Verizon's iPhone 4 Tethering Reality Check

Much ado was made over the hotspot feature of Verizon's version of the iPhone 4. However, some who may have thought the carrier was going to make this a standard feature may want to think again. A Verizon spokesperson has confirmed to Macworld that the tethering functionality would be an optional, extra-cost feature.

Verizon will charge an additional $20 per month, which will give the user 2GB of data to use (additional usage is charged at $20 per 1GB). This will be a separate data plan altogether, and follows pricing for tethering on other smart phones on the network that have the capability. While the charge may dampen the enthusiasm a bit, it's better than AT&T's tethering offering, which also costs $20 a month, but takes data of your iPhone data plan. That means you only have 2GB to use overall before you're socked with overage charges.

I wonder if AT&T will respond by changing its own tethering plan, but I'm not going to hold my breath.

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Windows Phone 7 and Tethering: It's On (Again)!

If you keep track of Windows Phone 7 (I try to), you know that it’s been and on and off relationship with tethering. I’m not personally interested in a WP7 phone myself, but if I was a lack of tethering would put a serious damper in my thinking. I carry around enough gear without needing a mifi or something as well, when plenty of phones offer tethering (albiet with draconian carrier leeching) via Wi-Fi or USB. Some feel differently about it and I can see the point, but I want my phone to still be the catch-all for my mobile internet. Thanks to dfvn of XDA-Developers, WP7 users may be able to have their cake and eat it too.

The instructions state that it works for the HD2 and the Mozart (both HTC), but I expect more phones to fall shortly. When the community at XDA gets their teeth on something, it’s as good as done. Love those peeps.

At first glance you might think the walk-through reads like VCR instructions, but give it a chance if you’re going to try it out. Read all of the replies first and then go through step by step. Don’t skip anything. (you will have to sign up at XDA in order to download the XAP file attached to the OP (original post). This is pretty straightforward compared to some of the hacks I’ve done to my old Palm Pre and more recently the growing farm of Android phones.

I love seeing the open community tinkering is ways that help the common people that just want to get online in the (slowly getting rare) places that don’t have in-house wi-fi. Or relatively secure wi-fi, that is. Kudos, dfvn, and to you also XDA!

Jason Kennedy lives in a world of danger and excitement, where tethering your laptop to your phone at every opportunity isn't just a convenience--it could save your life.

[xda-developers via Engadget]

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