AT&T Tethering, iPads not welcome

scottjl · 06-03-2010, 10:29 PM

http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/03/s...e-to-the-ipad/

Seems the new AT&T tethering, doesn't allow for wi-fi tethering, USB and Bluetooth only, which leaves the iPad out. No acting as a WiFi hotspot either.

That is without jailbreaking and using MyWi..

VictoriaP · 06-04-2010, 12:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scottjl

http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/03/s...e-to-the-ipad/

Seems the new AT&T tethering, doesn't allow for wi-fi tethering, USB and Bluetooth only, which leaves the iPad out. No acting as a WiFi hotspot either.

That is without jailbreaking and using MyWi..

Stupid that they're requiring you be on the 2 gig plan AND pay the additional $20, yet they won't open it up to Bluetooth tethering.

I'm hoping they don't find a way to halt the JB/MyWi option. There are those of us for whom tethering is an occasional only thing, who aren't going to hogging massive amounts of bandwidth, and therefore spending the extra for the 3G iPad just doesn't make sense.

For me, the only time I need 3G is when I travel--maybe 3 times a year at most--and during that, we're talking a little surfing and email. I don't even hit 250 MB on my iPhone in a heavy usage month--the 3G iPad would have been massive overkill for me.

scottjl · 06-04-2010, 12:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VictoriaP

Stupid that they're requiring you be on the 2 gig plan AND pay the additional $20, yet they won't open it up to Bluetooth tethering.

I think you misunderstood. Bluetooth and USB tethering are enabled, Wi-Fi tethering is not. Since the iPad does not support Bluetooth tethering, you can not link an iPad to an iPhone to surf the web. Not without using something like MyWi, which does Wi-Fi tethering.

Stupid move by AT&T, but not at all surprising.

dmaul1114 · 06-04-2010, 01:42 AM

Yeah, I think it's two things probably.

1. AT&T's data network (and network in general) just isn't great and just can't handle all this data traffic so they're hoping to drive heavy users (and tethering is heavier use typically than phone only use) away.

2. Apple has probably made it clear that they won't sign another exclusivity agreement for iPhone when the deal is up in 2012 (they'd be stupid to since going to more carriers allows them to sell more hardware), so AT&T isn't going to cater to them at all and doesn't care about pissing them or their fans off anymore.

VictoriaP · 06-04-2010, 04:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scottjl

I think you misunderstood. Bluetooth and USB tethering are enabled, Wi-Fi tethering is not. Since the iPad does not support Bluetooth tethering, you can not link an iPad to an iPhone to surf the web. Not without using something like MyWi, which does Wi-Fi tethering.

Stupid move by AT&T, but not at all surprising.

Chalk my reply up to a bad headache; I left off "between the iPhone and iPad." My bad. Of course, it's not in AT&T's best interests to have the iPad tethered to an iPhone. They want you to buy two data plans.

And no, it's really not surprising at all, though the timing was sooner than it expected. Problem is, it takes time to upgrade network infrastructure, and AT&T's 3G rep already stinks in much of the country. The demand on their system probably shows quite a spike for May and will only get worse with the new iPhone. This appears to be a preemptive move to try and ease some of that congestion by weeding out the biggest users.

Gaurnim · 06-04-2010, 06:08 AM

It's funny how the replies in this thread don't match what's said in the article.
According to engadget :

Quote:

That's clearly not AT&T's fault, it's Apple's -- the iPhone inexplicably supports only USB and Bluetooth for sharing its internet connection

Quote:

And as long as you're paying the tethering fee, there's no reason why AT&T wouldn't want you tethering the iPad

EDIT :
I'm no specialist of AT&T or Apple devices, so maybe the article has its facts wrong, I can't tell, but I found the differences pretty striking.

lilman · 06-05-2010, 10:41 AM

Hmm, seems rather sketchy to blame Apple for this. Even if the current iPhone os doesn't allow wifi tethering, Apple, knowing that a tethering option is being added to AT&T plans, could easily include this feature in os 4. I don't see the incentive from Apple's pov not to allow wifi tethering... I would say AT&T is behind this.

scottjl · 06-05-2010, 10:49 AM

it certainly isn't a technical limitation as MyWi implements this feature just fine. Unless Apple does implement it in 4.0 it will be yet another thing that "Droid Does" that the iPhone won't, one that many technology savvy people are not going to overlook. Add in that AT&T is charging a $20 "convenience charge" for tethering and they just look like the greedy corporation that they are.

kjk · 06-05-2010, 02:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scottjl

it certainly isn't a technical limitation as MyWi implements this feature just fine. Unless Apple does implement it in 4.0 it will be yet another thing that "Droid Does" that the iPhone won't, one that many technology savvy people are not going to overlook. Add in that AT&T is charging a $20 "convenience charge" for tethering and they just look like the greedy corporation that they are.

I agree. Very lame of both Apple and AT&T.

06-03-2010, 10:29 PM	#1
scottjl Reader of Books Posts: 1,632 Karma: 2697 Join Date: Oct 2009 Device: none	AT&T Tethering, iPads not welcome http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/03/s...e-to-the-ipad/ Seems the new AT&T tethering, doesn't allow for wi-fi tethering, USB and Bluetooth only, which leaves the iPad out. No acting as a WiFi hotspot either. That is without jailbreaking and using MyWi..

06-05-2010, 10:41 AM	#7
lilman Addict Posts: 326 Karma: 960 Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Florida, US Device: Kindle DX, iPad	Hmm, seems rather sketchy to blame Apple for this. Even if the current iPhone os doesn't allow wifi tethering, Apple, knowing that a tethering option is being added to AT&T plans, could easily include this feature in os 4. I don't see the incentive from Apple's pov not to allow wifi tethering... I would say AT&T is behind this. Last edited by lilman; 06-05-2010 at 10:43 AM.

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06-04-2010, 01:42 AM	#4
dmaul1114 Wizard Posts: 2,300 Karma: 1121709 Join Date: Feb 2009 Device: Amazon Kindle 1	Yeah, I think it's two things probably. 1. AT&T's data network (and network in general) just isn't great and just can't handle all this data traffic so they're hoping to drive heavy users (and tethering is heavier use typically than phone only use) away. 2. Apple has probably made it clear that they won't sign another exclusivity agreement for iPhone when the deal is up in 2012 (they'd be stupid to since going to more carriers allows them to sell more hardware), so AT&T isn't going to cater to them at all and doesn't care about pissing them or their fans off anymore.

06-05-2010, 10:49 AM	#8
scottjl Reader of Books Posts: 1,632 Karma: 2697 Join Date: Oct 2009 Device: none	it certainly isn't a technical limitation as MyWi implements this feature just fine. Unless Apple does implement it in 4.0 it will be yet another thing that "Droid Does" that the iPhone won't, one that many technology savvy people are not going to overlook. Add in that AT&T is charging a $20 "convenience charge" for tethering and they just look like the greedy corporation that they are.

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