Forum Discussion

ronmc's avatar
ronmc
Explorer
Aug 08, 2015

Hot Spot with cell. phone?

How do you use a cell. phone as a hot spot? Does it require extra equipment?

19 Replies

  • Definitely keep it plugged in if possible or you will indeed have a flat battery sooner than you might imagine.
  • wa8yxm's avatar
    wa8yxm
    Explorer III
    ronmc wrote:
    How do you use a cell. phone as a hot spot? Does it require extra equipment?


    Alas the answer is "It depends"

    On my Samsung Galaxy S-5 with T-mobile.... I just turn on the app which was included withe the phone Same with my older S-III and the newer S-6

    Other phones and other carriers it may vary Some, used to charge for tethering and hot-spotting (At leat one got slapped by the FCC for double dipping since you paid for the data and then Paid AGAIN to send it to your laptop).

    I do not know if they still do that.

    But the make/model of the phone matters, Some can not do it. Mine can.
  • Big Katuna wrote:
    It may require a plan change. ATT charges for it.
    My wife's iphone doesn't have that plan. Mine does. It's $15 more a month.


    We have AT&T share plan and there is no additional charge for using our phones as a hotspot. You might want to check into a new plan. We use our iPhones to allow our iPads to connect to the Internet and it works well most of the time. Sometimes it takes several attempts to get the iPads to connect to the iPhone.
  • Be conscious that sometimes using a phone as a hotspot over time can make it get very "hot", that's why some folks that do this have a secondary phone for that purpose alone and that it drains battery quicker typically.

    Just saying.
  • Big Katuna wrote:
    It may require a plan change. ATT charges for it.
    My wife's iphone doesn't have that plan. Mine does. It's $15 more a month.


    Yes, some providers charge extra. It will definitely make your phone run out of a charge faster.
  • It may require a plan change. ATT charges for it.
    My wife's iphone doesn't have that plan. Mine does. It's $15 more a month.
  • WOW--Ore-gun, I learn something every day. So simple!! Does it use my data or my "talk time"?
  • If you have a smart phone you simply look in settings for wifi hotspot. Turn it on. Exactly how or where depends on phone and OS. If you have a dumb phone you cant.

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