Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

MacRumors

macrumors bot
Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
66,673
36,015



145635-tether2_220.png

  
145546-tether1_220.jpg


One developer was "hacking around" with some carrier bundle files and iPhone 3.0 and somehow managed to activate the tethering preferences. Not only that, he was also able to actually tether his iPhone 3G to his laptop over USB. Based on the preference panel, it appears that you will be able to tether via USB or Bluetooth.

Tethering is a feature that allows you to share your iPhone's internet connection with your laptop, but has not been an allowed feature up until iPhone 3.0. Even with iPhone 3.0, mobile carriers generally charge an extra fee in the U.S. to allow tethering access.

Apple admitted that they had built in tethering support into the 3.0 release but had not yet coordinated with mobile carriers.

Article Link: USB Tethering Working on iPhone 3.0
 
Well, it's proof that they were telling the truth.

I didn't doubt them, but I'm sure this will convince others who may have been more skeptical.

I'm still betting AT&T will charge another $30 for tethering on top of your normal data plan, so don't hold your breath on this being a popular "killer feature."
 
Yep. It's there.

And it will be a separate charge unless ATT and Apple change things compared to ATT's current data plan.


I'll be signing up on day 1 btw. Looking forward to it.
 
All this means is that the software is there. It doesn't mean that AT&T is going to allow it.

P-Worm

AT&T has tethering options for all other smartphones. I'm sure they'll be happy to take your money

Tethering cost: $30/month extra.

arn
 
This always made me nervous as the little kiddies hog the airwaves.

I just hope ATT can shut them down by charging for heavy use.

don't know.

But I remember a few years back this was a serious point of contention.

I don't use this feature often , just in emergencies.

So You wouldn't want the 911 lines to be busy when you need them right? :D
 
Appx. 30$ US for the dataplan unless I am mistaken, (this is what I saw for the blackberry at least)
Rogers Canada has most of us on the 6GB plan which was an extra 30bucks a month. Ive never gone past 1GB ever! To get to 1GB I had leave last.FM on almost every day during work hours. I dont even have time to listen to that much music :p Do I welcome this...uh huh ;)
 
Cool Stuff.

It's not worth $30/month for me, but I could see myself using it if I was in the mountains or something for a few days. Then I'd cancel the tethering service.
 
Does ATT charge extra to surf and email on the blackberry on top of 30 dollars to tether?

Yes, the $30 unlimited internet for iPhone is the same rate that they charge for other smartphones.

An additional $30 for tethering on other smartphones. This hasn't been on option for the iPhone yet.

arn
 
I just hope that all of these companies realize that on an "unlimited" plan (even if it is a soft-cap of 5GB) a few hundred megs or even 1 or 2GB of tethered traffic isn't going to make much of a difference and not charge for light tethering. Especially if you're not going over the 5GB soft-cap anyway.

Hopefully the app works without a tethering plan and i can use ~1GB per month tethered without incurring additional charges. Or AT&T can tier their data plans and combine handset and tethered data: $30 for 5GB, $45 for 10GB and $60 for unlimited.
 
How would they charge for use of it if it is already included in the OS on the phone? Would ATT somehow be able to tell that you were tethering to your computer rather than surfing the net in your phone's browser? Or would they simply rely on you going over your "unlimited data" cap of 5 GBs?
 
I guess the function is disabled (like emoji ar Street View on iPod touch), so its only matter of time, or a Cydia "plugin" and its active...
 
Does ATT charge extra to surf and email on the blackberry on top of 30 dollars to tether?

For AT&T's other smartphones, they charge $30/month for a data plan which you can only use on your phone, and an additional $30/month if you want to tether your phone to your laptop. I see no reason why they'd do anything different for the iPhone.
 
Tethering is a feature that allows you to share your iPhone's internet connection with your laptop, but has not been an allowed feature up until iPhone 3.0. Even with iPhone 3.0, mobile carriers generally charge an extra fee in the U.S. to allow tethering access.

T-Mobile US does not charge extra for tethering.

I've been tethering my Macs to my phones on T-Mobile for years.
 
awww.. boo. I was really hoping you could tether over wireless. By that I mean have the iphone act as an AP. Even if it couldn't directly act as an AP, it would be great to have it be able to broadcast itself over Bonjour and then your PC/Mac can see it and use it as a bridge that way.
 
now some tethering between my mobile phone and ipod touch.... oh i would love that sooo much. (yes bluetooth will be enable in ipod touch 2g)
 
For AT&T's other smartphones, they charge $30/month for a data plan which you can only use on your phone, and an additional $30/month if you want to tether your phone to your laptop. I see no reason why they'd do anything different for the iPhone.

I'm hoping they're overcome with a newfound and overwhelming feeling of generosity.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.