

Confirmed: Personal Hotspot feature coming to all iPhones in iOS 4.3 - Void_
http://www.bgr.com/2011/01/12/confirmed-personal-hotspot-feature-coming-to-all-iphones-in-ios-4-3/

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smackfu
Is "confirmed" really the right word to use when its one anonymous source?

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amackera
But they had a screenshot! </sarcasm>

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d2viant
As an alternative to waiting for this official release, jailbroken iPhones
have been able to do this for a while now, with no tethering fees from your
carrier.

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vinhboy
The term "HotSpot" bothers me..

1) because its more descriptive to call it WiFi Router 2) calling it HotSpot
means they get to tact on another fee for that feature. Maybe something like:
$14 - for tethering enabled, another $20 - to enabled HotSpot.

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elai
It's just a name. They could call it wifi router and still charge you $20.

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extension
Can I assume that my unlocked iPhone 4 bought straight from Apple will let me
use this with any carrier? (in Canada)

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ajg1977
Afraid not. Unlocked just means you can use whatever GSM carrier you wish.
Carrier-dependent features (MMS, tethering) are controlled by IPCC files
(known as 'Carrier Updates') which are downloaded depending on the carrier you
are using.

In the old days (3.0 and below) you could get access to features unsupported
by AT&T (MMS, tethering..) by modifying a carrier file and applying it to your
phone via iTunes, no jailbreak required. As of 3.1 however these files are now
signed to prevent tampering.

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semanticist
I just this morning created a new carrier file with APN settings - including
turning on tethering - for my iPhone, since my network in the UK apparently
fiddled some settings somewhere and my iPhone had no internet access
yesterday.

Signing doesn't appear to be an issue.

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yesimahuman
Any idea if this will be an extra service and cost like tethering? The article
is light on details.

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RyanMcGreal
You have to pay extra for tethering on an iPhone?

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_djo_
Only in the US, to my knowledge.

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cryptoz
Canada too, with Rogers. Tethering is not allowed on the default data plan
(500MB). You have to pay for 1GB (an extra $10 or $15 / month, I think) if you
want to tether. I tether all the time and only use about 300MB of my 1GB plan,
so I get really pissed when they use their excuse that "you need to have a
full 1GB to tether or you'll run out!!11!". Fuck Rogers.

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simonk
Yeah but your paying for more bandwidth, in the U.S. you pay and get nothing
for it.

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cryptoz
Well, not really. I don't use the extra bandwidth provided, nor do I want it.
The only reason I pay the fee is to tether, and I gain no other advantages
from that. Sure, my limit is higher and many others might enjoy the extra
breathing room, but on a personal note, I only pay the extra fee in order to
tether.

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tocomment
Is there anyway to do this with the HTC incredible on Verizon?

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r3demon
Very nice news! Seems Apple taking competition seriously this time.

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joebananas
So I guess 3G iPad sales are about to drop?

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dedward
Probably not... using the iPhone as a wifi AP is going to drain the battery
even faster, and one would imagine there are a lot of people who want an ipad
but not an iphone.

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mcdowall
I have the iPad Wifi only version, I did purchase an HTC Desire to tether but
the battery life was just abysmal so sent it back for an iPhone4. If tethering
on my iPhone has any similar type of effect on battery life as it did on my
HTC I just won't bother paying the extra tariffs.

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uxp
I tether my iPhone 3G to my MacBook Pro on occasion and never have any worry
about battery drainage. When wired, I'm also constantly charging while it's
tethered over USB, which is irrelevant for iPad tethering.

When I do have to wirelessly tether it, I'm usually not connected for more
than an hour, and it is honestly equivalent to watching an hour long movie in
iTunes or playing a game for an hour.

I honestly don't understand why tethering gets such a bad rap for battery
drainage, when from my experience, _using_ the phone drains it just as
quickly. Sure, it uses the network more heavily, but it shouldn't be doing a
whole lot more.

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drivebyacct2
Why is this news? I thought this had been available on AT&T for sometime...
and Verizon has had this feature for well over a year (really, longer for
plain ole tethering) on Android phones.

Or is it just the distinction between tethering and "personal hotspot"? I
suppose I'm used to my free "Wireless Tether" as "tethering" where it more
meets Apple and Verizon's description of "personal hotspot".

Whatever, they just want to call it that to make it seem more justifiable that
VZW's going to charge extra for it.

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kordless
You could tether one computer via cable or Bluetooth. This is up to 5 with
wifi.

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mechanical_fish
And this almost certainly means that I can finally tether the wifi iPad to the
iPhone, an inexplicable omission that has always been annoying.

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quattrofan
Where Android leads, iOS follows. Welcome to the future.

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xutopia
I'll remind you that the iPhone paved the way for the generation of smart
phones that Android is a part of.

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quattrofan
I agree with that statement, however the situation has now reversed.
Disclaimer: I own an iPad and an Android phone. I still prefer Android over
iOS, its faster and its more flexible.

