Due to a change in employment, I no longer have full Internet access during the day (webmail, Facebook, Youtube, etc. are blocked). I’d like to be able to access my webmail in particular on breaks, and have a netbook, but there are no wireless hotspots nearby. So, I’m looking at options for Sprint phones that will enable me to use the phone as a modem, ideally without an additional fee (I understand Sprint will sell this to you, but some phones have third party apps available that will do it without fee).
I’d like to keep with Sprint due to a substantial discount I get with this provider (25% off the plan cost).
Does anyone know which phones will have an application available for tethering without using Sprint’s option (an additional $25 per month, which sort of destroys the discount I get)?
If no third party options are practical, is another provider cheaper?
Many providers used to let you tether and give you 1x speed for free or for plan minutes (meaning if you had free nights and weekends, knock yourself out).
But with the advent of smartphones this is more and more rare. I would check HowardForums. There’s probably a forum there that deals specifically with tethering with sprint plans/phones.
Your best bet is to search the sprint users forum for tethering threads. They’re at www.sprintusers.com and they have a ton of stuff like that. It ranges, depending on your device, from using apps, to disabling certain features of the phone(usually requiring getting your phone’s service password), to phones which can’t be tethered at all.
I have a BB Storm through Verizon. I have a data plan for the phone.
I have a netbook and wanted to use the Storm as a modem. Verizon said that the only way I could do it was to buy an additional plan for the netbook above and beyond the Storm. $30 more a month (my existing plan is for unlimited data for the Storm [no choice through Verizon])
Hmmm.
I found a program that allows you to connect to the Storm via USB and use your net book as a ‘dumb’ terminal. You can try it for free, or pay ~$25 for it.
I use it rarely, but have not seen any additional charges on my Verizon account. As I mentioned, I already pay for an unlimited data plan for the Storm.
Google PdaNet if you are interested. A company called JuneFabrics.
Disclaimer – I assume this is legal as I do have an unlimited data plan and the data is being transferred through my Storm. What I do with the data after I get it is none of Verizon’s business IMHO. YMMV.
Tetherberry.com has a one time $50 charge for their software. You can even try it free for seven days to make sure it works with your phone/plan. The guy at the Verizon store actually told me I should use it and that I’d be an idiot to sign up for Verizon’s rip off tethering program with recurring $30 monthly charges