EDIT:
AT&T's method of tethering detection has been settled.
AdamOutler said:
AT&T is monitoring the data traffic for the browser identification string.
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You can easily change your browser identification string by following this:
infernus1986 said:
Firefox has a plugin to change browser string, user agent switcher
You can add custom strings to mimic the phones browser
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sfernandez said:
download USER AGENT SWITCHER add edit, add new then use this
"Mozilla/5.0 (Linux; U; Andriod 2.3.4; en-US; SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 Build/GINGERBREAD) AppleWebKit/533.1(KHTML, like Gecko)Version/4.0 Mobile Safari/533.1"
If you want to use Chrome Just right click then properties and and on TARGET right after chrome.exe paste this --user-agent="Mozilla/5.0 (Linux; U; Andriod 2.3.4; en-US; SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 Build/GINGERBREAD) AppleWebKit/533.1(KHTML, like Gecko)Version/4.0 Mobile Safari/533.1"
AND if you tether this will make your browser look like a captivate
infernus1986 said:
http://whatsmyuseragent.com/
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Use this and you will see it works
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Original Post:
So, I called AT&T about an hour ago to get my rate plan adjusted, they had some information on "usage patterns"
The AT&T rep told me that the system within the last 2 months had detected tethering. Basically read to me which part of the contract I was violating and that if I continued using it, they would remove my unlimited data plan (which I am grandfathered in) and place me in the 4gb tethering package (or something of that nature). He said AT&T is going to be sending out text messages to those who have been tethering starting tomorrow and will receive documentation in their bill about it.
I had been tethering through a MIUI rom, not that it seems to matter what method tethering occurred through.
The AT&T rep was even able to tell me that I had been tethering a 'laptop', not that that information is valid or backed up by AT&T data. I'm not sure how they would know that I was tethering a laptop (which is not the only thing that I had tethered in the last 2 months) or any other device, but by the way he told me the information, it sounded as if AT&T can tell what type of device I tethered too. I used to think it was impossible to tell, but I don't know.
Plus, I haven't gone over 2gbs in at least 4 months, tethering or not, so its not even like I am an abusive customer (even though in the past I have racked up 7gb)
I hope you didn't admit to anything. You should have called their bluff.
I said I hadn't. Ever.
And then the guy on the phone said, "well it says here that you have tethered your laptop."
I then said how I have an older phone, Samsung Eternity, that came packaged with tethering software, which it did and AT&T at the time encouraged me to use freely, might be causing tethering, but that I had never done it before.
He called my bluff. I don't want my unlimited data taken away.. so yeah.
I got a text message today concerning high usage data patterns. I wonder if anything has changed.
The problem is that their greed will pave the way for the little guy they are trying to monopolize with tmobile buyout so i think alot of people are sick of att and how they charge for anything im not suprisrd
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
I've been tethering my touchpad with my captivate since I got it. Haven't heard anything from AT&T yet, once I connect my laptop I bet that will change. I think a way around this will connecting to a VPN on the phone then tethering through the VPN. Is the possible? should stop att from inspecting the packets.
I would have said "What is tethering? I don't own a laptop. How dare you make these accusations? What is your name and let me speak to your supervisor immediately." Etc. And then tell the supervisor the guy is making ridiculous accusations. Tell them they are bordering on defamation making these claims and you make have to take legal action if they don't cease and desist.
you people who got the txt how much data do you normaly use ? i tether almost daily but i have not gotten a txt ...
---------- Post added 20th September 2011 at 12:01 AM ---------- Previous post was 19th September 2011 at 11:58 PM ----------
nh5 said:
I've been tethering my touchpad with my captivate since I got it. Haven't heard anything from AT&T yet, once I connect my laptop I bet that will change. I think a way around this will connecting to a VPN on the phone then tethering through the VPN. Is the possible? should stop att from inspecting the packets.
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If they are packet inpecting we got a lawsuit coming ... not for me but for "other" reasons .. I think ATT is blowing smoke frankly .
There was actually an article about this on Phone Arena a few months back that I read but at the time they were only doing it to iPhone users.
It would be helpful for OP and those who got notice from AT&T post your average monthly data usage. Otherwise, I'd say it is pure BS.
Mine wasn't anything too serious, they just let me know that I was in the top 5% of data users and that next month they will be throttling me if I go that high again.
I agree. Because I use a lot. Sometimes 7 gigs
foxbat121 said:
It would be helpful for OP and those who got notice from AT&T post your average monthly data usage. Otherwise, I'd say it is pure BS.
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Sent from my unbrickable cappy *bam*
7 gigs isnt alot some people do 50 gigs once i called custumer support couz my phone broke and he was like i see high data usesage 2.3 gigs and i told him i use cloudmedia for movies and pandora so he shut up. Couz they think if u use a lot of data u tether. Also if u want to be a **** just tell then i got cable and its a lot faster then ur connection. He should get the point
PS. I assume all the people who got the text are unlimited users if so at&t trying to make a switch for u because they want more money.
Sent from my CM7 Motorola Atrix 4G
Double post srry
BenKranged said:
I would have said "What is tethering? I don't own a laptop. How dare you make these accusations? What is your name and let me speak to your supervisor immediately." Etc. And then tell the supervisor the guy is making ridiculous accusations. Tell them they are bordering on defamation making these claims and you make have to take legal action if they don't cease and desist.
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Good post!
Sent from my SGH-I897 using XDA Premium App
BenKranged said:
I would have said "What is tethering? I don't own a laptop. How dare you make these accusations? What is your name and let me speak to your supervisor immediately." Etc. And then tell the supervisor the guy is making ridiculous accusations. Tell them they are bordering on defamation making these claims and you make have to take legal action if they don't cease and desist.
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The problem with this line of approach is that AT&T customer service reps are required by company policy that any time you mention taking legal action against them to transfer you to their legal department and have you immediately begin dealing with them. Had a friend who was a customer service rep for AT&T (and Cingular before it), and he sent many a people to legal for doing things like what you mention here. AT&T have some nasty lawyers so dealing with them is not something that should be high on your list.
Here's the run down of my data usage.
Averages for months
15 months: < 2.5gb/month (as far back as AT&T lets me see other than 1 month that I had 0kb for some reason)
10 months: 3.02gb/month
5 months: 1.68gb/month
3 months: 1.8gb/month
2 months: 2.3gb/month (this is for Aug-Sept)
1.95gb/month (this is for July-Aug)
The rep had said "based on the the last couple of months"; assuming couple is 2, those are the months AT&T is looking at for tethering. Those are mighty low averages imo.
Peak at 7.2gb per month, low of .1gb, normal low is .8gb.
And although its not on the chart, for my billing cycle in September, I used 1.5gb
http://i51.tinypic.com/3178aon.png
Honestly to tell AT&T I have never tethered is a bold faced lie. Back on Cingular, I was encouraged to tether, and I did often. I had a Sony Ericsson T616 and I would tether over its blutooth connection to my laptop. I had the 20$ unlimited data plan and tethered to watch streaming footage of Hurricane Katrina back in 2005. I eventually dropped unlimited data (which seemed too pricey, wish I had kept it). I got back on Unlimited data but for feature phones and tethered on those devices as well on AT&T from 2007-2009. AT&T provided software for it. I bet I can find it too. Also, my Samsung Eternity came prepackaged with tethering software, that was in 2009. And honestly, I never even surpassed 2gb until I got my Captivate.
I guess my stance is, if they didn't want me tethering, why include it in phone bundles, and why target me now? I wouldn't say that an average of less than 2.5gb a month is 'abusive' or causing significant strain. I guess its all pointless to argue anyway, it is what it is.
They must be packet sniffing... and I like the VPN idea, but you won't catch me trying it until some brave bastard does first. 30$ for data, restricted 'unlimited'-nontethering data, is fine with me.
Yeah I wouldn't actually follow up on the legal action. If they still wouldn't back down I would probably just change carriers. Though they are all the same for most intents and purposes. Maybe telling them you want to cancel your account because you don't like being accused of things when you are the paying customer would be a better approach. Have them transfer you to retention.
I just meant take the same approach to tethering as flashing roms. If they ask you about it just say "what does that mean?" and act like you don't understand technology at all.
mymansionisabox said:
Honestly to tell AT&T I have never tethered is a bold faced lie
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So is selling unlimited data that isn't unlimited.
I'm pretty sure anytime your data usage near or over 2GB mark, you're on the top 5% as majority of the smartphone users are probably on 2GB limited plan and spent no where near 2GB/mo. I'm a pretty heavy data user but I don't stream anything. My average is 350 to 500 MB/m and highest I've ever used is 1.5GB/mo that is because I streamed couple Netflix movies on a long trip.
If you're on top 5%, you'd bet AT&T will try anything possible to determine what you are doing using so much data.
Guys it is really not that hard for them to find out what is using the connection. Not only can you see a mac address from the device using the connection but the data traffic is different. We all knew this was gonna happen, and now that it has we will all have to live with it.
Related
Is it possible to change the tethering application built into most roms so that it won't deincrement the ttl value?
where did you get this info at?
http://osxdaily.com/2011/03/17/att-cracking-down-on-unofficial-iphone-tethering-mywi-users/
http://www.electronista.com/articles/11/03/18/att.clamps.down.on.unofficial.tethering.users/
If you dig through the comments on those articles, it appears that the people who receive the letters are using in excess of 5GB on their unlimited data plan.
Case in point: One of the comments was from a guy who said that his wife was sent the notice from AT&T. From what he says, she hasn't ever tethered, but she's always listening to streaming audio or watching streaming video.
This is nothing new for AT&T. They have long held that 5GB is 'effectively unlimited' for a smartphone, and that anyone who uses more must be using a computer tethered to the phone. With the phones we have now, that simply is not the case anymore. But AT&T is using that as an excuse to try and get people off of the unlimited plans and on to something where they can charge customers more money.
Krynn! said:
If you dig through the comments on those articles, it appears that the people who receive the letters are using in excess of 5GB on their unlimited data plan.
Case in point: One of the comments was from a guy who said that his wife was sent the notice from AT&T. From what he says, she hasn't ever tethered, but she's always listening to streaming audio or watching streaming video.
This is nothing new for AT&T. They have long held that 5GB is 'effectively unlimited' for a smartphone, and that anyone who uses more must be using a computer tethered to the phone. With the phones we have now, that simply is not the case anymore. But AT&T is using that as an excuse to try and get people off of the unlimited plans and on to something where they can charge customers more money.
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I hope you're right.
Also just saw this......I personally dont tether much but have used mobile AP. Might be worth looking into for those that do tether.
http://www.mobilecrunch.com/2011/03/18/att-shutting-down-unauthorized-tetherers/
cnigro1279 said:
Also just saw this......I personally dont tether much but have used mobile AP. Might be worth looking into for those that do tether.
http://www.mobilecrunch.com/2011/03/18/att-shutting-down-unauthorized-tetherers/
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If they are using ttl to detect tethering, then mobile ap would be effected. I'm not sure if usb tethering does deincrement ttl. All the reports seem to be mentioning WiFi tethering.
i think its a scare tactic.
I don't think they are detecting tethering. I think they are targeting people going beyond a certain threshold of usage as suspected tethereres (4gb or 5gb or more likely)
bames said:
i think its a scare tactic.
I don't think they are detecting tethering. I think they are targeting people going beyond a certain threshold of usage as suspected tethereres (4gb or 5gb or more likely)
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+1
Just a scare tactic. I'm on my 11th day of this months cycle, and between tethering, mobile ap, and downloads, I'm sitting at 9gb of data usage and haven't heard anything from AT&T. Yet
vunuts said:
+1
Just a scare tactic. I'm on my 11th day of this months cycle, and between tethering, mobile ap, and downloads, I'm sitting at 9gb of data usage and haven't heard anything from AT&T. Yet
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WOW what are you doing to use 9gb of data lol.
Even though i think its more of a scare tactic i think it can be done...its just not cost efficient to do it wide scale unless their is a huge red flag...like oh say 9gb of data usage . I won't be surprised if you get a letter if your usage rates continually reach anywhere near that later as i suspect that is the type of red flag that may cause them to actually take the time to audit the account and look at the ttl/packet data more closely.
if you have a 2gb or even unlimited and tether never going over 2gb i seriously doubt you would received letter or raise an eyebrow.
This goes back to my initial thought on how stupid their marketing team and management decisions are.
ALLOW FREE TETHERING
Pay for the extra data you need. It breaks down to the same cost...they are just being short sighted and greedy hoping people will think oh...2gb more data for 20bucks and then continue to not even fully use the 2gb they already had paid for on their smartphones plan (they are playing on peoples ignorance of how much data they are actually using). Part of good business and sales is fitting the client with their needs so they can afford it and continue to be a good longterm customer rather than bilking them for services they don't need or use (much like requiring all smartphones to have data plans when some smartphone users could be completely happy with a smartphone and wifi only usage).
If i have $25 2gb plan and want to tether and don't go over 2gb DON'T CHARGE EXTRA or REQUIRE TETHERING. If i go over charge me by the GB just like you would if i used all the data on my smartphones. 2gb Plan + 2gb overage =$45 for that months data (shouldn't matter whether it was used tethered or untethered). If i have a 2gb plan and tether and only use 3gb for the plan why not allow my to pay for 3gb data instead of forcing me to pay for 4gb/tethering. Let people police and pay for their usage. DATA IS DATA and it doesn't cost more for att to deliver 4gb to a tethered user than it does to someone using the 4gb downloading torrents or streaming movies on their smartphone.
Seems like it would be great customer relations, marketing, and a blow to verizon if ATT and came out with a marketing campaign that said Free Mobile AP/Tethering. Use as much data as you need....pay for the data you use. If those still grandfathered under unlimited plans are the concern you could easily audit those accounts if the usage is excessive and either throttle or require tethering for unlimited plans only which might encourage more people to give up the unlimited and take one of the tiered plans. They talk about tethers using all the data while i suspect those doing a combination of significant streaming and downloading torrent using in an untethered state.
A good question is why is one industry being allowed wipe their A** with net neutrality (with so little backlash)
bames said:
WOW what are you doing to use 9gb of data lol.
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Lol, I just opened my own auto shop, and we have yet to get internet hooked up in there, so I'm tethered to my desktop there for about 5-8 hours a day. I wouldn't be surprised if I do hear from AT&T, but they can't do anything to me. They've tried before and I fought them and won. I have unlimited text and data and I'm going to use it to my advantage. If they want to try and blow smoke up my ass, go for it. I'll blow it right back
Funny how this coincided with the new bandwidth cap for cable customers... AT&T is slowly trying to eliminate all unlimited customers. I wish they spent as much time working on increasing signal strength across the US as they do finding ways to squeeze more money from their customers.
vunuts said:
+1
Just a scare tactic. I'm on my 11th day of this months cycle, and between tethering, mobile ap, and downloads, I'm sitting at 9gb of data usage and haven't heard anything from AT&T. Yet
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I thought my 3 -4 gb / month was a lot.
Isn't a byte of data still a byte of data no matter how you view your porn.
what they are doing with tethering would be akin charging us $10 per month to use google navigation.
They could say "hey our navigation per att nav with your device is $10 per month.....if you want to use navigation on your phone you must have a navigation plan add on and if you try to use another free navigation program we can tell and will change your plan without your permission"
I don't get any letters, but I get a "friendly call" from AT&T about every other month asking why I use so much data. I've been on unlimited since it first came out and I'm taking full advantage of it. When I get the call about my usage, I start downloading on my phone, just to eat more data. I've downloaded several ISOs of Linux distros and MS ISOs from the MSDN. Is it my fault I signed up for 'unlimited data' or is it there fault they didn't look into the future? ComCast tried to complain when I pulled down over 300gb in a month and wanted to charge me for it. Sent off a copy of the original contract and there was no bandwidth cap in it. It becomes a breach of contract if you haven't physically signed anything new accepting and agreeing to the new changes.
If you don't mind switching carriers (which isn't that attractive because they all suck and use the same ploys pretty much)
but if they change your plan (for example adding a tethering plan to your account) you have 30 days to cancel your contract WITHOUT penalty no matter how many months you have remaining.
bames said:
If you don't mind switching carriers (which isn't that attractive because they all suck and use the same ploys pretty much)
but if they change your plan (for example adding a tethering plan to your account) you have 30 days to cancel your contract WITHOUT penalty no matter how many months you have remaining.
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This is true. You can avoid any early termination fees and essentially end your contract in good standing credit wise.
pbclst said:
I don't get any letters, but I get a "friendly call" from AT&T about every other month asking why I use so much data. I've been on unlimited since it first came out and I'm taking full advantage of it. When I get the call about my usage, I start downloading on my phone, just to eat more data. I've downloaded several ISOs of Linux distros and MS ISOs from the MSDN. Is it my fault I signed up for 'unlimited data' or is it there fault they didn't look into the future? ComCast tried to complain when I pulled down over 300gb in a month and wanted to charge me for it. Sent off a copy of the original contract and there was no bandwidth cap in it. It becomes a breach of contract if you haven't physically signed anything new accepting and agreeing to the new changes.
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For every time they call and ask you you should place 20 calls to their customer support line asking them why someone called you again and telling them you just wanted to make sure they knew you had an unlimited data plan because someone keeps calling.
vunuts said:
Lol, I just opened my own auto shop, and we have yet to get internet hooked up in there, so I'm tethered to my desktop there for about 5-8 hours a day. I wouldn't be surprised if I do hear from AT&T, but they can't do anything to me. They've tried before and I fought them and won. I have unlimited text and data and I'm going to use it to my advantage. If they want to try and blow smoke up my ass, go for it. I'll blow it right back
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I'm sorry, but this attitude just rubs me raw. Cell phones were never designed to be ISPs. It's abusers like you that have made it hard for the rest of us by forcing AT$T to eliminate unlimited plans and by slowing down the network with your extreme usage. Why do so many feel the need to squeeze whatever they can however they can out of a company? If you think they're screwing you then simply take your business elsewhere.
People receiving the letter today are iphone users? am i correct? Did any android user receive it?
Hi,
I've been looking through GS4G threads and haven't seen any posts on the GS4G threads about this. I'm pretty disappointed with this phone, but I have a lot of confidence that with the mods that can come out it'll be a good investment. I originally was informed that the phone can be rooted and rommed to make it its own wifi without needing to pay for internet access through the carriers and that's why I bought it. (I think it was by using Busybox? I don't remember) - but has anyone done this and is it really possible to do this? So many sales points made by the TM guys have proven to be wrong, I am now questioning this point also.
My phone was unlocked by a local service for $30 after 3 minutes work. I now have Simple Mobile and I'm happier than I was with TM. It does still seem that everything has to be routed through Goog, nearly every function must pass through the cloud and that's why so much data use is sucked up so quickly and my experience so far is that the Android platform is either surprisingly unstable or so far advanced that a simple mind such my own cannot quite grasp it's nuances...yet.
But I digress - can this phone be made into it's own internet AP without having to pay TM, ATT, etc?
All helpful comments welcomed and acknowleged.
Cheers,
Moved to proper forum
I search a wiget hotspot on market n work very good for wifi tether
Sent from my SGH-T959V using XDA App
built in wifi
The Mobile AP works without being charged.
Hmm...
So are you saying that you want to be able to use data service on your phone without paying for the data service...or are you saying that you have data service and want to tether or use your phone as a hotspot to use your data plan on another device without paying the AP fee?
If it's the former...I really don't think that that is possible...because everyone would be doing it. The data part of my family plan is something like 60 bucks...I'd love to be saving that every month. The fact is, none of the carriers would allow that. The data is tracked and I can't imagine it would be possible to sneak it under their radars without getting a nasty letter.
If it's the latter, yes. Root your phone (In most cases) and download a free tethering or wifi app (I use EasyTether, but there are several out there). Follow instructions. Easy Peasy. Tethering and/or Mobile AP without paying the $15 or whatever fee. But (And someone correct me if I'm wrong here) I do not think that you can use tethering or mobile AP without having a paid for data service from a carrier. Sorry.
There are also people saying that if you use the built in tethering/mobile AP ability on your device without having paid for the service through T-mo, that as long as use it lightly, T-mo will ignore it. I have heard accounts of people using it too much and getting an email from T-mo basically saying "Hey quit that...pay for it, you greedy bastard" (Paraphrased).
Also...What exactly is your disappointment with this device? If you let us know exactly what your issues with it are...there is a chance that we can give you advice or a workaround to get the most of your device...that's what we're for. At very least we can point you to a thread that already exists to help you out.
Pretty simple... the mobile ap included within the phone works fine.... use it as an AP as much as you like.. tmobile's fine with it cuz they know as soon as you hit the 5gb thresh your gonna be throttled down. Doesn't matter if you root and download 3rd party AP software cuz as soon as you hit the 5gb your all done.
In my opinion I think this is totally fine for TMOBile to do.. although I wish they were clear about the 5gb cap when you sign the 2year agreement. I had Sprint 4g before this and Att before that and this is the first internet connection I would drop my home internet for.... of course if it had true unlimited bandwidth. At work and at home I get a steady 7+mbps down and 1.5mpbs up with a 65 to 100 ping... when I'm using it at home it hardly seems noticeably slower or less snappy than my 20mbps comcast connection.
I think ultimately if they are going to throttle they should raise the limitation to about 15gb or so and be very upfront to the customer when they sign... That would take away about 99 percent of the complaints they get and give us some headroom.. also would still guarantee no one's gonna be running their website or downloading 100's of gigs of torrents over a cell tower..
All carriers throttle...no carriers have "true" unlimited data. T-Mo is pretty upfront about the throttling. I mean...it's there...in black in white. I knew about it when I signed up for my service. There's no reason that anyone doing any form of research before just jumping into a two-year contract would not be able to find that information as well.
Also...the reason they throttle is to keep users from using it as their home internet. That's not what it is intended for and if everyone was doing that...it would prolly have cataclysmic effects on the network (Again...correct me if I'm wrong here).
I have a hard time believing that your mobile connection is faster than your home cable internet...But I can't prove my suspicion...so that aside, the 5gb limit is way more than enough if you are using your mobile internet for just browsing and downloading apps or streaming media. I would consider myself I pretty hard-core mobile internet user and I have never hit 5gb in a month...that being said...I'm also not trying to use it as my home internet. I don't use it to download torrents or stream entire movies or play online games. Besides...T-mo only throttles your bandwidth after hitting 5gb...at least they don't shut you down like other carriers.
The fact is...there is no Unlimited mobile data...but as far as it goes...T-Mo has the best plan out there. Great coverage, 4g, 5gb limit and only then they throttle you back a bit.
Sigh...I should be working in the mobile technology business...instead I'm working a mind-numbing production job for **** pay. Not applicable to the thread...but I really felt like pining.
wmikemoon said:
All carriers throttle...no carriers have "true" unlimited data. T-Mo is pretty upfront about the throttling. I mean...it's there...in black in white. I knew about it when I signed up for my service. There's no reason that anyone doing any form of research before just jumping into a two-year contract would not be able to find that information as well.
Also...the reason they throttle is to keep users from using it as their home internet. That's not what it is intended for and if everyone was doing that...it would prolly have cataclysmic effects on the network (Again...correct me if I'm wrong here).
I have a hard time believing that your mobile connection is faster than your home cable internet...But I can't prove my suspicion...so that aside, the 5gb limit is way more than enough if you are using your mobile internet for just browsing and downloading apps or streaming media. I would consider myself I pretty hard-core mobile internet user and I have never hit 5gb in a month...that being said...I'm also not trying to use it as my home internet. I don't use it to download torrents or stream entire movies or play online games. Besides...T-mo only throttles your bandwidth after hitting 5gb...at least they don't shut you down like other carriers.
The fact is...there is no Unlimited mobile data...but as far as it goes...T-Mo has the best plan out there. Great coverage, 4g, 5gb limit and only then they throttle you back a bit.
Sigh...I should be working in the mobile technology business...instead I'm working a mind-numbing production job for **** pay. Not applicable to the thread...but I really felt like pining.
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A lot of what you say is true but, I was not told about the throttling when I got my UNLIMITED DATA plan. I came from a company that had truly UNLIMITED DATA. I was with them since 2006 and never once had a letter about my data use nor was I EVER throttled. I had excellent Download speeds and could easily use streaming media. That company was Alltel. It is the BEST cell phone service I have ever had. Unfortunately, they sold out in my area first to Verizon in Maricopa county then AT&T in Pinal county Arizona. This is a great loss. With TMO I get 2G Edge speed at best unless I drive 40 miles into town. On my laptop it takes 3 to 5 minutes to load my gmail account. Where I am at I can get satellite or cell service only for internet. I am a truck driver so it doesn’t pay to get satellite because I am not home enough to use it. At best I get 16 t0 20KB/SEC down. I reached my 5GB limit this weekend and am being throttled for the next week or so. I talked to customer service and explained my situation to a supervisor and her comment was “It looks like we are throttling all the time and now throttling you even more. When I talk to the rep at the TMO store a week or so ago about the throttling he failed to tell me about he admitted that TMO would slow my service from 4G down to 2G. What TMO has done to me was slow me down to 1G. Right now it takes 3 to 4 minutes’ to download 1MB. I had faster download speeds with NETZERO dialup for $8.00 a month back in the 90’s. I was miss-lead by TMO both in their advertising and thru representation. I can’t say I blame my rep so much because I’m sure they are trained to only give you enough information to make the sale, which means they are trained to withhold the TRUTH or at least not disclose the meaning on “UNLIMITED” unless you pry it out of them. Truthfully, I like the people at my TMO store. They are very helpful. It’s just they are bound by the corporate Greed that makes their paycheck. I will likely not be with TMO much longer. I like my phone but the service sucks.
It works just fine.
Don't abuse it, use it only when needed and you will be fine. Otherwise, they will "recommend" you to add the whatever-is-called-tethering add on.
In fact, everyone: Don't abuse it and they will probably leave it as it is... Until the att takeover takes place (ouch)
fosormic said:
It works just fine.
Don't abuse it, use it only when needed and you will be fine. Otherwise, they will "recommend" you to add the whatever-is-called-tethering add on.
In fact, everyone: Don't abuse it and they will probably leave it as it is... Until the att takeover takes place (ouch)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
With that attitude you will conform to whatever these corporations want to shove down our throats. Every day corporations are charging us more and more and giving us less and less. Then they buy up the few companies left that are giving us value for our money. Soon we will back to one choice like back in the Ma Bell days and you will be standing right up front saluting the Beast.
Like I said...All carriers throttle. I'm glad that a company that is not around anymore didn't throttle...but that was also before mobile data really took off. I'm pretty sure what happened is people started using mobile data for their home internet and started clogging the tubes (or you know...airwaves or whatever) and the major carriers did what they had to do...which means throttling. If they didn't throttle...people would be using mobile data for their home use and making it so people, like myself who pay for cable internet but like to browse or whatever on the go, would suffer...which isn't fair considering me and people like me are using (and paying for) the mobile data for what it is intended for.
In your last post you berated a fellow poster for saying to use the tethering but not to abuse it. You basically said that his attitude was that of a conformer to major corporations...This boggles my mind. Really and truly...T-mo wants you to pay for the tethering and if you use it without paying for it...you are rebelling to corporate standards...so your comment makes no sense.
The fact that T-mo takes the stance that they do on the tethering without paying for tethering thing earns my respect. They're basically saying "You know what...we ****ed up and made it so you can use the tethering option without paying for it...just don't be a **** and we'll look the other way."
Also, If you root and or mod your phone in any way...and something happens and you have to send your phone in to T-mo...they tend to look the other way. Can Verizon or Att say that? Hell no...Att is trying to make it so their phones CAN'T be rooted or modded in anyway. Ask an Atrix user.
Sounds like to me you are just whining because T-mo didn't tell you about the throttling. Again, I stand by my earlier statement...Do your research before jumping into a Two-Year contract. It's there...everything is...you just have to READ it. That goes for ANYTHING that you sign a contract for. When you buy a new car...do you just skip everything the contract says and sign it? Of course not. You read that **** because you don't wanna be screwed. Companies exist to make money off of you...plain and simple...so if they make you sign a contract...you best do your research to know exactly what they are offering...and if you don't....I have absolutely no sympathy for you what-so-ever. It's you with the egg on your face...just because you didn't take the time to read.
I agree with tmobile on Throttling to a degree.. and I understand the reasoning BUT.. I still believe their advertising and plans are a bit misleading... For example I went to a tmobile store here in Eugene.. talked about plans and speeds with a tmo rep and was told nothing about the limits. Also I bought my galaxy 4g at Radio Shack and also was told nothing about it.. I looked on TMO's website and found in their agreement this>>>>>>> "Your data session, plan, or service may be slowed, suspended, terminated, or restricted if you use your service in a way that interferes with or impacts our network or ability to provide quality service to other users"
That is pretty vague when in reality there is a solid 5gb max.. whether it's on your 1st day of service or 2nd to last day...
I knew about the limits before only because of these message forums... but even after reading the fine print i wouldn't have known for sure
Protective Measures: To provide a good experience for the majority of our customers and minimize capacity issues and degradation in network performance, we may take measures including temporarily reducing data throughput for a subset of customers who use a disproportionate amount of bandwidth. If your total usage exceeds 5GB (amount is subject to change without notice; please check T-Mobile’s T&Cs on www.T-Mobile.com for updates) during a billing cycle, we may reduce your data speed for the remainder of that billing cycle. If you use your Data Plan in a manner that could interfere with other customers’ service, affect our ability to allocate network capacity among customers, or degrade service quality for other customers, we may suspend, terminate, or restrict your data session, or switch you to a more appropriate Data Plan.
Copied from the Terms and Conditions which has a link on literally every single page on T-Mo's website and is clearly marked in the section titled "Data Plans and Other Features".
Alternatively, on Verizon's site...You can only get to the details about their data package after adding a voice plan and phone to your cart...at which point it gives a vague description of their throttling rules that do not mention exact amounts. It just says that it can throttle your speed whenever it feels like.
So again...not seeing a problem here...
Using GS4G as hot spot
Thanks for all your replies. It took me a while to find where the thread went.
Yes, I did mean turning the phone into it's own router/internet AP without tethering. My BB used Tether and it was great and that of course used my data plan from SPrint. No problem with that - I'm a very light user. But Android is different - just about every app uses the web so it's a data hog, even though I'm a light user.
I know that TM and others permit tethering as a built in or as a work around with a third party app. But I was told - apparently incorrectly - that the GS4G could do the same thing as a router without any cap set by the carrier. Hmm. Maybe there's a way to develop and independent app to do just that... but that's way beyond my pay grade.
Misc - 1). I guess I filed this thread under the wrong heading. Sorry, Mr. C and thanks for the course correction; 2). What issues do I have with the phone? Well, the biggest one is that suddenly - after I changed to Simple Mobile from TM, I can no longer access the login page to my third party office scheduler. Previously, I could at least access the login page, login and view the appointments, but it crashed every time I tried to make an app using the phone (but not using a laptop). Support told me that a mobile Android app has to be customized in order to work because of the page loading limitations of the Android system - whatever that means - and that maybe in a few months they'll have an app. In the meantime, they recommend using a sync with GooCal. But GC seems to flub the time zone differences between when you post an appointment online and when it is synced to the phone. I thought that Goo had fixed that, but I still see West Coast time on the GooCal website and the correct East Coast time on the phone. I'm so confused! Does anyone know if GooCal is HIPAA compliant for a medical practice? If not; anyone use another service that IS compliant on their Annie device? Another problem I had - now resolved by my ISP provider - was that Android didn't support the wav file for my voice mails. Now it does. If not, that would've been a deal breaker. Also, I was told - apparently ALSO incorrectly by TM - that visual voice mail was a speech to text app. Nope. It just plays an audio and you can see the date and time and phone number and pause it. Big whoop. I'm told that Google Voice IS a real, but perhaps flawed, speech to text voice mail conversion, but I don't think it will work for business purposes. I thought about Line two, but was told their visual voice mail is only like TM's visual voice, not speech to text. Lastly, TM said you could dictate reports with a pre-loaded, stock dictation/speech to text app. Nope again. Um, I think that covers it. Any experience with any of these glitches?
I think that his site rocks and everyone thinking of buying any cell or service should come here first and just not even bother with any of the carriers' sales personnel. But the carriers aren't interested in selling to folks like us, are they? They want the masses who just plug and play. OK. No quarrel with that. I'm just glad we're not ALL forced to PnP and this site, we don't have to. I do think that adding Mods and rooting are the way to go, but I'm a Mac guy and everything here seems PCentric. so I may have to wait till I get my hands on a Win 7 machine for half an hour. (No, I don't run Parallels - had a bad experience with a couple of early versions).
I'm still a GS4G booster to date and I'm going to try new things with it. But so far it makes me wish it was more intuitive.
Cheers,
wmikemoon said:
Protective Measures: To provide a good experience for the majority of our customers and minimize capacity issues and degradation in network performance, we may take measures including temporarily reducing data throughput for a subset of customers who use a disproportionate amount of bandwidth. If your total usage exceeds 5GB (amount is subject to change without notice; please check T-Mobile’s T&Cs on www.T-Mobile.com for updates) during a billing cycle, we may reduce your data speed for the remainder of that billing cycle. If you use your Data Plan in a manner that could interfere with other customers’ service, affect our ability to allocate network capacity among customers, or degrade service quality for other customers, we may suspend, terminate, or restrict your data session, or switch you to a more appropriate Data Plan.
Copied from the Terms and Conditions which has a link on literally every single page on T-Mo's website and is clearly marked in the section titled "Data Plans and Other Features".
Alternatively, on Verizon's site...You can only get to the details about their data package after adding a voice plan and phone to your cart...at which point it gives a vague description of their throttling rules that do not mention exact amounts. It just says that it can throttle your speed whenever it feels like.
So again...not seeing a problem here...
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Click to collapse
When I asked the TMO rep “This data plan has UNLIMITED DATA”? He said YES. He made no mention of the 5GB “LIMIT”. Therefore he misrepresented the product. These companies falsely advertise their products with misleading information to make it look bigger than life in an attempt to lock us in to a two year contract. You are saying that because they hide the gory details somewhere in their web pages that makes it OK. You speculate that the reason Alltel went out of business is because of over usage by their customers clogging their lines. I don’t know where you did your research but I never had any issues with service failure due to over usage or any other issues for that matter. You said “All carriers throttle”. I was never throttled ONCE by Alltel. I guess that may be true now, since the only decent service provider has been acquired by their Big Brother Corporations. If they were still in business I would still be there. Would it not be a novel Idea to invest in their network so they can handle the added throughput, and provide a robust network that gives us the service they promised us in their advertising? I don’t have any problem with paying for a product or service I want. I do have a problem with companies that lie or mislead about their product. TMO puts it out there in LARGE WORDS “UNLIMITED DATA” then hides the gory details in other places. Your attitude is that’s just fine with you. If more people would not take the BULL-onie that these Corporations are shoving down our throats and demand HONISTY in advertising we would be getting a better value for our money. You are dam right when you say I am rebelling to corporate standards. Corporations do not have our best interests in mind. They are only concerned about profit. If they can do away with competition, there is more profit for the higher-ups. Then you lose your job and the public looses their choice and gets less value. You choose to justify what these corporations are doing to our nation and put on blindfolds to the truth.
I gladly respect and give fosormic his right to his opinion. I just think that attitude promotes the passive nature that has allowed this country to go down the tubes and be taken over by greedy corporate money barons. People in this country have to have the Balls to stand up and be heard if this nation is to survive.
If you want to get worked up about something look into "'net neutrality" -- that's a cause worth fighting.
Yes, it is "easy" to hit a 5 GB cap. Yes, it is very clearly called out in the T&C of the phone -- You had 14 days in most states (30 days in California) to read that and get a full refund if you didn't agree.
The T-Mobile data service is arguably "unlimited" -- once you hit the cap, you are free to continue.
As speeds increase and more people have a phone capable of sustained and reliable rates over 1 Mbps, then you will see consumer pressure for higher caps. Until then, welcome to the bleeding edge...
Dude...you are getting way too bent over this.
You keep making T-mo out to be a terrible carrier...I'm just trying to convince you that they are the lesser of the evils.
nwpro3 said:
When I asked the TMO rep “This data plan has UNLIMITED DATA”? He said YES. He made no mention of the 5GB “LIMIT”. Therefore he misrepresented the product.
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No...he told the truth. It is unlimited data. The alternative to unlimited data is what Att does which is set a limit and then charge you when you go over that limit. It is (or should be at this point) common knowledge that if you have a mobile data plan that is unlimited...your carrier will throttle you if you use too much.
nwpro3 said:
You are saying that because they hide the gory details somewhere in their web pages that makes it OK. You speculate that the reason Alltel went out of business is because of over usage by their customers clogging their lines.
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Um...no and no. I'm saying that it's there for you to read in the place that you should read before committing to a two-year contract. We're not talking about fine print locked away in a website that can only be found by searching one specific term...It's the TERMS & CONDITIONS and there is LITERALLY A LINK ON EVERY SINGLE PAGE ON THEIR WEBSITE. They are not hiding it...I really don't see why you think they are. Also...I never speculated why Alltel went out of business...I don't know why and I don't really care. They are not around anymore and have not been for a while so there really is no point in talking about it.
nwpro3 said:
Would it not be a novel Idea to invest in their network so they can handle the added throughput, and provide a robust network that gives us the service they promised us in their advertising? I don’t have any problem with paying for a product or service I want. I do have a problem with companies that lie or mislead about their product. TMO puts it out there in LARGE WORDS “UNLIMITED DATA” then hides the gory details in other places.
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It's for MOBILE DATA. That's what the network is intended for...NOT HOME INTERNET. The service you want is HOME BROADBAND. If that's what you want...get that. They offer unlimited downloads and never throttle your speed because their service is intended to be used on a massive scale. What you are doing is like...Going to McDonalds and wondering why they aren't serving high class food. It's a restaurant...They serve food...gotta be the same as a 5-star restaurant...WHY AREN'T THEY SERVING 5-STAR FOOD!? Because you're looking in the wrong place, dude. If you want home internet...get home internet...stop expecting all of the carriers to conform to what you want when they are clearly just not set up for it.
Stop dissing T-mo...T-mo is the best carrier out there for what people on this site want from a carrier. Basically...they love nerds and are very very fair. Yes...the T-mo Customer Service people in store aren't the brightest people in the world...But it's because they are hired based on customer service experience not technology knowledge (Techknowledgy!? COINED IT!)...if they were A) I wouldn't be working on a Production Line making 8 an hour and B) Mobile phone customer service reps would know what the **** they were talking about.
Word?
@Whiskey Tango - Go to Menu>settings>Wireless Network>Mobile AP> Activate Mobile AP. This is what works for me, idk if maybe simple mobile is any different then tmobile or not.
So if you already have a data plan, you should be able to make your phone a "router". I have let many friends (w/iphones & att) use my mobile AP and it was 10 x's faster than there data connection.
I also tether my pc to my phone and have been able to load any page I went to.
Maybe I'm totally missing the question. Wouldn't be the first time.
wmikemoon said:
Dude...you are getting way too bent over this.
You keep making T-mo out to be a terrible carrier...I'm just trying to convince you that they are the lesser of the evils.
No...he told the truth. It is unlimited data. The alternative to unlimited data is what Att does which is set a limit and then charge you when you go over that limit. It is (or should be at this point) common knowledge that if you have a mobile data plan that is unlimited...your carrier will throttle you if you use too much.
Um...no and no. I'm saying that it's there for you to read in the place that you should read before committing to a two-year contract. We're not talking about fine print locked away in a website that can only be found by searching one specific term...It's the TERMS & CONDITIONS and there is LITERALLY A LINK ON EVERY SINGLE PAGE ON THEIR WEBSITE. They are not hiding it...I really don't see why you think they are. Also...I never speculated why Alltel went out of business...I don't know why and I don't really care. They are not around anymore and have not been for a while so there really is no point in talking about it.
It's for MOBILE DATA. That's what the network is intended for...NOT HOME INTERNET. The service you want is HOME BROADBAND. If that's what you want...get that. They offer unlimited downloads and never throttle your speed because their service is intended to be used on a massive scale. What you are doing is like...Going to McDonalds and wondering why they aren't serving high class food. It's a restaurant...They serve food...gotta be the same as a 5-star restaurant...WHY AREN'T THEY SERVING 5-STAR FOOD!? Because you're looking in the wrong place, dude. If you want home internet...get home internet...stop expecting all of the carriers to conform to what you want when they are clearly just not set up for it.
Stop dissing T-mo...T-mo is the best carrier out there for what people on this site want from a carrier. Basically...they love nerds and are very very fair. Yes...the T-mo Customer Service people in store aren't the brightest people in the world...But it's because they are hired based on customer service experience not technology knowledge (Techknowledgy!? COINED IT!)...if they were A) I wouldn't be working on a Production Line making 8 an hour and B) Mobile phone customer service reps would know what the **** they were talking about.
Word?
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I agree with the statement TMO is the lesser of two evils. I have had cell service with all the majors: Verizon, Sprint, Cingular/ATT, Alltel and now TMO. Unfortunately the only one that gave me decent service is no longer around. I went to TMO because they advertise unlimited data and when I talked to the rep he said they also have an unlimited voice plan. I am looking for the best value I can get. I’ve been around a long time and have watched this corporate mentality lower the standards of living for most Americans. Part of why this is happening is the passive nature of people in America. We have become complacent. We are not demanding enough on these companies that deceive us with their advertising and then don’t give us what they promise.
I am using this as my primary internet as I said because I drive truck and not home enough to warrant getting satellite service, which is my only other option where I live. Realistically when I am on the road I probably will not hit the 5GB limit very often. What sucks is while I am at home I get this lousy EDGE speed. After further checking, Sprint, ATT and Verizon all have 3G from the same tower that TMO gives me 2G and then TMO throttles that to 1G or less. So yes, I’m pissed off. But then I have taken action and voiced my concern to TMO. The result is I’ve been released from my contract. I have the option of going to another provider. The problem is I’m already with the lesser of the evils and next year there will be even less choice. I haven’t been out on the road yet to see what TMO will provide for service then. I will probably keep the service for a while until I see what kind of service I get on the road, and then decide my next move.
Hey guys, anybody else having problem once they activate the AP settings on there phone? I can get my computer to connect to the phone, and yet i can't get access to the internet on my laptop (vista).
Well I didn't see this posted anywhere else but I just got a text message from Verizon saying I get another month of hotbot free. Here is a copy of the text.
FREE VZW MSG: The Mobile Hotspot/Mobile Broadband Connect promotion for your Smartphone has been extended to 6/15/2011. Share your internet access with up to 8 Wi-Fi capable devices or with your notebook or netbook. After the promotion expires, additional access charges will apply.
Did anyone else get this?
Yes, I got this message as well.
Got it too, made my day
Sent from my T-Bolt
The extension is probably in lieu of the Charge being released soon. Cant complain.
RossLH said:
The extension is probably in lieu of the Charge being released soon. Cant complain.
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Charge has been out for a few days now...
I never claimed to be on top of things...
this could be a case of moron-employee, but a rep I talked to today at a store in Thousand Oaks (Cali.) told me they had no plans to charge for wi-fi hotspot use provided you already had unlimited data.
I suspect it will be free until they have tiered data pricing in place. Because it's free, you can't sign up for it. After tiered data is in place, when you sign up, you're not grandfathered, so that means a contract change along with tiered pricing.
Net/net, there will be no way to grandfather unlimited data along with tethering on the TB.
my mobile hot spot has been shotty lately. Constantly cutting out but i did get the text 5/16
mike.s said:
I suspect it will be free until they have tiered data pricing in place. Because it's free, you can't sign up for it. After tiered data is in place, when you sign up, you're not grandfathered, so that means a contract change along with tiered pricing.
Net/net, there will be no way to grandfather unlimited data along with tethering on the TB.
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I called on the 15th and asked about the pricing and here's what they thought was reasonable......
$50 - 5GB
$80 - 10GB
$10 - EVERY GB Over!!!
I balked and hung up, got a callback for a customer survey 2 min later, told them I wasn't happy and they said a manager may call me back....
The next morning I get that message and it was on engadget...
I guess they had a lot of calls like that....
Sent from my AdasR6400L from the matrix->
I got the message too about charging after a certain date. I seriously doubt Verizon is going to let any money slip through their fingers by grandfathering anyone in. Which is fine with me, I like Wireless Tether better!!!
This may sound a bit on the paranoid side. But, did any one ever think that maybe VZW was letting us have free hot spot feature to see how much DATA we would actually incure on our individual lines? Verizon has a way of finding out how much DATA is being passed through there tather app. That will give them an idea of who is using the after market teather app when there hotspot feature goes to a teared price plann. They know that some will go back to the teather app. And they will be able to make a pretty good educated guess as to whoo is using what. And please, don't tell me that they wouldn't do that. This is a corporation that is out to make money. And we have all the technology that is needed to acquire any info that is desired. And there is nothing wrong with that. But, they think it is OK to charge us for data passing through our phones to any other device other than the phone. When truly, we can download anything we want to the phone and then pass it to a device of our choice either through WiFi or USB. They are merely trying to charge us for convenience. I don't ever use more DATA when teathered to an external device than I could or do when I am on my phone. This charging for DATA tunneling is ridiculous. And has to stop. These a$$ hat clowns have to stop charging for anything they like. What hell! There prices are above and beyond ok. 5 gigs for $50 and so on? Yeah, that's totally reasonable!
One other thing. I don't particularly want to hear some snub nosed douch tell me if I don't like the prices that I can go somewhere else for a cell provider. Yeah, that would be great if 1, VZW didn't purchase Alltel. Or 2, ATT didn't purchase T Mobile. Not that I would move to a GSM carrier. And I kind of need the coverage that aCDMA company can provide. Yes, I know the saying, you pay higher prices for better service. And don't get me wrong. I am grateful to have these technologies available to us. But, the prices have to come down a bit. Any way, I am done *****ing an wearing my tin foil hat. Good evening every one.
Sent from my Xoom using XDA App
If you don't like the data (what do you use DATA as an acrynym for?) pricing, you can cancel the service. No one is forcing it on you.
mike.s said:
If you don't like the data (what do you use DATA as an acrynym for?) pricing, you can cancel the service. No one is forcing it on you.
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That's not a solution either. While I completely agree with the poster your replying to, I'm not sure there is much we as consumers can do about it. Those of us who actually care and realize what is happening are in the minority. The rest of the consumers who simply use their phones to broadcast their location to everyone on facebook and twitter or check their e-mail will never know that they are being ripped off.
Well unfortunately if Verizon does put me on tiered pricing for data I actually would change carriers. The main reason I came to Verizon was for their service. I don't tether that often, but I like to have the option without having to worry about extra fees but I use the data on my phone A LOT. I honestly doubt they will, but if Verizon does force everyone onto tiered pricing, well, at that point I might as well be with Cricket because all I'll be using is the phone.
I would like to be honest, so given a reasonable price I would buy the tether service, but still use my wired tether app because they wont support wired teather themselves....
The CSR did however tell me that supposedly you will only be charged for what the tether app itself uses and that regular phone data would not count...
Sent from my AdasR6400L from the matrix->
I would be willing to pay $60/mo for unlimited access on top of my current plan. That would match my current ISP. Anything more and I'll just get a VPN service and tether using VPN to prevent them from seeing what traffic is from my phone and what is from another device.
meh, I went ahead and put wifi tether on my tbolt
1 two hour hd movie uses 3 gb of data. I dare Verizon to put a 5gb cap considering a lot of kids use their phone for YouTube viewing which if I remember correctly has hd viewing.
Just as a side note I was on at&T's website the other day (don't ask) and used their usage calculator. They basically told me none of their plans were big enough for what I do on my phone alone let alone tethering with other devices. LOL.
Sent from my ADR6400L using XDA App
I had a question regarding the hotspot. I verizon rep told me that we have the hotspot free until 6/15 and after that it will be $20/month for 1G. If you go over its and additional $20 for every following GB. My question is does anyone know how the free hotspot works. Do we only get 1G free and if we go over we will be charged or is it unlimted until the pricing starts and then it has the cap?
Has anyone actually been caught by the tethering police? I mean have they sent you a notice or anything?
Also, do you think I would be caught? I have used between 11 to 20 gigs a month for 6 months straight with my previous phone(Tilt2) and now I that I have the Infuse, would they even know If I was tethering or not since I would be using the same amount of data as I previously have?
Any input would be appreciated
Without trying to sound like a jerk, you do realize it's people like you that are the reason they have to police it in the first place?
20 gigs isn't off the charts outrageous, cause there are guys that say they've used up to 50 gigs in a month. Every time my bill goes up, I say a thank you to each one of you.
antuus said:
Without trying to sound like a jerk, you do realize it's people like you that are the reason they have to police it in the first place?
20 gigs isn't off the charts outrageous, cause there are guys that say they've used up to 50 gigs in a month. Every time my bill goes up, I say a thank you to each one of you.
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Lol
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I997 using XDA Premium App
antuus said:
Without trying to sound like a jerk, you do realize it's people like you that are the reason they have to police it in the first place?
20 gigs isn't off the charts outrageous, cause there are guys that say they've used up to 50 gigs in a month. Every time my bill goes up, I say a thank you to each one of you.
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That doesn't really answer my question... but hey, thanks!!
antuus said:
Without trying to sound like a jerk, you do realize it's people like you that are the reason they have to police it in the first place?
20 gigs isn't off the charts outrageous, cause there are guys that say they've used up to 50 gigs in a month. Every time my bill goes up, I say a thank you to each one of you.
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+1
10characters
Thanks for the tiered data.
Hope you do get caught.
Sent from my Infuse 4G
antuus said:
Without trying to sound like a jerk, you do realize it's people like you that are the reason they have to police it in the first place?
20 gigs isn't off the charts outrageous, cause there are guys that say they've used up to 50 gigs in a month. Every time my bill goes up, I say a thank you to each one of you.
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Click to collapse
well if he stops know, theyll suspect something!
tbh, i pay for unlimited data. ive tethered a few times but not more than checking that i can or to run speed tests. even though i dont really tether, i still use alot of data. thats why i have the unlimited data plan. att knows this. ive been paying them for years to know this.
The Jack of Clubs said:
well if he stops know, theyll suspect something!
tbh, i pay for unlimited data. ive tethered a few times but not more than checking that i can or to run speed tests. even though i dont really tether, i still use alot of data. thats why i have the unlimited data plan. att knows this. ive been paying them for years to know this.
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I'm not going to get into the "well unlimited is unlimited and why does it matter how I use my unlimited." That's an argument that I feel both sides has a good argument for, so why waste the time.
I have no issues if you download gigs of porn to your phone, month after month. My issue is with the people that tether to excess just because they can. I can't tell you how thankful I am that ATT did lose a good amount of customers to VZW when the iP4 hit their shelves. Now those fanboys are bogging down the VZW network and not ours. Now I can only hope that more of these guys look for greener pastures so my bill stops inflating.
att prepared for the iphone originally with its separate apn and all that. it helped but you saw more iphones with down service than other phone users. really set up a bad name for att. has anybody even bought the iphone on verizon? i remember the launch day being a flop, havent really kept up with apple news since then.
antuus said:
I'm not going to get into the "well unlimited is unlimited and why does it matter how I use my unlimited." That's an argument that I feel both sides has a good argument for, so why waste the time.
I have no issues if you download gigs of porn to your phone, month after month. My issue is with the people that tether to excess just because they can. I can't tell you how thankful I am that ATT did lose a good amount of customers to VZW when the iP4 hit their shelves. Now those fanboys are bogging down the VZW network and not ours. Now I can only hope that more of these guys look for greener pastures so my bill stops inflating.
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I do not tether on excess just because I can. I do it because I have no other means to connect to the internet and It wouldn't be the same on my phone's browser. Yes it has a flash player plugin, but that doesn't mean I can do everything I can do in a computer environment. If I had access to internet by any other means, then I wouldn't tether from my phone. There was no need for you or anyone to be harsh to me without hearing my side of the story thank you very much.
MikeyMike01 said:
Thanks for the tiered data.
Hope you do get caught.
Sent from my Infuse 4G
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Agree. If I tether a lot in a month, MAYBE I'll cross 2 gigs. I make a point of keeping my tethering light.
However with the new phone I suspect I'll come closer to that 2gig limit a lot more often. (Fortunately I don't have it, since I'm unlimited.)
But 11-20 gigs/month without paying for tethering is just plain irresponsible. With abuse like that I'm surprised you haven't gotten busted and I wouldn't feel sorry for you if you did.
I had a grandfather plan - $20/mo unlimited data.
I've changed 5 or 6 smartphones since I had it, now on Infuse 4G, I'm getting the sucky-ass AT&T 4G speeds, tether to laptop when needed - no tethering plan.
I don't use that much though, about 2GB/month max.
I asked AT&T rep directly about this - she said they'll never change the plan unless I specifically allow it. She said they can't switch me.
well, there is that tethermanager.apk on stock that seems to report back to AT&T if you're tethering.
then if they feel like it they will text you and say "don't keep doing it or we'll swap you to the tethering plan"
you can freeze that with titanium backup (well you need to be rooted too) and that reactivates the stock tethering stuff built into the phone (both mobile ap and usb tethering)
hwaters said:
well, there is that tethermanager.apk on stock that seems to report back to AT&T if you're tethering.
then if they feel like it they will text you and say "don't keep doing it or we'll swap you to the tethering plan"
you can freeze that with titanium backup (well you need to be rooted too) and that reactivates the stock tethering stuff built into the phone (both mobile ap and usb tethering)
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Click to collapse
Well that really isn't helpful(since I have already done all that) but thanks. I'm talking about AT&T's "Tether Police" that monitor data spikes and accuse you of tethering if your data seems different for any other month.
Earlier this year, a At&t added a tethering plan to thousands of accounts based on data usage. They also alerted many more they would do the same. I only know of three people to have this done to them
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I997 using XDA App
MikeyMike01 said:
Thanks for the tiered data.
Hope you do get caught.
Sent from my Infuse 4G
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Click to collapse
1++++++++++++
That's why att sucks ass...
Grapes
I've been unlimited for years now, i don't know nor care how much data I use. I can tether if I want, which means if my home internet goes down and I need my pc, guess what... I'm tethering. I give att $200 per month for my phone plan over the past 4 years at lest, I highly doubt they'll piss me off and attach a tether plan to my account.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I997 using XDA Premium App
Rldowney said:
Earlier this year, a At&t added a tethering plan to thousands of accounts based on data usage. They also alerted many more they would do the same. I only know of three people to have this done to them
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I997 using XDA App
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Click to collapse
While what you say isn't exactly what happened they have been flagging a very large percentage iPhone users who have tethered even for a matter of 3 minutes.
I currently have an iPhone 4 (should finally have my INFUSE today) and only one time have tethered and probably for less than 30 seconds just to see if the Cydia app worked. All I did was go to speedtest.net and ran the test 2 or 3 times. That was it. About 2 weeks later I got the WARNING text. Plan was never changed. They only will change it if you ignore their warning(s) and do not call them to "discuss" it as they request in their text.
As for me, traveling in North, Central and South NJ, AT&T 3G is virtually useless. Speeds are terrible and the latency is horrendous. I have no idea how people can actually regularly use tethering. I guess it's better in other areas. Been that way through 3 iPhones over 4+ years so I have no desire to tether anyway.
I think the tethering and data caps are completely separate issues. ATT had a plan, or at least the idea, for tiered data plans long before the iPhone was even capable of tethering without being jailbroken. Tethering plans are complete bull****, and I'm sure the FCC will eventually make them illegal. If you pay for a data connection, you should be able to use it any way you want. It's like ATT trying to charge you for the separate phones in your house (or at least a premium to allow you to use more than just one phone). I also think the tethering police are a joke too. I'm sure (especially since they allow sideloading), that any kind of traffic that can be generating by a computer can be replicated in android.
I come home today and find a letter from AT&T and open it up (thinking this outta be good)...Apparently they finally figured out the way they're gonna force us (those in grandfathered unlimited data plans) off. Their letter goes as following:
"Dear (My Name)
We've noticed your service plan may need updating.
Many AT&T customers use their smartphones as a broadband connection for other devices, like laptops, netbooks or other smartphones- a practice commonly known as tethering. Tethering can be an efficient way for our customers to enjoy the benefits of AT&T's mobile broadband network and use more than one device to stay in touch with important people and information. To take advantage of this feature, we require that you have a tethering plan.
Our records show that you use this capability, but are not subscribed to our tethering plan.
If you would like to continue tethering, please log into your account online at www.wireless.att.com, or call us 866-975-0003, Mon-Fri, 6am-midnight or Sat-Sun, 8am-9pm CT, by the end of this month sign up for a plan that allows tethering. Viable plans include the DataPro 5GB for Smartphone plan, the DataPro Enterprise plan, or any of our AT&T Mobile Share plans."
They then go on to list both plans priced $50 and $65 then go on to say "If we don't hear from you, we'll plan to automatically enroll you in one of the above individual Smartphone DataPro 5GB plans in an upcoming bill cycle........If you discontinue tethering by the end of the month, no changes to your current plan will be required."
Funny thing is I don't tether and any usage has been me watching netflix, youtube videos, downloading files from threads here and browsing the web. I wanna complete listing of these alleged "records" they speak of because I'll be damned if they get me off my unlimited data plan!
I got the same letter today. Also got a text
Sent from my EVO using xda app-developers app
It's based strictly on usage. I routinely use my phone as a mobile hot spot for my laptop, but only when absolutely necessary and only for a few MB at a time. I've never once heard from AT&T. Meanwhile, I know someone who never tethers to their phone (why would they when they have a mobile wifi router FROM AT&T?). They do, however, smoke through 3-4GB of data per month, as they use their phone in lieu of a laptop when on the road. Now, not that I would ever piece together what I've learned through casual conversation with an AT&T employee or two, but they've both suggested that something like this might resolve the situation if you're ever presented with it:
1. Call AT&T. Ask for supervisor right away--don't waste time with the peons.
2. Ask for the supervisor's name and number. Write them down. Inform supervisor that you received the letter, but do not tether and never have. Ask what "records" they're pulling from. You'll probably get a "usage" reply. If so:
3. Ask them how simple data usage can indicate whether you're tethering or not. They'll most likely say that the amount of data you're using is indicative of tethering.
4. Ask whether your plan contains unlimited data. The answer, of course, is yes. State once again that you do not tether, and as your plan has unlimited data linked to it, they cannot use the amount of data you consume as evidence of tethering.
5. Without giving the supervisor a chance to talk, quickly state that unless they can produce for you documentary evidence of cell data traffic being generated by a device tethered to your phone (here's a hint--they can only see your phone's data, they can't see anything connected to it), you expect them to honor the unlimited data agreement you have with them, and any attempt on their part to move you onto a different plan will be seen as a breach of that agreement and handled as such. Tell the supervisor that you expect a call from the call center's manager within 24 hours to acknowledge that your plan will not be changed absent documentary evidence of tethering, which you are not engaged in in the first place. Confirm the supervisor's name and number with them, "just in case we have any discrepancies when I talk to the center manager".
Not that I would've ever relied upon friends in the right places to detail such an approach for me or anything, but I have heard through the grapevine that the tethering letter consistently goes out to unlimited data users in certain "usage brackets", and they're banking on us not knowing that their towers can't tell whether the data is coming from our phone or from a laptop tethered to it.
Att did the same thing with Iphone users but it wasn't a bluff.. They knew in fact you were tethering...
I wouldn't be so quick to assume they are going only on data usage..
I'm willing to bet they know the second you tether...
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using xda premium
T.J. Bender said:
It's based strictly on usage. I routinely use my phone as a mobile hot spot for my laptop, but only when absolutely necessary and only for a few MB at a time. I've never once heard from AT&T. Meanwhile, I know someone who never tethers to their phone (why would they when they have a mobile wifi router FROM AT&T?). They do, however, smoke through 3-4GB of data per month, as they use their phone in lieu of a laptop when on the road. Now, not that I would ever piece together what I've learned through casual conversation with an AT&T employee or two, but they've both suggested that something like this might resolve the situation if you're ever presented with it:
1. Call AT&T. Ask for supervisor right away--don't waste time with the peons.
2. Ask for the supervisor's name and number. Write them down. Inform supervisor that you received the letter, but do not tether and never have. Ask what "records" they're pulling from. You'll probably get a "usage" reply. If so:
3. Ask them how simple data usage can indicate whether you're tethering or not. They'll most likely say that the amount of data you're using is indicative of tethering.
4. Ask whether your plan contains unlimited data. The answer, of course, is yes. State once again that you do not tether, and as your plan has unlimited data linked to it, they cannot use the amount of data you consume as evidence of tethering.
5. Without giving the supervisor a chance to talk, quickly state that unless they can produce for you documentary evidence of cell data traffic being generated by a device tethered to your phone (here's a hint--they can only see your phone's data, they can't see anything connected to it), you expect them to honor the unlimited data agreement you have with them, and any attempt on their part to move you onto a different plan will be seen as a breach of that agreement and handled as such. Tell the supervisor that you expect a call from the call center's manager within 24 hours to acknowledge that your plan will not be changed absent documentary evidence of tethering, which you are not engaged in in the first place. Confirm the supervisor's name and number with them, "just in case we have any discrepancies when I talk to the center manager".
Not that I would've ever relied upon friends in the right places to detail such an approach for me or anything, but I have heard through the grapevine that the tethering letter consistently goes out to unlimited data users in certain "usage brackets", and they're banking on us not knowing that their towers can't tell whether the data is coming from our phone or from a laptop tethered to it.
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Click to collapse
Exactly! I literally haven't tethered and my data usage did surpass 5GB last month ( I got the infamous text the very last day literally minutes before my billing cycle resets) but is around 3.5 this month....this is a pathetic move on their part to bank on people not opening that letter and change their plan without notice. Once the subscriber notices the call will go something along the lines of "Oh I'm sorry there's nothing we can do as it's a system change and we can not reverse or restore that previous plan." As if I don't pay enough for my monthly plan as it is......corporate greed at its best.
waiters said:
Att did the same thing with Iphone users but it wasn't a bluff.. They knew in fact you were tethering...
I wouldn't be so quick to assume they are going only on data usage..
I'm willing to bet they know the second you tether...
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using xda premium
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Click to collapse
Based on what those in the know have told me, they have no way of knowing and go solely by usage on Android platforms.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using xda app-developers app
T.J. Bender said:
Based on what those in the know have told me, they have no way of knowing and go solely by usage on Android platforms.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using xda app-developers app
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Click to collapse
Either that is 100% false or I'm very lucky.. I get throttled from att every month still and in my protest have reached 30gb+..
The only time I got a letter from att I was on an Iphone and was in fact tethering.
I do believe att knew this whole time about tethering but didn't care because they had bigger fish to go after.. Android will eventually level the playing field and att will be concerned with our data usage also.. That might be what you see going on now.. Att trying to go after tethering android users before it becomes a bigger problem...
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using xda premium
T.J. Bender said:
Based on what those in the know have told me, they have no way of knowing and go solely by usage on Android platforms.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using xda app-developers app
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Click to collapse
They don't. They just rely on usage patterns to determine if you're a "data hog" and look for backhanded ways to penalize you based on that data ( really only applicable to those remaining unlimited data folks ) If I was on a tiered data plan they could give two ****s what and how I use up data they'd encourage me to rack up all the GB of data I can and smile at the end the billing cycle cause they know I got ****ed good and hard.
Not the first time I have received the letter, all times I had in fact tethered in the month prior.
Sent from my EVO using xda app-developers app
Part of me hopes they pull this with me so I can get out of my contract...I used 16 GB a few months ago and no letter though. Oh and I never tether.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using Tapatalk 2
They know if you tether. That's why certain tethering apps have spoof capabilities to mask your ID.
Sent from my SGH-I727 using xda premium
It's all in HOW the tethering is done. If the app or ROM just simply says to use the built in tethering, then it's very trackable. If the tethering is spoofed to look like the normal data connection, then it can't be tracked.
dakpluto said:
It's all in HOW the tethering is done. If the app or ROM just simply says to use the built in tethering, then it's very trackable. If the tethering is spoofed to look like the normal data connection, then it can't be tracked.
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Click to collapse
All I use is foxfi and got the letter FWIW
And no, you can't get put of your contract with att on something like this ....its in the fine print that they can change pretty much whatever they want.
Sent from my EVO using xda app-developers app
00mred00 said:
All I use is foxfi and got the letter FWIW
And no, you can't get put of your contract with att on something like this ....its in the fine print that they can change pretty much whatever they want.
Sent from my EVO using xda app-developers app
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Click to collapse
Fine print isn't automatically legally binding. That guy sued AT&T for throttling and won.
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Sheolrock said:
Fine print isn't automatically legally binding. That guy sued AT&T for throttling and won.
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That guy won simply because it was proven they were throttling him at a lower usage than an equally priced capped plan.
00mred00 said:
And no, you can't get put of your contract with att on something like this ....its in the fine print that they can change pretty much whatever they want.
Sent from my EVO using xda app-developers app
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Click to collapse
Legally, you are correct.
However, if you speak to the right people, anything is possible; ESPECIALLY if you've been a customer in good standing for a long time.
Not saying it could happen, just saying it's possible. I missed out on unlimited data, but I do agree with the person on page 1 who numbered out the steps. That is definitely the right way to go.
liquidzoo said:
Legally, you are correct.
However, if you speak to the right people, anything is possible; ESPECIALLY if you've been a customer in good standing for a long time.
Not saying it could happen, just saying it's possible. I missed out on unlimited data, but I do agree with the person on page 1 who numbered out the steps. That is definitely the right way to go.
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Click to collapse
I agree with post on page 1 for sure. I wouldn't be very optimistic on being released from contract obligations though
Sent from my EVO using xda app-developers app
00mred00 said:
All I use is foxfi and got the letter FWIW
And no, you can't get put of your contract with att on something like this ....its in the fine print that they can change pretty much whatever they want.
Sent from my EVO using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I used foxfi too... first time this month. Probably around 30mb only, decided to try it to see if it works. I received the exact same mail.
Wonder if I should call or not because it says if you stop they will not switch you over. Now, I'm thinking maybe I should. I spent 3gb last month (our area is not LTE but my phone is LTE). What's the best advice on how to go about calling them? SHould I admit to using it or pretend I didn't.
droidbabyxda said:
I used foxfi too... first time this month. Probably around 30mb only, decided to try it to see if it works. I received the exact same mail.
Wonder if I should call or not because it says if you stop they will not switch you over. Now, I'm thinking maybe I should. I spent 3gb last month (our area is not LTE but my phone is LTE). What's the best advice on how to go about calling them? SHould I admit to using it or pretend I didn't.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Last time I got the letter I just told them I downloaded some app , was unaware of it being an issue, thanked them for the warning and let them know I wpuldnt do it again
Sent from my EVO using xda app-developers app
Att probably targets high usage customers for data profiling. When your WoW user agent pops up... bam, they send the letter.
Replace "WoW" with your favorite easily-profiled bandwidth-sapping client, Windows time request, etc.
And that's ignoring any differences between Windows/Linux/android networking stacks that can be finger printed...
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