Fri, 19 Jun 2009 O2 to disconnect anyone using iPhone tethering for free

Christiaan said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

What about for educational purposes only?

jim_dd7 said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

If they made a reasonable charge for tethering then people will pay, but they are ripping us off so stuff em.

Kevin said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

This is brill. So I use it. o2 disconnect me. 8 months into my 18month contract. I go get a pay as you go 3gs.

Smart Boy said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

Ok 1st things 1st... how on earth are they to tell your using teahering... they might be O2 and super Mobile communication company but lets be real now.. you don't have the technology... the most they can do is see how much data you've used in a session to see if your peaking higher then usual... i suggest minimum use and they won't have a clue.

Plus if the do disconnect you they have to real prove that you was teathering, and to be honest, they can't..(tip for those that have it installed, swap the sim and it resets itself to default..lol)

ok last thing now... if you took it to court you'd win, because your data plan is given to you over the pure base that you take a I-Phone tariff which give you unlimited data...(so called anyway) how you choose to use that data is up to you as you are still within the guide-lines of your contract.. (3GS users im sorry but i'm pretty sure they filled that hole by now..)

Data User said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

It isn't a rip-off, it is inline with other offerings.

There's a lot of cracked record stuff being posted on here.

James said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

What an absolute rip off for Tethering from o2. There is absolutely NO justification for ANY charge when you are already paying £30 Plus a month for your contract.

I think you would have to be a nutter to pay extra for tethering.

As usual O2 will reduce their prices only when they absolutely have to so everyone complain as much as you can!!!

Bottom line Tethering Should be Free not a so called bolt on!

@Smart Boy said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

How would they know? They could look at the packets sent and received.

I'm sure most people will forget to change user agent, or won't understand if there is a difference in the way email on the phone behaves compared with Mail or Outlook.

Still, why not give it a go and let us know how you get on.

James said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

What an absolute rip off for Tethering from o2. There is absolutely NO justification for ANY charge when you are already paying £30 Plus a month for your contract.

I think you would have to be a nutter to pay extra for tethering.

As usual O2 will reduce their prices only when they absolutely have to so everyone complain as much as you can!!!

Bottom line Tethering Should be Free not a so called bolt on!

James said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

Has anyone successfully purchases tethering? It won't recognise my date of birth

James H said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

The bolt-on form keeps telling me that my date of birth (1981) is not in the past!

James H said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

The bolt-on form keeps telling me that my date of birth (1981) is not in the past!

@James said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

"I think you would have to be a nutter to pay extra for tethering."

"Has anyone successfully purchases tethering? It won't recognise my date of birth"

:D

James said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

Two different users called James!

David said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

I was lucky enough to get netshare, have been using my iPhone 3G as a modem for a year already! happy days to be me. :-)

William said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

If we could organise a mass "abuse" of the tethering, o2 would have no choice but to stop cutting people off - theyd be left with nobody. And, the iPhone? you get to keep it for free? o2 are paying the price of overpriced tethering.

John Lockwood said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

O2's tethering (Bolt-on) cost _is_ a rip off. It is actually more expensive than a dedicated Vodafone datacard per month for the same 3GB monthly allowance. It is also over three times as expensive as what Australians are being charged for tethering.

@John Lockwood said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

"It is also over three times as expensive as what Australians are being charged for tethering."

That has to be one of the daftest comparisons I've ever seen.

Most 3GB allowances cost £15 per month. This is not a rip off, it is inline with the market.

Have a look at

www.top10-broadband.co.uk/mobile_broadband/

Smart Boy said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

Ok 1st things 1st... how on earth are they to tell your using teahering... they might be O2 and super Mobile communication company but lets be real now.. you don't have the technology... the most they can do is see how much data you've used in a session to see if your peaking higher then usual... i suggest minimum use and they won't have a clue.

Plus if the do disconnect you they have to real prove that you was teathering, and to be honest, they can't..(tip for those that have it installed, swap the sim and it resets itself to default..lol)

ok last thing now... if you took it to court you'd win, because your data plan is given to you over the pure base that you take a I-Phone tariff which give you unlimited data...(so called anyway) how you choose to use that data is up to you as you are still within the guide-lines of your contract.. (3GS users im sorry but i'm pretty sure they filled that hole by now..)

evangelist said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

I used the internet to unlock tethering, its great. i refuse to pay for a bolt on-rip off O2 roll on Vodaphone with the iPhone

Keith Doherty said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

Price as John Lockwood points out compared to a dongle the price for tethering IS competitive

Vodafone charge £12.77 for 3GB PLUS VAT = £14.69 for a dongle for a 24 month contract
T-Mobile charge the equivalent of £14.37 inc VAT per month for a 3GB dongle and you need to sign for 24 months ( You pay £10 for first three months and then £15 per Month !)

O2 charge the equivalent of £14.48 inc VAT per month for a 3GB dongle again you need to sign for 24 months contract (Here you pay just £9.79 for the first four months but it goes up the £14.69 thereafter)

3 mobile charge you guessed it £14.68 per month for a dongle again its a 24 month contract however they do give you just a bit more inclusive bandwidth -Thats 15GB !

O2 are charging Business customers just £9.99 PLUS VAT = £11.49 and consumers £14.68 inc VAT per month for authorized iPhone tethering.

Haku said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

The mafia aren't bad! They're just in line with the other offerings! Check out the triads and the yakuza! See, it's perfectly acceptable! Give them your money!

Keith Doherty said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

Just like any of the other devices that can tether, occasional unauthorized light use of tethering is unlikelty to lead to you receiving cease and desist notice within the fair use terms.
(Simple don't download/upload software and large vid files over the mobile network)

The threats to disconnect is Not in the interests of O2 and is unlikely to happen in any numbers.
They may however try it on with some heavy users under the fair use policy (Included in ALL network contracts) where unauthorized tethering is suspected.
This will likely be in the form of a hefty BILL for excess bandwidth use to YOU.

@Smart Boy said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

You didn't read the post earlier did you now. The one that mentions User Agents.

If you don't know what that means, that's not a problem. Instead, try learning how to spell 'tethering'. There's a clue in the news headline.

James said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

But surely Data is data, whether you email a photo from your iPhone or email a photo from your laptop while connected to your iPhone.

The point is with other o2 Mobiles 19.95 will get me the same minutes and texts as the basic iPhone tariff so would I not be correct to assume that the other £10 would pay for my internet use already?

Keith Doherty said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

Companies are in existence to MAKE MONEY FACT.

evangelist said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

I used the internet to unlock tethering, its great. i refuse to pay for a bolt on-rip off O2 roll on Vodaphone with the iPhone

Vodafone are the WORST of the companies for CHASING and ENFORCING FAIR USE CLAUSES.

The only mobile network in the UK that take any lenient approach to unauthorized tethering is actually T-Mobile and they only charge £5-00 + VAT per month extra for authorized tethering anyway!

Having said all that if you do NEED to connect your Laptop/Macbook to the internet frequently and for any length of time via mobile networks the dongles are still the way to go with direct USB connection.
Tethering of ANY mobile phone over bluetooth both drains the batteries and heavily degrades the performance from 3G which is already patchy to say the least.

Smart Boy said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

Ok 1st things 1st... how on earth are they to tell your using teahering... they might be O2 and super Mobile communication company but lets be real now.. you don't have the technology... the most they can do is see how much data you've used in a session to see if your peaking higher then usual... i suggest minimum use and they won't have a clue.

Plus if the do disconnect you they have to real prove that you was teathering, and to be honest, they can't..(tip for those that have it installed, swap the sim and it resets itself to default..lol)

ok last thing now... if you took it to court you'd win, because your data plan is given to you over the pure base that you take a I-Phone tariff which give you unlimited data...(so called anyway) how you choose to use that data is up to you as you are still within the guide-lines of your contract.. (3GS users im sorry but i'm pretty sure they filled that hole by now..)

Will said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

To those saying it is a competitive rate aren't understanding the issue.

ie. Vodafone + N95 + 'Tethering' = usage included in 'unlimited' internet plan

O2 + iPhone 3G/3GS + Tethering = +£10/£15 month = rip-off

Also why have a 3G phone and pay extra for 3G dongle, it uses the same network anyway right?!

Thing is in the end you should blame the government for the 3G auction that made them billions that the networks are now trying to claw back.

Keith Doherty said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

Companies are in existence to MAKE MONEY FACT.

evangelist said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

I used the internet to unlock tethering, its great. i refuse to pay for a bolt on-rip off O2 roll on Vodaphone with the iPhone

Vodafone are the WORST of the companies for CHASING and ENFORCING FAIR USE CLAUSES.

The only mobile network in the UK that take any lenient approach to unauthorized tethering is actually T-Mobile and they only charge £5-00 + VAT per month extra for authorized tethering anyway!

Having said all that if you do NEED to connect your Laptop/Macbook to the internet frequently and for any length of time via mobile networks the dongles are still the way to go with direct USB connection.
Tethering of ANY mobile phone over bluetooth both drains the batteries and heavily degrades the performance from 3G which is already patchy to say the least.

ripoff said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

It is a rip off! You pay for unlimitted 3g in your contract. They are supplying no usb dongle to you. You alreay paying at least 30 a month to o2. Why can't they even off a tocken amount like 500mb a month or even 250mb a month. For the occasional one off user. Of yeah cause it a £15 a month o2 ripoff! That's why.

Keith Doherty said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

Will said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

To those saying it is a competitive rate aren't understanding the issue.

ie. Vodafone + N95 + 'Tethering' = usage included in 'unlimited' internet plan

You are WRONG to use authorized tethering COSTS EXTRA with Vodafone and the rate is the £15 per month and its available ONLY on phones supplied under contract.

Anything else is unauthorized usage, done at you own risk and could be subject to extra charge at current rates of £8.50 per day PLUS per mb download at current applicable rate.(This is in the very small print of the standard Vodafone consumer contract)

They rarely apply those charges as the fact is occasional light use does NOT raise suspicion. It is consistent heavy usage that will !

Keith Doherty said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

@Smart Boy said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

You didn't read the post earlier did you now. The one that mentions User Agents.

If you don't know what that means, that's not a problem. Instead, try learning how to spell 'tethering'. There's a clue in the news headline.

Actually i do know about user agents and i could use Web kit to report my browser as Mobile Safari if necessary,
I somehow doubt that the mobile networks could be A**ed to track only iPhones over Nokias, Blackberrys,and USB dongles!

If they were to lockdown the iPhone they could do it on the SIM and all the above would be academic wouldn't it.
Actually thats very likely just what ATT (In the US) want the ability to access and modify the built-in software making a download necessary to activate the tethering function.

Jindo said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

Unfortunately, it seems they're in the right ... my USA terms of service, which I presumably agreed to when I signed the contract, says:

"Furthermore, plans(unless specifically designated for tethering usage) cannot be used for any applications that tether the device (through use of, including without limitation, connection kits, other phone/PDA-to computer accessories, BLUETOOTH® or any other wireless technology) to Personal Computers (including without limitation, laptops), or other equipment for any purpose."

Jindo said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

and it goees on:
"Accordingly, AT&T reserves the right to (i) deny, disconnect, modify and/or terminate Service, without notice, to anyone it believes is using the Service in any manner prohibited or whose usage adversely impacts its wireless network or service levels or hinders access to its wireless network, including without limitation, after a significant period of inactivity or after sessions of excessive usage and (ii) otherwise protect its wireless network from harm, compromised capacity or degradation in performance, which may impact legitimate data flows. "

Keith Doherty said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

@Smart Boy said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

You didn't read the post earlier did you now. The one that mentions User Agents.

If you don't know what that means, that's not a problem. Instead, try learning how to spell 'tethering'. There's a clue in the news headline.

Actually i do know about user agents and i could use Web kit to report my browser as Mobile Safari if necessary,
I somehow doubt that the mobile networks could be A**ed to track only iPhones over Nokias, Blackberrys,and USB dongles!

If they were to lockdown the iPhone they could do it on the SIM and all the above would be academic wouldn't it.
Actually thats very likely just what ATT (In the US) want the ability to access and modify the built-in software making a download necessary to activate the tethering function.

Keith Doherty said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

ripoff said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

It is a rip off! You pay for unlimitted 3g in your contract. They are supplying no usb dongle to you. You alreay paying at least 30 a month to o2. Why can't they even off a tocken amount like 500mb a month or even 250mb a month. For the occasional one off user. Of yeah cause it a £15 a month o2 ripoff! That's why.

Right how on earth would they be bothered to monitor this.
I say again such occasional light usage will NOT raise the suspicions of the network O2 and provided the application is not locked down (I appears its not ) via the SIM you should be quite able to make the occasional unauthorized tethered connection.

Heavens hundreds of thousands do with other phones everyday and across all networks.

Jaded said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

You pay for unlimited 3G on your iPhone, not on another device.

You can get one off if you want - you buy a PAYG Data Tethering bundle.

Seriously - if you need tethering that much - pay for it! If you are unhappy with O2 then buy your data from someone else!

@Jaded and others said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

O2 do not allow tethering at all on the PAYG iPhone. You can't buy it a PAYG Data Tethering bundle.

Also, on three, existing customers get a discount of 25% on mobile broadband so if you need one, a contract USB modem is available from £7.50 a month (half what O2 charge) and they don't charge for the dongle either (£70 on O2).

Three also say tethering isn't allowed, but they've never complained to me about occasional usage. I'd guess O2 won't bother either unless you abuse it.

chris said on Fri, 19 Jun 2009

I agree with one guy on here as far as i can tell the only way they could tell you were tethering is if your data usage ramped up so if you use it only a little i dont think they would know. however i would warn anyone thinkin that gettin cut off wont be to bad as you would still have your iphone, O2 will be able to lock the handset out by its IMEI Number once thats done it dont matter what sim card you use it wont work

ruggedandmobile said on Sat, 20 Jun 2009

I also think this is very unfair on existing iphone users who already pay for an iPhone bolt on.

O2 can detect if you're using tethering in many different ways. In fact all providers detect it but usually kind of lets it go.

It depends on what you're doing. If you use your laptop Web browser it'll be easy to detect the headers etc in the browser and they will know you are not using the iPhone Safari browser. The sheer bandwidth will also be an alert if you;re not careful. For email i'm not so sure though.

Just be careful, it says in the terms and conditions that they can cancel your contract but can still seek the remainder of the contract. not sure how that would stand up?

Jaded said on Sat, 20 Jun 2009

I think Smart Boy should try it out and report back to us as to what happens?

Simon said on Mon, 22 Jun 2009

This is interesting as I have been using 'tethering' with my Nokia E90 for ages and never gave it a 2nd thought whether it was permitted or not. With the E90 there is loads of s/w that will retransmit your HSDPA connection as a WiFi access point using the phones internal WiFi aerial. I am on a Simplicity 20 contract with unlimited data bolt on. Guess I better call O2 and see what this is all about! I can't risk being disconnected but I sure as hell ain't paying more for something I already can do on my E90.

(btw. I am a Mac Pro user but bought the E90 cos of the limitation of the first two iphones. Now I am torn between the 3Gs and E90)

Simon said on Mon, 22 Jun 2009

This is interesting as I have been using 'tethering' with my Nokia E90 for ages and never gave it a 2nd thought whether it was permitted or not. With the E90 there is loads of s/w that will retransmit your HSDPA connection as a WiFi access point using the phones internal WiFi aerial. I am on a Simplicity 20 contract with unlimited data bolt on. Guess I better call O2 and see what this is all about! I can't risk being disconnected but I sure as hell ain't paying more for something I already can do on my E90.

(btw. I am a Mac Pro user but bought the E90 cos of the limitation of the first two iphones. Now I am torn between the 3Gs and E90)

Simon said on Mon, 22 Jun 2009

This is interesting as I have been using 'tethering' with my Nokia E90 for ages and never gave it a 2nd thought whether it was permitted or not. With the E90 there is loads of s/w that will retransmit your HSDPA connection as a WiFi access point using the phones internal WiFi aerial. I am on a Simplicity 20 contract with unlimited data bolt on. Guess I better call O2 and see what this is all about! I can't risk being disconnected but I sure as hell ain't paying more for something I already can do on my E90.

(btw. I am a Mac Pro user but bought the E90 cos of the limitation of the first two iphones. Now I am torn between the 3Gs and E90)

Kevin said on Tue, 23 Jun 2009

Quite simply, O2, should stop being too greedy and get competitive.

If they dropped the price for bolt-on tethering, I'd go for it immediately.

However, I'm on a £44 pm contract and to ask for about £15 is just ridiculous.

That's £59 pm (£708 p/year), for that I can rent a basic dedicated webserver!

Dave said on Wed, 24 Jun 2009

To the idiots claiming that the tethering charge is 'reasonable' or 'competitive':

Firstly you are comparing tethering to starting off with nothing and buying a dongle and data service - it's not the same.

You already pay for 'unlimited' (read: '250Mb') data as part of your iPhone contract. What difference does it make how that data is used so long as it's the iPhone connected to the data network? People want to be able to use their 'unlimited' (read:250Mb) data with their iPhones to provide service for their laptop. Many will only need this occasionally, and O2 seriously expect people to pay £15 a month extra on the off-chance you might need to get online. If you need constant connectivity for laptop go buy a dongle. Free (or reasonably priced) tethering is ideal for occasional users. Reasonable price would be what they charge in Austria which is 2EUR/month on top of your bill.

Alex said on Fri, 03 Jul 2009

I am on an old 02 plan with a c902, I use my phone as an internet connection loads and even told 02 about it when it went wrong and they helped me fix it, I am still using it for just browsing the net but I never go over about 100mb per month with my laptop

Alex said on Fri, 03 Jul 2009

I am on an old 02 plan with a c902, I use my phone as an internet connection loads and even told 02 about it when it went wrong and they helped me fix it, I am still using it for just browsing the net but I never go over about 100mb per month with my laptop

Alex said on Fri, 03 Jul 2009

I am on an old 02 plan with a c902, I use my phone as an internet connection loads and even told 02 about it when it went wrong and they helped me fix it, I am still using it for just browsing the net but I never go over about 100mb per month with my laptop

Mark said on Sun, 12 Jul 2009

I'm getting more and more hacked with 02 as time goes on. I think they r the best mobile network, always been happy with the good customer service and how reasonable they are when I'm late with bill payments, but this iPhone monopoly they have got has brought out their greedy nasty side. The prices are ridiculous. I've been a customer for 4 years and I have to pay more now for my contract! It's completely against competition that they have sole rights on a handset and I hope the government does what we elect them to do and work for our interests by blocking this unfair monopoly. Thos tethering thing is all out greed, mo other word for it. I'm no anti capitalist, but the Market must work properly, and healthy competition is a part of it