Tethering: How your phone connects and facts and myths about it debate...

[jozhua]

To any that call me a fearmonger and naysay these things: You really believe a corporation is going to let us use their resources without compensation?

I do not think they will crack down on it since they do not offer a paid tethering option with the Droid. If they did have an option then they might be a little more aggressive.

 

[aminaked]

I do not think they will crack down on it since they do not offer a paid tethering option with the Droid. If they did have an option then they might be a little more aggressive.

I hope you're right.

That article I linked to above says that verizon charged over $12,000 for 816,000 KB of tethering. That's about 816 MB...less than 1 gigabyte of bandwidth. Verizon has a big motivation to crack down.

I worked as a profitability analyst and programmer for a multinational firm that we've all heard of. Our group worked full time with ever-evolving computer models on a customer-by-customer basis to optimize profit. Don't trust corporations. They'll go to the ends of the earth to chase a dollar.

 

[jozhua]

I do not think they will crack down on it since they do not offer a paid tethering option with the Droid. If they did have an option then they might be a little more aggressive.

I hope you're right.

That article I linked to above says that verizon charged over $12,000 for 816,000 KB of tethering. That's about 816 MB...less than 1 gigabyte of bandwidth. Verizon has a big motivation to crack down.

I worked as a profitability analyst and programmer for a multinational firm that we've all heard of. Our group worked full time with ever-evolving computer models on a customer-by-customer basis to optimize profit. Don't trust corporations. They'll go to the ends of the earth to chase a dollar.

That scenario from the article is pretty different from our situation as well. It was 4 years ago & the smartphone and bandwidth have evolved since then.. And I would bet that he was probably tethering to a dumbphone as well. Not sure what kind of contract they had (free downloads for 2 years?) but that sound really weird too. It still sucks for the family and reminds me of articles I have read about people accidentally using data internationally then getting billed massive amounts for it.

I agree with your assessment of corporations. My favorite website is The Consumerist

 

[Addie]

Get a usb cable and connect to computer. You might need a software to pair them can't help on that cause you didn't tell what kinda phone.

 

[Mark_Venture]

PMJI... I've seen people post T&C's and such in this thread...

What really applies is -> Terms & Conditions

and the statement of...

Unlimited Smartphone and BlackBerry Plans and Features
These WirelessEmail plans and features cannot be used: (1) for access to the Internet, intranets or other data networks except as the device’s native applications and capabilities permit, unless you subscribe to Mobile Broadband Connect; or (2) for any applications that tether your device to laptops or personal computers other than for use of the Wireless Sync or the BlackBerry solution, unless you subscribe to Mobile BroadbandConnect.

As for proof of someone getting caught/terminated/billed... I don't have any thing from PDA/Smart phones... but the same verbiage was used in the T&C's around the Vcast Vpack, and there were a few who DID get caught back then. (there are threads with posts and pictures over on Hofo)

As its already been said.. Its your choice if you want to tether without paying VZW's BBA plan. Ignorance to the fact that it is against VZW's T&C's isn't going to help if they catch you.

And just because VZW may not offer a BBA Plan for your phone or smartphone, doesn't mean its then OK to tether by other means.

NOTE: this same discussion happens all the time in the blackberry space because of the app available at Tether.com. And that on some VZW BB's, Verizon's app store (powered by a 3rd party) has Tether.com's app available for sale, so many claim VZW must be permitting its use. Again, its still in VZW's TOS that its not permitted... So, either VZW needs to stop selling it, or they need to revise their TOS

 

[MetroidJunkie]

One thing I don't get the logic of is the connection has a set in speed so how is tethering on a laptop much different than simply using the full html that comes with the phone? With the capability to both download/upload/stream on Android phones, it's not like doing the exact same thing on a laptop is burning through that much more data, unless Verizon's internet speed is too fast for their phones to process as quickly as a laptop using the same connection, the multitasking is crippled, or something.

 

[qoncept]

One of the easiest ways they could potentially tell if you're tethering or not is to look at the client agent on outgoing requests. If they can legally do that..? If they see your browser is being reported as IE8, it's pretty clear you aren't using the Android browser.

 

[aminaked]

One thing I don't get the logic of is the connection has a set in speed so how is tethering on a laptop much different than simply using the full html that comes with the phone? With the capability to both download/upload/stream on Android phones, it's not like doing the exact same thing on a laptop is burning through that much more data, unless Verizon's internet speed is too fast for their phones to process as quickly as a laptop using the same connection, the multitasking is crippled, or something.

Yeah, but I guess the idea is that most people aren't going to sit on their droid all day every day. It is small and doesn't have all of the capabilities of a PC. The PC can peg the bandwidth needle constantly by watching netflix streams, using bit torrent, playing online games. I think this is why tethering is taboo. It has the potential to use a lot more bandwidth. Just imagine everyone canceled their DSL/cable internet and just used the droid. This would crush verizon's network and profitability.

One of the easiest ways they could potentially tell if you're tethering or not is to look at the client agent on outgoing requests. If they can legally do that..? If they see your browser is being reported as IE8, it's pretty clear you aren't using the Android browser.

Yes, they can legally do that per their terms of service and privacy policy. They can examine your data destination and type for compliance. So in addition to the user agent method you describe, they can also see if you're doing things like connecting to netflix, downloading java applets that don't work on the droid, etc. The only way to hide tethering with certainty is to use a proxy server and encryption.

 

[mcatdtDroid]

One thing I don't get the logic of is the connection has a set in speed so how is tethering on a laptop much different than simply using the full html that comes with the phone? With the capability to both download/upload/stream on Android phones, it's not like doing the exact same thing on a laptop is burning through that much more data, unless Verizon's internet speed is too fast for their phones to process as quickly as a laptop using the same connection, the multitasking is crippled, or something.

Yeah, but I guess the idea is that most people aren't going to sit on their droid all day every day. It is small and doesn't have all of the capabilities of a PC. The PC can peg the bandwidth needle constantly by watching netflix streams, using bit torrent, playing online games. I think this is why tethering is taboo. It has the potential to use a lot more bandwidth. Just imagine everyone canceled their DSL/cable internet and just used the droid. This would crush verizon's network and profitability.

do you have some sort of numbers, article, or other proof of this, or are you merely trying to pass speculation off as fact?

 

[BigMcGuire]

I think he is right though. I asked all my droid friends how much they use = 128MB, 500MB, 1.2GB, one was 56MB. Me? I'm at 700MB when I usually average 300MB a month. Yet, on my Roadrunner at home I download probably hundreds of gigs a month (hulu.com, amazon movies on demand, music, World of Warcraft, etc.)

Tethering is something I see that will become the future. But if everyone used their cellular plan as their ISP, I think it would overload. Just look at AT&T

 

[Romple]

One of the easiest ways they could potentially tell if you're tethering or not is to look at the client agent on outgoing requests. If they can legally do that..? If they see your browser is being reported as IE8, it's pretty clear you aren't using the Android browser.

A lot of browsers have options to spoof the user-agent. Hell even BlackBerry's browser has an option to change it. This tells you nothing.

 

[czerdrill]

noob question, where do you even tell how much data you used in a month?

 

[Romple]

log in to verizonwireless.com, right in the middle of the screen there's a "minutes usage, text usage, data usage" tab.

 

[BigMcGuire]

I just go to VerizonWireless' website and go to data usage on the first screen. There is a #text that you can do to get it texted to you as well but I can't seem to find it at the moment.

 

[mcatdtDroid]

I think he is right though. I asked all my droid friends how much they use = 128MB, 500MB, 1.2GB, one was 56MB. Me? I'm at 700MB when I usually average 300MB a month. Yet, on my Roadrunner at home I download probably hundreds of gigs a month (hulu.com, amazon movies on demand, music, World of Warcraft, etc.)

Tethering is something I see that will become the future. But if everyone used their cellular plan as their ISP, I think it would overload. Just look at AT&T

I think, I think.....


It's all just speculation.... it's why I keep screaming for either a scanned copy of a bill with astronomical bill due to data usage off of tethering a droid.... or a copy of a VZW cancelled contract due to violations of T.O.S.