Phones with wi-fi connectivity

[Joe_Fox]

Hi, me again.

Does anyone know the answer to this:

If I buy a phone that has wi-fi connectivity and on a contract with unlimited internet, can I then use this phone as a modem/dongle for internet access on my laptop?

If so, how does this work exactly?

Thanks,
Joe

 

[Jeff]

Hi, me again.

Does anyone know the answer to this:

If I buy a phone that has wi-fi connectivity and on a contract with unlimited internet, can I then use this phone as a modem/dongle for internet access on my laptop?

If so, how does this work exactly?

Thanks,
Joe

You won't get "unlimited" internet.

It's dead easy to use a phone as a modem, but most contracts won't allow it because the "unlimited" broadband use is based on mobile phone usage, not the amount you'd use on a laptop.

 

[Han]

For iPhone, there is a bolt-on with o2 to use it as a modem. Quite expensive i think - about £15.00 a month for 3gb limit (may be less).

I used it when moving house while we had no internet.

 

[Matt_B]

If you buy an Android phone you have to "root it" to do internet tethering, which is what you would need to do. Not illegal (as far as I am aware) but willl probably void any warranty on the phone and may breach your contract with the provider. I haven't done mine so can't comment on speed etc.

 

[Joe_Fox]

You won't get "unlimited" internet.

It's dead easy to use a phone as a modem, but most contracts won't allow it because the "unlimited" broadband use is based on mobile phone usage, not the amount you'd use on a laptop.

how do you do it then webbo?

 

[Jeff]

how do you do it then webbo?

It depends on the phone. Nokia phones have PC connection software that will let you use the phone to connect to the internet, I've done it using bluetooth and using a cable, presumably it's also possible with wi-fi.

 

[Joe_Fox]

You said it was dead easy, so I presumed you had done it using wi-fi.