By 
AT&T’s just announced plans to bring out their mobile hotspot app to coincide with the launch of their first 4G phone, the HTC Inspire 4G. Folks will have to pay $20 for the privilege, but there are a couple of interesting perks that go along with this. The hotspot plan comes with an extra 2GB worth of data that can be combined with your current data plan. Essentially, you’d be paying $45 for a 4GB data plan that you can use to surf on your phone or tether to a WiFi-enabled device. ($25 for 2GB plus $20 for mobile hotspot and 2GB.) Make more sense of it if you’re still confused at AT&T’s site.
Yay! 4 WHOLE GIGS!!?!? That’ll last me like, one day :)
Yeah, you won’t be able to replace your home internet connection with it but it is still good if you are on-the-go. Then again, I can root the device and use Android’s built in mobile hotspot (infact since I didn’t buy the device from AT&T, this can be utilized without root) while continuing to use my unlimited data plan lol (tho I am not a heavy user on mobile network, mostly on WiFi so I can probably still do this and get away with a 2GB data plan when I do upgrade my phone).
Also $45 for a tethering plan is probably cheaper than any other carrier and I know that Sprint/Verizon have a 5GB cap for 3G (they say “unlimited” but it isn’t exactly true, not sure about 4G)
Pros. They up’d the limit.
Cons. It’s not enough.
I’ve been on AT&T since AT&T Wireless days. I have zero complaints with coverage, speeds, etc., and I was using data when 95% of the people on here were not. I was tethering with infrared and some really blazing speeds 7 or 8 years ago. I understand that it is unrealistic for ‘unlimited’, particularly when mobile hotspots could really eat up bandwidth. I like T-Mobile’s approach to non-unlimited with throttling the best for limited data. It makes more sense that if you are not unlimited, we’ll let you keep going, just not as fast so that we can curb the heavy abusers. OR.. charge $49.99 for 10 GB or something. But people are fearful of the word “overage” and will do about anything to avoid them.
If tethering was holding back ATT android phones from receiving the official 2.2 updates, this may be a good sign of things to come!
And considering its $60 for 5GB on a Data card alone, 4gb at $45 with $10/G overage is pretty damn good!
LMAO!
Root your device: Free
Add Wireless Tether to your device: Free
Utilizing unlimited internet to its potential: Free (minus the obvious monthly charge)
I cross 5gigs on verizon every month. No cap.
For the 99% of average consumers who don’t know how to root their phone, Nexus One or Nexus S with T-mobile cost $20/month for data and tethering together. Try again AT&T.
@Bob – I was thinking the same thing. Maybe the Froyo update is imminent.
Does at&t have an unlimited data plan for the upcoming 4G android smartphones?
i can see a lot of people living at&t, they are no longer the only game in town, and if they do not change to the unlimited data plan is going to get ugly for them.
As I was playing with the Android Market Website tonight I ran across a couple of apps that claim to provide tethering without needing to root.
Anyone have any comments or experience with these? Are they worth it?
@bob-I paid for the full version of PdaNet and it is useful since the free version does not load secured websites. ALOT of data can be consumed. I easily use 3-4gb per month with only an hour per day average of surfing. Sprint has yet to cap my usage or charge for going over 5 gb (finals week with lots of research and internet breaks).
HOW BOUT JUST GIVE US OUR FUCKING UNLIMITED DATA FOR 29.99$ AT&T?! You’re just going to over charge us for data everyone that have a Android device uses more than 2GB. STOP BEING SO DAMN GREEDY.
Lol LMAO LOL ROFLMFAO HOOOOOOOLLLLY SH*T LOL is this a joke lol this IS a joke right??? These carriers are raping the lining out of you a*sholes
Also there are plenty of tethering apps on the market. Other carriers such as sprint Verizon and T-Mobile offer a thing called unlimited internet. My nexus one on at&t has built in tethering with unlimited internet for 30 bucks because I was grandfathered in but if I was shopping around for carriers I WOULD STAY FAR AWAY FROM AT&T they suck! And whoever buys one of these plans is an idiot
Stock android comes with built in tethering
…And this is why Android 2.2 was held back on the Captivate.
I hate you, AT&T (hate Samsung as well for poor support).
@Ace Curry (and anyone else who isn’t in the know), T-Mobile offers unlimited internet and does not neuter USB or WiFi tethering offered stock by Android (also read as no root required) without charging anything extra beyond whatever data plan you pay for. There is still an unlimited data plan available for $29.99 with T-Mobile. More than I can say for AT&T. And not to add to the insult but their 3G right now is a lot faster than AT&T’s (and Verizon’s for you suckers that love iPhones) and their HSPDA is faster than Sprint’s WiMax. That’s for all the critics bashing T-Mobile for calling it 4G and saying it’s not true 4G. Good, I’m glad it’s not Sprint’s 4G if all I’m gonna get with Sprint’s 4G is a 6 Mbps download compared to T-Mobile’s 14 Mbps download. Cry babies stuck on iphones and other networks may now continue their bashing of Android and T-Mobile.