit.The faster your download speeds the more data you chew through, meaning it's a brave person who watches a lot of Netflix via mobile broadband during their daily commute. Plenty of Australians are likely to get caught out as they switch across to 4G mobile networks, as well as faster NBN speeds at home.

To help tackle this, Netflix has updated its Android and iOS apps to add Cellular Data Usage controls, letting you throttle your mobile video quality in order to curb your data usage. You'll already find similar options when watching Netflix via a web browser.

On your handheld gadgets the video quality is set to Automatic by default, but new options include High, Medium or Low which let you watch roughly 1, 2 or 4 hours worth of video for each gigabyte you chew through — making it much easier to ration your data to get you through the month.

There's also an Unlimited option, but Netflix only recommends using it if you have unlimited mobile data downloads. Alternatively you can switch to Wi-Fi only, which could be a lifesaver if your handheld gadgets have a habit of unexpectedly dropping off your home Wi-Fi network and switching across to mobile broadband while you're watching Netflix.

These settings only apply when you're watching Netflix via mobile broadband. They don't kick in when you're connected to Wi-Fi, or if you're watching Netflix on another device tethered to your mobile gadget.

Do you watch a lot of streaming video on the run? How do you keep your data usage in check?

I always envy more advanced countries than mine where ISPs offer adequate data plans that allow you to stream tv shows or even movies on the go.
With the data plans they offer in my country i might watch a couple of youtube videos before chewing through all my monthly data