September 07, 2010
By Lauren Penticost; edited by Natasha Dennis Do you have a brand new mobile phone with a speedy Internet connection? Chances are you're not making the most of your mobile data allowance every month - so why not spread your wings and share your phone's web connection with other devices? Let us introduce you to the wonderful world of tethering.
What is tethering? Simply put, tethering is sharing your cell handset's Internet connection with other gadgets, such as your laptop or even another smartphone. It's a relatively new phenomenon, as until quite recently mobile broadband speeds simply weren't fast enough to make it worthwhile trying to piggy-back a laptop on the back of the connection. With the rise of speedy 3G mobile Internet, however, mobile broadband connections now have plenty of juice to have several devices using it at once.
The benefits of tethering But what can tethering offer you in real terms? Surely a conventional router-based Internet setup that connects to the web via your phone line is better? In many cases it is, but tethering offers several features that a traditional Internet connection doesn't. For starters, there's the potential for cost-cutting. If you aren't a heavy Internet user, forking out for both home broadband and mobile broadband might be a waste. If you're already paying for a mobile Internet connection on your phone, why not simply use it for all your needs?
Born free More importantly, mobile broadband doesn't tie you down to one place - wherever you go, your Internet connection goes. So long as you've got a 3G signal, you'll have the web right at your fingertips ready to go. Tethering also provides a potential workaround for the small percentage of homes that still aren't able to receive home broadband - it certainly beats having to rely on a pedestrian dial-up connection.
Getting started So what do you need to get started? Well, a web-enabled phone is an obvious place to start, and ideally both your phone and laptop should have Wi-Fi or Bluetooth on board so that they can communicate with each other wirelessly. If not, you'll be restricted to connecting them up via a USB cable. Make sure that your mobile phone contract actually allows tethering. If it doesn't, you could risk violating the terms of your contract and be cut off. Also, check how much data usage your contract allows you per month. Most smartphone contracts these days offer unlimited data - but be aware that this is within a "fair usage" policy, which can vary in its range. Most "unlimited" deals should be plenty for most web tasks, such as checking email and streaming content - be aware that downloading music or movies will see your usage jump considerably, so check the file size on anything you download before you begin. Whatever contract you have, find out your limits - data use becomes exorbitantly expensive once you've gone over your usage. Depending on your network, you may need to purchase a mobile data "bolt on" - an allowance of data set aside specifically for the purposes of tethering. Again, check what the limits are.
Setting up tethering Each phone will differ slightly in the way it sets up tethering, but most will follow the same principles, and these pointers should help. Most phones offer Bluetooth, USB or Wi-Fi tethering. The first step is to switch on Internet Tethering, which can usually be found in most handsets' settings menu, under "Network". If you're using Bluetooth, remember to activate it on both your mobile and your laptop or PC - the exact procedure differs from one machine to the next - and once the two sides are paired, you're good to go. If tethering using USB, start by physically hooking up your phone to your computer using a USB cable. In the case of a Mac, the connection should configure automatically without you having to do anything further. On a PC, you'll need to go into Control Panel and set the connection up yourself in the Network section.
Set the web free Now you're ready to start using tethering. Whether you're using it instead of a traditional Internet connection, or to browse using your smartphone and laptop team on the go, you'll find that after a simple set-up tethering can add a whole new dimension to your Internet usage - and unleash your smartphone's true potential.
