Tethering

[TW]Fox

[TW]Fox

[TW]Fox

Man of Honour
Joined
17 Oct 2002
Posts
160,196
Yes, its that annoyingly controversial topic once again.

I've always Tethered, ever since I've had a mobile phone. Right back as far as 2000 I was 'tethering' my Psion 5mx to my Nokia 7110. Lovely.

It's now becoming increasingly more difficult to do, presumably because of people who con mobile networks by using 3g instead of a home broadband connection.

I don't actually tether much - infact last month, I used only 160mb of data through tethering. Thats all I want and need. I don't want to stream, I don't want to download. All I use it for is browsing the internet on my iPad Mini or my laptop when I'm either travelling by train or staying in hotels. Consequently, my usage is low - low enough that it makes zero difference to my network but not low enough that I would want to give it up. It's an essential part of my mobile package.

My current package does allow it, which is nice. And previously i've used networks which say its against the T&C's without any issues, presumably because they could only detect it by suspecting people who download tons of stuff, which I don't.

I'm looking into a new package for a HTC One and it seems almost everyone either bans it outright or charges a ridiculous amount of money for it - so much that it works out a complete ripoff for somebody like me who only wants to use 200mb a month tops.

So, what is the situation now on a network by network basis regarding Tethering? How can they detect it? Do they detect it? Who allows it?

Even T-Mobile now ban it on the Full Monty package.

The other thing I don't get is why they even care if you not on an unlimited data package? If you get 1gb a month does it really matter whether you use that 1gb for some tethering or not? It's still 1gb. I don't fully understand why its banned at all, except for on unlimited packages where obviously it seems the minority have spoiled it for the majority.

I can also find absolutely no justification why its totally acceptable for me to put a SIM card into a 3g Ipad and do 250mb of browsing but if I tether a Wifi only iPad to a smartphone and do the same 250mb of browsing then suddenly thats the end of the world for which I must be either banned from doing or charged a fortune? Whats the rationale?
 
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The £10 giffgaff goodybag allows tethering (1Gb)

Three one plan still allows tethering, but it's £25 but unlimited.
Although you can buy a tethering add on for their other plans iirc ~£6pm

Aren't you on virgin mobile?
If so you can still tether, it's just new customers who don't, but 3.5GB FUP

"For new & upgrading customers from 24 January 2013: If your tariff includes data, then this is for mobile internet services and data consumption actually on your handset. It does not include using your handset as a modem to connect other devices such as laptops and tablets - also known as "Tethering"."

"For customers who joined Virgin Media after 25 June 2012 excessive use over 3.5GB of data per calendar month will result in their maximum bandwidth being restricted to 3G speeds (384kbit/s downstream, 200kbit/s upstream) on our network between midday and midnight. For customers who joined before 25 June 2012 excessive use over 2GB of data per calendar month will result in this restriction being applied. This policy will apply until the end of the calendar month, when it will be automatically removed. We reserve the right to review these usage levels from time to time. At this reduced speed, customers will still be able to browse web pages, send/receive emails, and stream audio and video all at 3G data speeds, but peer-to-peer and large file downloads/uploads will be slower than normal."
Click to expand...
 
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Yes, I'm fine right now. But when I move networks to get a new HTC One, I won't be.

Which is the problem.

I'd happily give up unlimited internet in favour of it - I don't use more than 1-1.5gb a month and only about 10% of that is tethering. If I've paid for 1gb a month of data, for example, then frankly I don't understand the justification for not letting me use it as I please and then cutting me off, as agreed, at 1gb.

Things like the Wifi iPad Mini are worthless paperweights without tethering. I'm not even sure how it can be detected - whats the difference between a 3g ipad and a wifi tethered iPad? Why does it matter?

Sounds like I've no choice but to just hang onto this Virgin account I've got and buy phones SIM free..
 
If you only use 200min three £12.9/m is the best one data wise so far. Try if tethering works first as some user has reported that it works without tethering plan. Otherwise buy the £5 tethering add on for a month then disable it after the first month and it might still be enabled. I've personally done this.

Edit: while tethering didn't work for laptops etc it worked fine with nexus7 without tethering plan. Only buy the £5 add on if you going to use it with laptops etc.
 
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There is no justification.
As you say a Gb a Gb why does it matter how you use it.

I think it's better going sim free, you aren't tied into a contract. But it is a much more expensive upfront cost.
 
I think they are just being lazy - I appreciate that there are people out there who will tether non-stop and shift gigs and gigs of data. It's easier to deal with them by just banning tethering for everyone. Which is a shame as it irritates the many legitimate customers with Wifi tablets who use only a small amount of data each month.
 
That only accounts for unlimited data tarrifs though, which are thin on the ground anyway.
If you have a set limit, you can't download loads, unless you pay through the nose for extra.
 
So why do they all ban it? Especially with Wifi tablets being popular now. Surely the quicker you munch through your 1Gb package the quicker they can charge you for more data, which you'd think they would want.

It seems to get treated like its some sort of evil dark art.
 
I have no idea. And totally agree they should support it, they would make more money.

It's just like they are behind the times and can't think straight. But that seems very popular with companies these days, just live in the past and resist moving with the times.
 
I can't imagine not having it and paying £5 a month to use 100mb of data a few times a month tops would just wind me up, so I guess I'll go with a SIM Free One.
 
Orange look so comically uncompetitive I wonder why anyone uses them. Cheapest plan with more than 1Gb of data - offering 2gb - is £41 a month!
 
How exactly do the networks block tethering? I rarely use tethering but agree that it is useful when required. Both my latest SIMO contracts - Three @ £12 a month rolling and T-Mobile 12 month £16 a month jobby - have allowed tethering on my 4S. I haven't read the T&Cs associated with tethering but I'm not sure how they disable tethering in the first place? Is it a SIM setting that the phone looks at to disable that feature?

Technically speaking, the networks will not be able to easily distinguish traffic from the device itself and tethering. Similarly, your home ISP cannot easily distinguish between multiple devices connected to your home wifi - they all get fused via NAT and other geeky stuff.

EDIT: Hmm it seems some phones use a different access point for tethering data hence how a network can determine what is what. Sounds bizarre- I'd have thought that tethering is just another implementation of a router, I assume that's what all the rooted/jailbreak tethering applications do.
 
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megakid said:
How exactly do the networks block tethering? I rarely use tethering but agree that it is useful when required. Both my latest SIMO contracts - Three @ £12 a month rolling and T-Mobile 12 month £16 a month jobby - have allowed tethering on my 4S. I haven't read the T&Cs associated with tethering but I'm not sure how they disable tethering in the first place? Is it a SIM setting that the phone looks at to disable that feature?

Technically speaking, the networks will not be able to easily distinguish traffic from the device itself and tethering. Similarly, your home ISP cannot easily distinguish between multiple devices connected to your home wifi - they all get fused via NAT and other geeky stuff.
Click to expand...

I believe the built in tethering on iPhone broadcasts to the network that you are tethering. Not sure if Android does but I'm sure there are ways of picking up tethering traffic.
 
dasyad said:
I believe the built in tethering on iPhone broadcasts to the network that you are tethering. Not sure if Android does but I'm sure there are ways of picking up tethering traffic.
Click to expand...

Well other than using a different tethering APN, one way to detect tethering traffic would be TTL in the packet headers but I meant more how do they disable the feature on the phone? Or can't they?

I only say this because I'm sure on my first contract with my 4S (can't remember who with), I didn't even have the option to tether?
 
On apple they can bar the feature and then you can't even see the option.
On other devices if they spot you or assume you are doing it, they just ban you.
 
You can get apps if you're rooted on android to hide any traces of tethering - obviously I don't know how you'd do that on an apple device.
 
If you could point me toward such an app I would be delighted, because I can't find one, and I would like to tether my Nexus 7 on my S3 on the full monty without using a VPN, as I have to at the moment.
 
Google play - user agent switcher for chrome. There is one called "free browser" too which I believe does user agent switching.

It basically spoofs the tether device that you're not using a mobile browser.

Not sure what networks it works on - depends how clever the network is.

I think t-mobile are quite hot on this:

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2063043
 
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