Tethering, some clarification - meteor-o2-vodafone

ixtlan

Hi all,

I just wanted to make sure I understand this.

Tethering is using a 3G phone as a modem over bluetooth (or a cable) to give broadband access to another device, usually a laptop. I assume almost every 3G phone is theoretically capable of tethering.

What I'm not clear on are the restrictions that some service providers place on the handsets. For example O2/Vodafone charge more for allowing tethering on the iphone. It seems to me that this restriction is only possible where the handset manufacturer through software makes this feature available to the service provider? Without co-operative software the service provider would be unable to tell the difference between a phone requesting data and a phone requesting data on behalf of a tethered device? Therefore it would seem likely that there are handsets that could bypass tethering charges if there were any such charges?

When I looked a few months ago it seemed that all tethering required extra payments. Now it's unclear. Any mention of tethering charges seem to be related to the iphone only.

On O2, adding the Sony X10 to my basket on the €40 package, produced a "free" 3gb mobile broadband allowance.
On Vodafone, it's not at all clear. The iphone has an extra charge. Other smartphones I don't know.
On Meteor tethering is not mentioned at all.

I use Vodafone under PAYG, but want to switch to something with a data plan, and the possibility of tethering for accessing work on a netbook when travelling (I work in IT support). Just the possibility, it likely would be seldom used, so I don't want to pay €10 extra for it.

So, what is the general situation with tethering?

I'll add that my phone usage is very minimal, so it seems to me that the best deal is Meteor, who at least include free minutes in their €30 smartphone package. I expect that 1Gb allowance is more than enough.

Ix.

n900guy

"Tethering" is actually just dial-up networking, and is the same as it was in the 1960s; it doesn't need a 3G phone.

Any extra cost being charged is entirely made-up and a function of the network you are on. Restrictions on dial-up software can be implemented easily.

In reality, there is no actual reason for you not to be able to access dial-up networking from any phone (it doesn't have to be 3G) on any network. The problem is when you have limited software (iPhone) and network-specific firmware.

Each network therefore has decided it's own internal policy towards allowing dial-up networking or not, and whether they will charge for it. There is no actual extra cost to them if your SIM has an allowance of e.g., 1GB on it, whether that comes from you iPhone, or your ipHone acting as a dial-up modem for your computer. The only difference is whether you perceive it to be an extra service (it isn't) and so you may be happy to pay for it, or not.

Rsaeire

Tethering, as it is most commonly referred to in the US, is mostly referred to as using your "handset as a modem" over here. More of a mouthful, for sure, but you should be able to find more information using a different term than tethering; to be honest, the first time I heard the word tethering was with regard to using an iPhone as a modem and it seems to have stuck for that handset regardless of what country you're in.

Anyway, most handsets support the functionality and, as n900guy mentioned, you don't have to have a 3G handset, though it is better since it's faster.

drunkmonkey

So who charges and who doesn't?

I'm on 3 and got the 1Gb allowance with my iphone upgrade and I can confirm that the 1GB can be used to tether.

Can anyone confirm the rest of the networks?

ixtlan

drunkmonkey wrote: »

So who charges and who doesn't?

I'm on 3 and got the 1Gb allowance with my iphone upgrade and I can confirm that the 1GB can be used to tether.

Can anyone confirm the rest of the networks?

This is why I'm perplexed. Looking at O2 again...

If I choose a palm Pre and the €40 plan, it offers me this...

O2 Advance Tethering 1GB 1GB data add on for Internet Tethering which allows you to use your iPhone 3G or 3GS as a modem for your PC or Mac. This add on is designed to be used with iPhone devices only.

So is that just a mistake? I should assume that there is a tethering charge for everything? Not just the iphone? However I checked again adding the X10 and indeed it did say that a 3Gb add-on was free.

With Vodafone, selecting the HD touch pro2, with the €35 smartphone plan it offers me a "GPRS" add-on of 1Gb mobile internet for 9.99! That GPRS must be a left-over from years ago?!

Meteor also offer a "mobile internet add-on", but like the others it's unclear whether this is sloppy web-site management or a real charge for tethering. I say sloppy because if I select a phone with a 1Gb allowance it should be clear to users that it's not necessary to for example add another 250Mb. I mean maybe someone will want to do that but please make it clear. Otherwise you are left wondering whether that data allowance is different to the main allowance.

Ix.

ixtlan

This is complicated, and worthy of discussion. I assume that perhaps not that many people want tethering...

From looking at the O2 forums I see that many people were very upset when O2 switched on the tethering option for the iphone. This was because it used a different APN and many people received massive data charges when they tried it, unaware that it was not included in their normal download limit.

The O2 rep, in answer to "do non-iphones require tethering plans" responded "yes, they do". However a user commented that O2 was unable to determine if you were tethering, and hence in effect you did not need to pay extra for tethering.

Still puzzled.

Rsaeire

ixtlan wrote: »

This is complicated, and worthy of discussion. I assume that perhaps not that many people want tethering...

From looking at the O2 forums I see that many people were very upset when O2 switched on the tethering option for the iphone. This was because it used a different APN and many people received massive data charges when they tried it, unaware that it was not included in their normal download limit.

The O2 rep, in answer to "do non-iphones require tethering plans" responded "yes, they do". However a user commented that O2 was unable to determine if you were tethering, and hence in effect you did not need to pay extra for tethering.

Still puzzled.

When the Pre was launched it used the same tariffs as the iPhone, since it was a similar handset and offered, pretty much, the same features. As such, I would imagine that the tethering situation would be the same for it as it is with the iPhone.

With that said, O2 seem very eager to rip-off customers, in my opinion, when it comes to Internet connectivity so I wouldn't recommend using them, especially since their competitors offer easier solutions, e.g. Meteor.

justsomebloke

as far as I am aware is that Vodafone and O2 (not sure of meteor or 3) introduced tethering charges only when Apple provided tethering on the iphone and currently this is still the only phone that requires a separate tethering option in addition to a data bundle for the phone (this is purely a cash cow thing to get as much money from customers as possible). According to Comreg this is perfectly legal once they advertise that it is a separate rate.

So on any other phone you can tether once you are using the correct APN in accordance with your data bundle. If you are not using the correct APN you are liable to get charged an arm and a leg for the data you use with no comeback.

ixtlan

See posts 51 and 52

http://forums.o2online.ie/forums/showthread.php?8831-Tethering-charges-surprise/page4&highlight=tethering+phones

Someone asks if tethering is free (within the data allowance) for non-iphones, and the official O2 rep says that you must buy an add-on. Then later someone discusses how O2 just don't know if you are tethering with another phone.

This still is very confusing, especially when selecting non-iphones on the O2 site results in you being offered a data add-on which is described as for the iphone only!

Micilin Muc

I have a Nokia N96 which I tether to my laptop.

I pay €7.50 a month to access the Internet on the phone, which provides me with 250Mb. I have been tethering it for a few months now and I have not been charged extra (I have only used about 20Mb per month).

I would tell you what bill plan I have but the O2 website won't tell me.

drunkmonkey

Micilin Muc wrote: »

I would tell you what bill plan I have but the O2 website won't tell me.

You must know what contract you signed with o2?

Micilin Muc

drunkmonkey wrote: »

You must know what contract you signed with o2?

I pay about €45 a month for around 160 minutes or so, but I don't know what it's called, exactly, or how many minutes!

drunkmonkey

Micilin Muc wrote: »

I pay about €45 a month for around 160 minutes or so, but I don't know what it's called, exactly

a Ripoff?