This is for anyone who uses a wireless headset to listen to Pandora or a similar streaming app. I have been served with several notices about my illegal tethering but i have never tethered or use that feature nor do i use my webtop or the hdmi on my phone. I found out after talking with AT&T to resolve this, that they consider it tethering when you use your Bluetooth, whether it be to a headset or car stereo or even your TV to listen to streaming music you are tethering. AT&T claims that even if you are at home and you are on your home wifi network that they are still requiring you to have a tethering plan to stream to a Bluetooth device. Yes absurd it is and completely ridiculous in my eyes.
Please respond with your comments
If they did that to me I would cancel that day.
Had the same conversation with them today, only the rep said that Pandora--->BT headphones is NOT tethering, but Pandora--->BT car stereo IS tethering. I think she was just reading from a script because when I told her I was using Bluetooth headphones, she wanted to know what kind of cable I used for that...
At&t is continuing to get more and more absurd with their definition of "tethering" and rules regarding it.
What? How would they detect that you're using BT at all? And if they can tell that you're using BT, how can they tell what you're using it for??
rhys42 said:
Had the same conversation with them today, only the rep said that Pandora--->BT headphones is NOT tethering, but Pandora--->BT car stereo IS tethering. I think she was just reading from a script because when I told her I was using Bluetooth headphones, she wanted to know what kind of cable I used for that...
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She apparently didn't know what Bluetooth means, and thought instead that you were talking about a wired set of headphones. Regardless, Bluetooth streaming has as little (nothing) to do with AT&T as a wired connection does. The reason they can tell when you use Bluetooth or use your phone as a wifi hotspot is because the data sent to your phone sends a sort of "receipt" back to the carrier. Included in this uplink packet is a number which decreases by one everytime the signal is bounced to and returned from another device. If they see this number has been decreased more than your device does on its own, they can assume you are "tethering" wirelessly.
I have just received a letter, a phone call, and a text message about this myself. I have a Bluetooth head unit in my car and adapter for my computer with which I listen to streaming music. Needless to say, I am outraged. It's the same sort of crap we went through before with forced data plans for smartphones: these days you can't even buy a smartphone, not even from a third party, and use only 2G voice. Maybe you want a smartphone for its functionality as a pda, or maybe you would like to use wifi once in a while. Nope. It's almost like Exxon charging me for NOT driving my car.
From what I gather, T-Mobile does offer more value with no restrictions, while using Android you don't incur fees for using the hotspot features. That is Malarkey, for the carriers to restrict functionality devices. Hopefully, AT&T will honor the Tmobile contract if the succeed in their acquisition. If not, then will be looking for a reasonable MVNO.
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Iwould ask the same question how do they know that you are using bluetooth. Big brother theroy If I had that provider and they did that i would to them to stick it. Thats why I am with MetroPCS no questions and dont expect much lol
It seems pretty clear to me that MOST of you probably incurred abnormally high data usage due to lots of Pandora streaming causing you to be automatically flagged as a likely candidate for internet tethering/internet sharing without paying for it.
The reps likely had a 30 minute info session on what internet tethering is and heard that it can occur via USB, WiFi, or Bluetooth. So lacking any real knowledge about these things they heard you say you connected your phone via bluetooth to your car, etc. and thought bluetooth tethering/internet sharing instead of seeing it for what it is... a simple audio connection.
sonus said:
It seems pretty clear to me that MOST of you probably incurred abnormally high data usage due to lots of Pandora streaming causing you to be automatically flagged as a likely candidate for internet tethering/internet sharing without paying for it.
The reps likely had a 30 minute info session on what internet tethering is and heard that it can occur via USB, WiFi, or Bluetooth. So lacking any real knowledge about these things they heard you say you connected your phone via bluetooth to your car, etc. and thought bluetooth tethering/internet sharing instead of seeing it for what it is... a simple audio connection.
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Would have to agree with him.
I agree as well. I was flagged for tethering because i download ROMs and what not on my phone. I was grandfathered in with my old unlimited data plan. So my data is ultra high all the time. Once i went over all my months of service and the high data they dropped the tethering from my bill. It is nuts how they watch us now
Well either just pay whatever AT&T ask you to pay or get out and use some sort of prepaid service such as Straight Talk or the new tmo plan for $30 a month.
Nagging around will get you nowhere and you'd still have to pay.
greenstuffs said:
Well either just pay whatever AT&T ask you to pay or get out and use some sort of prepaid service such as Straight Talk or the new tmo plan for $30 a month.
Nagging around will get you nowhere and you'd still have to pay.
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Honestly, that's true.
I know that all carriers will go after you for tethering (minus T-Mobile, they don't seem to give a ****) if they charge for it, and you do it without paying.
All these people saying "We shouldn't have to pay for using our same data!", look at it this way, the $45 data plan w/ tethering has 4GB, the $25 data plan without tethering is 2GB, basically your only paying for the extra 2GB if you went over on the $25 plan, AND they won't say anything about you tethering, so it's really a win/win.
More data + ability to tether without AT&T *****ing.
Its not the data they look at, back when i had an unlimited plan and a laptop with a mobile bb built in card id slip my sim in that, fire my lappy up, and have mobile broadband with a unlimited data plan (non-smartphone). AT&T never questioned me, even though my usage chart had enormous spikes occasionally, im talking like >100mb to a few GB. I have a captivate now and have been tethering it occasionally since i got it, suddenly last month i started getting texts saying they were gonna add tethering to my plan if i didnt stop, support rep, no TWO support reps tried to tell me it was because i was streaming pandora to my car stereo with the line in port and headphone jack. I knew that was TOTAL BS, and finally a rep in a different dept. agreed with me, said the reps who said that were idiots, and that they can tell you are tethering by like the user agent strings in your computer and the way your phone is communicating with the network. Im sorta dissapointed about their crackdown, but i was clearly in the wrong, violating my contract, probably breaking several laws. AT&T is cracking down on tetherers not to be mean, but to keep the network flowing smooth and provide the best, most reliable wireless service in america. In short my POV comes from the simple fact that radio towers are like garden hoses, only so much data can flow through at once. Mobile broadband was not designed for high loads that tethering puts on them, it was designed to allow a cellular phone to recieve and transmit data OTA. As new technology comes out (3g, 4g, etc.) the networks are able to handle more and more, in the future i can see mobile broadband replacing DSL and Satellite internet. Especially as 4G gets established. The reason AT&T has a reputation for poor service in metropolitian areas is because of the high load on the towers. Im sure every single tower in NYC is overloaded, especially during morning and evening commutes, just look at all the people sucking water through the garden hose
Or......they just want everyone off the unlimited plan to get more money? Its always about the money.
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chschris2011 said:
and finally a rep in a different dept. agreed with me, said the reps who said that were idiots, and that they can tell you are tethering by like the user agent strings in your computer and the way your phone is communicating with the network.
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If they are using the browser user-agent to identify people who are tethering, doesn't that mean that they are looking at the information you are sending/recieving? That packet could just as easily have a credit card number instead of a user-agent string (assuming you are using a shady site that doesn't encrypt it to begin with).
Can anyone confirm/deny if this would constitute wiretapping and thus be illegal?
I would think that if they're looking into your data deep enough to see the agent string, that they could easily look at other data, too. I would be interested in knowing if it's legal for them to do that.
Also, if they're checking up on you by looking at your data, I would think that you could defeat that by using an encrypted proxy. I would be very interested in knowing if anybody has tested any of these approaches and knows for sure what AT&T is up to and what we can do about it.
I think that the user agent is included plaintext initially before the encryption starts. I may wrong on that point though. I have sent a query to att about this and we will see what they say.
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It really makes me sick when people defend the mobile carriers. "If you don't like it leave." Ya like that is really possible for many people. Ever heard of a 2 yr contract and termination fees?
Look if you are tethering you should pay for it, I agree. However, saying that using your Bluetooth is considered tethering your data is absurd.
The government needs to get involved quickly and regulate the mobile industry with more than just taxes. How about some regulation that protects the customer?
Clearly there is some type of oligopoly going on.
At&t is forcing everyone with a smartphone to have a data plan. That is fine if you have a new contract with a subsidized phone, however At&t continues to force you to pay for a data plan even when your 2 yr contract is up. Even if you buy a phone at full retail with no subsidy, as soon as they detect a smartphone on their network they will add a mandatory data plan on your account. You don't like it? You have no choice, the industry is price-fixing, policy-fixing, and a slew of other unethical practices and the government is letting it happen.
It's like the heads of these companies got together in a secret meeting and planned out this entire thing. Let's charge crazy fees and have crazy policies, let's lock them in for 2 years, and when they get fed up with me and want to switch to you, they will see you do the same exact thing! Having no choices, no competition, it's going to make us rich.
Did you hear what T-mobile UK has done? Read this from Wikipedia and prepare to be shocked:
"Effective February 1, 2011 T-Mobile UK lowered their fair-use capacity limit on Internet usage from 3GB to 500MB per month and clarified that Internet access using their mobile broadband service in reality only allows browsing the Internet using static websites. T-Mobile says:
"Browsing means looking at websites and checking email, but not watching videos, downloading files or playing games. We've got a fair use policy but ours means that you'll always be able to browse the Internet, it's only when you go over the fair use amount that you won't be able to download, stream and watch video clips."
Soon the U.S. carriers will do this. That Youtube video you watch or music you listen to, ya that's not a static site sorry! Aww you are going to complain and cry and switch carriers? Be my guest because we already had a secret meeting and we all put this policy in place. Plus we decided to increase prices just for the fun of it. Also next year we decided you are going to sign your life over.
I wish I was exaggerating but this is how bad the industry is getting.
Imagine how great things will get when the At&t and T-Mobile merger goes through. The 4th largest carrier will be out of the picture, At&t will be larger than ever, they will increase prices and make absurd policy demands. Verizon will LOVE IT because they will do the same thing, and when customers complain they will laugh and laugh and laugh and tell you "You can switch to At&t, oh wait they do the same thing!" Then they swill spit in your face.
Once this happens I will get rid of my smartphone and instead get a feature phone
Related
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ya... and? it's called being throttled... 10gb in a month, really? how much porn are you downloading lol. anyway, they andother carriers will do this to free up bandwidth for moderate users ....and its still unlimited because you're not being charged any "overage"
10 gigs is a lot of data, especially on a cell phone. I 'm on the web all the time and don't even come close. And I use Slacker a lot as well. THe only thing I don't really do is tether so I guess that could boost your data but still 10 gigs is a lot.
My Comcast has 250gb limit, i don't agree with it but they all do it.
Find yourself a hotspot and enable wifi. Half the time it's faster than 3G anyway.
what are you saying? it's perfect! Other companies let you go past their puny 2-5 GB/month data limit and then charge you huge overages or cut you off completely from data. With T-Mo you don't get charged extra, 10GB is a lot for a month, and when you go over you can still use data, albeit slowly, so you still receive those tweets.
Best company ever, man
I have seen somebody use over 20gb a month on there iPhone and was not sent a message from AT&T or had to pay any overage charger or be forced to have a reduced bandwidth. It's truly unlimited Internet.
Throttling is a common practice with most providers. Tethering though, believe it or not, is actually against your T-mobile terms of use...and if you reached 10gb's of data without tethering you need to go outside lol. So...if you were tethering, you shouldn't be complaining that they put a cap on internet to prevent you from overusing a system illicitly. They could just claim breach of your contract lol...though I've never seen it done before...
when did tethering become"against terms of use "I remember back in the day calling up customer care and they walked me through the tethering process. I had the 3.99tzones hack and was happily using edge to stream internet radio as tmo was and is stil lmy only isp. nowadays netflix streams fine over 3g on the 9.99 web2go...I don't think I've ever been throttled haha! (sounds funny) I don't kno what my data usage is though...
Geez...I tether everyday, and its myself and 2 other individuals who use my connection. Plus normal web browsing and pandora on my HD2 on almost a daily basis and I have never come close to the 10Gig limit.
...the fact is, even thought they throttle you after 10gigs (which is an absurd amount anyhow) you can still access the web from your phone right? So since you still have an active connection that means its still unlimited...they are just not allowing you to continue to download torrents or use your phone as your home ISP replacement for the rest of the month.
Tethering is not against Tmobiles TOS. You can find step by step guides on their forums on how to tether with wimo and blackberry. The only one it doesnt support but isnt against your TOS is android because you have to root your phone which voids the warranty.
Tethering IS against you TOS
Tethering any 3G phone is explicitly against the terms and conditions of you service agreement with T-Mobile. Tethering was never explicitly allowed by the terms and conditions, but it was not actively monitored by T-mobile. Since edge speeds and low data usage were not likely to cause network issues, T-mobile unofficially supported it. This is the same as the way you can call T-mobile tech support for assistance with an unlocked iPhone.
3G tethering is explicitly against the TOS and is actively being shut down, I have had a hand full of customers come in to the store when their tethering was blocked since it began a couple of months back.
Those of you who think that tethering is permitted, had better read your terms of service again...your sorely mistaken:
Here is the current TOS: http://www.t-mobile.com/Templates/P...&PAsset=Ftr_Ftr_TermsAndConditions&print=true
Section 29: Subsection 1: (near the bottom of the page)
1. Permissible and Prohibited Uses
Your Data Plan is intended for Web browsing, messaging, and similar activities on your device and not on any other equipment. Unless explicitly permitted by your Data Plan, other uses, including for example, tethering your device to a personal computer or other hardware, are not permitted.
Subsection 2 covers throttling and the fact that if you do tether they can suspend or cancel your account.
So since when has it been against TOS? Since as long as I can remember LOL. And if it wasn't back in the day...it is now.
The TOS should really be stickied so that people don't think it's okay.
Are you seriously complaining about getting throttled after using over 10gb of data??? Grow the eff up and stop using your cellphone as your internet connection to you computer. Tethering was meant for mobile users to have access to the internet while they were away from available WAPs. It wasn't meant for some 40 year old virgin to download porn all day. ******.
[highlight]Mod Edit: No Need for Insulting. Play Nice[/highlight]
I have to totally agree with you...LOLOLOLOL
+1 there... LOL
While I was at the Tmo store getting a new sim card I happened to ask the guy helping if tethering was allowed. He said it was as long as the phone supported it and you didn't go over the 10gb limit. My wife has been tethering her winmo phone for 2 years now and they have never said anything to us. although she's not downloading porn all day she does use it when she goes over to a friend's house that doesn't have internet. That being said, I don't doubt that it is against TOS but I doubt they will say anything as long as your not over stepping your boundaries.
2. 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; please periodically check T-Mobile.com for updates) during a billing cycle, we may reduce your data speed for the remainder of that billing cycle. We may also suspend, terminate, or restrict your data session, Plan, or service if you use your Data Plan in a manner that interferes with other customers’ service, our ability to allocate network capacity among customers, or that otherwise may degrade service quality for other customers.
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So basically it is up to TMOBILE to take (or not to take) actions if you exceed your allowed usage. Kinda went out of the subject matter a lil bit. I remember the title of this page was - !!!Beware!!!!!T-mobile Data Unlimited plan has Limit
I have been tethering using T-Mobile internet options for more than 7 years. Since I am considerate, I don't worry anything negative.
I don't mind people tethering whatsoever. What I mind is when people come onto a site dedicated to helping each other out; complaining that they are getting throttled because they are too inconsiderate to realize they are screwing other people over.
Free T-Mobile msg: Your usage has reached the data threshold for your rate plan this month. Your speed has been reduced for the rest of this billing cycle.
Anyone else hit this "threshold" ?
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How can there be a threshold when it's advertised as unlimited service? You might consider a complaint to your states AG. Especially with elections coming up.
wow! you must tethering and d/l lots of porn or something. They will limit you after 10gbs. I think. With heavy usage I rarely go over 1gb.
thunderstruck! said:
How can there be a threshold when it's advertised as unlimited service? You might consider a complaint to your states AG. Especially with elections coming up.
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From a T-Mobile store manager, please... read the fine print.
This is directly from T-Mobile.com
Android Unlimited Web*
Includes:
* Unlimited Web access
* Unlimited personal e-mail
*To provide the best network experience for all of our customers we may temporarily reduce data throughput for a small fraction of customers who use a disproportionate amount of bandwidth. Your data session, plan, or service may be suspended, terminated, or restricted for significant roaming or if you use your service in a way that interferes with our network or ability to provide quality service to other users. Some devices require specific data plans; if you do not have the right plan for your device, you may not be able to use data services. 3G coverage is available only in certain markets and on certain devices. Taxes, fees, and additional charges may apply. Domestic use only. See your data plan terms and T-Mobile's Terms and Conditions on T-Mobile.com.
You gotta love marketing and the fine print. Still 10 gb is a lot, and if you go over you get crippled service instead of fees.
thunderstruck! said:
How can there be a threshold when it's advertised as unlimited service? You might consider a complaint to your states AG. Especially with elections coming up.
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It is unlimited service, they're not shutting his data down they are just slowing it down. No where does it say about unlimited 3G service. The only people who are reaching this are the ones tethering and even then they are most likely downloading music or movies.
Yea, I know. The thing is, it's either unlimited or it's not. They are saying both. You should not have to read any fine print, instead of saying unlimited in big letters it needs to say Android 10GB monthly Web. F*** the fine print.
There's actually a lawsuit going on about this: http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2010/08/tmobile_suit.html
Unlimited isn't really unlimited. They just throttle your internet and make it run slower. How the hell do you pass 10GB of bandwidth? You must be tethering or downloading A LOT on it
It's marketing. How can you advertise a 10gb cap? You can't, some of us will understand the concept and will appreciate the forwardness of the carrier, but an average Joe will just get confused and will start asking questions which are not.needed as most average data users on Tmobile will not hit that cap. I am streaming Pandora at the gym 3 hours a day, sometimes tether, browse the web on 3g, I have etc to even get close to the cap.
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thunderstruck! said:
Yea, I know. The thing is, it's either unlimited or it's not. They are saying both. You should not have to read any fine print, instead of saying unlimited in big letters it needs to say Android 10GB monthly Web. F*** the fine print.
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Do you charged overages for using too much data? No. Can you not use your data if you go over 10GB? No. Its unlimited data, T-mobile puts that clause in there to cover themselves so if someone is abusing the service they can restrict them if need be.
rjwisniewski said:
From a T-Mobile store manager, please... read the fine print.
This is directly from T-Mobile.com
Android Unlimited Web*
Includes:
* Unlimited Web access
* Unlimited personal e-mail
*To provide the best network experience for all of our customers we may temporarily reduce data throughput for a small fraction of customers who use a disproportionate amount of bandwidth. Your data session, plan, or service may be suspended, terminated, or restricted for significant roaming or if you use your service in a way that interferes with our network or ability to provide quality service to other users. Some devices require specific data plans; if you do not have the right plan for your device, you may not be able to use data services. 3G coverage is available only in certain markets and on certain devices. Taxes, fees, and additional charges may apply. Domestic use only. See your data plan terms and T-Mobile's Terms and Conditions on T-Mobile.com.
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Hey, store manager, don't get so cocky, and try to throw contract statements in peoples face. I come from a family of attorneys, and just because something is stated in contract doesn't mean the consumer is wrong.
If a cell phone company runs advertisements on tv talking about their unlimited fast 3g, runs print ads talking about their unlimted fast 3g, has store reps advertise unlimited 3g to walk in customers, etc ... you get my point, the average person expects unlimited 3G, not edge. The law in all states specifically says there should be no ambiguity and ambiguity is based upon understanding from a resonable person. I'm resonable, and so are thousands of others who assume when they see advetisements for unlimited 3G, that means unlimited 3g!
I'm happy you have an understanding, but you also work for the company.
All it takes is 1 person, 1 person to fight t-mobile, start a class action law suit, and your pretty little statements are useless.
Now, going back to the person who got the t-mobile message. ARE YOU TETHERING? IF SO, YOU DESERVE TO BE KICKED OFF THE NETWORK FOR LIFE.
Well, he still has data access so I guess that makes it unlimited. I don't see anything unfair about it to be honest. I don't want my data access borked just because a bunch of kids are using their phones to download music and movies from the pirate bay all night.
When you see * it means there's some sort of caveat, and it pays to read to read the fine print.
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r6kid said:
Free T-Mobile msg: Your usage has reached the data threshold for your rate plan this month. Your speed has been reduced for the rest of this billing cycle.
Anyone else hit this "threshold" ?
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
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Curious .. are you using it for your daily internet use with tether?
Wow, I go over 10Gigs a month all the time... Internet at home got shut off here from roomate downloading movies off of bittorrent. I tether with it all the time, pandora, heck I even play battlefield on my ps3 with it...
Never got a message like that from t-mobile and hope I never do. I totally understand why they would do that though. Did this message come in the mail or via text message?
SamsungGalaxySVibrant said:
Hey, store manager, don't get so cocky, and try to throw contract statements in peoples face. I come from a family of attorneys, and just because something is stated in contract doesn't mean the consumer is wrong.
If a cell phone company runs advertisements on tv talking about their unlimited fast 3g, runs print ads talking about their unlimted fast 3g, has store reps advertise unlimited 3g to walk in customers, etc ... you get my point, the average person expects unlimited 3G, not edge. The law in all states specifically says there should be no ambiguity and ambiguity is based upon understanding from a resonable person. I'm resonable, and so are thousands of others who assume when they see advetisements for unlimited 3G, that means unlimited 3g!
I'm happy you have an understanding, but you also work for the company.
All it takes is 1 person, 1 person to fight t-mobile, start a class action law suit, and your pretty little statements are useless.
Now, going back to the person who got the t-mobile message. ARE YOU TETHERING? IF SO, YOU DESERVE TO BE KICKED OFF THE NETWORK FOR LIFE.
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The only one cocky is you Mr. my dad is an attorney. It all depends on how you interpret "unlimited." Although his speed is crippled, he no doubt has unlimited data--as advertised. It is still via the 3g network. I personally see no legitimate grounds for any suit.
SamsungGalaxySVibrant said:
Hey, store manager, don't get so cocky, and try to throw contract statements in peoples face. I come from a family of attorneys, and just because something is stated in contract doesn't mean the consumer is wrong.
If a cell phone company runs advertisements on tv talking about their unlimited fast 3g, runs print ads talking about their unlimted fast 3g, has store reps advertise unlimited 3g to walk in customers, etc ... you get my point, the average person expects unlimited 3G, not edge. The law in all states specifically says there should be no ambiguity and ambiguity is based upon understanding from a resonable person. I'm resonable, and so are thousands of others who assume when they see advetisements for unlimited 3G, that means unlimited 3g!
I'm happy you have an understanding, but you also work for the company.
All it takes is 1 person, 1 person to fight t-mobile, start a class action law suit, and your pretty little statements are useless.
Now, going back to the person who got the t-mobile message. ARE YOU TETHERING? IF SO, YOU DESERVE TO BE KICKED OFF THE NETWORK FOR LIFE.
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Click to collapse
Uhm...What?
It is not advertised as unlimited 3g you should get that strait first. Your whole argument is flawed.
It is advertised as unlimited internet and indeed unlimited internet it is.
Is the op still receiving internet access through his phone? Yes.
Thus it is unlimited.
ARE YOU TETHERING? IF SO, YOU DESERVE TO BE KICKED OFF THE NETWORK FOR LIFE.
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You have a very narrow view on things. For life? really?
All contracts have fine print. OP signed the contract so OP is abided by the contract. If he does not like it he can take this to court but ofcourse was OP breaking the contract? If the contracts states no tethering and the OP is tethering than the OP has no chance of winning.
Tmobile is not doing anything wrong here at all.
If they did however cut off his service or charged extra fees then Tmobile is wrong.
Why is everyone here rushing to tmobiles aid? Kicked off for life? Really? The OP never even said anything negative he just asked if anyone else got the same message.
You all realize tmobile makes plenty of cash right?
Everyone here has a point. Not everything has to be a flame war.
While it might be easier and even more profitable for them to only put this in the fine print they need to be ready to deal with the consequences of misleading consumers. Which I'm sure they are.
Texted While Driving
My concern is that if people star challenging this that we will end up with tiered pricing and hard caps similar to AT&T.
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SamsungGalaxySVibrant said:
Hey, store manager, don't get so cocky, and try to throw contract statements in peoples face. I come from a family of attorneys, and just because something is stated in contract doesn't mean the consumer is wrong.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am an attorney myself, and people really need to stop assuming it's a spectator sport. Any lawsuit over this issue is probably bull****, but who knows how it would actually come out - there's a heck of a lot of relevant background you would need to know. It's very difficult to predict. And if assholes with porn addictions or who use 3G data as a substitute for home internet start suing Tmo, we are very quickly going to end up with tiered data plans. Is that what you want?
But please people, stop speculating about lawsuits and holding forth on what the law is if you're not a lawyer. And no, having friends and family who are lawyers doesn't qualify you.
sl0play said:
Kicked off for life? Really? The OP never even said anything negative he just asked if anyone else got the same message.
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Well, im no attorney but personally I think that's too lenient. I feel that anyone caught tethering should be buried up to their necks in mud and stoned to death, and left there for the crows to pick away the remains, and it should be broadcast via real-time web cam as an example to others who might try the same.
If the offending party were to admit guilt only then would there be some leniency, and they would be sentenced to life in prison.
And by life I mean they put you in the cell and weld the door shut.... and that's that. No clothes, no blankets, just a blackberry curve with edge connection.
I'm from the old school.
Tmo for life, bro!
;-)
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I am interested in the optional Mobile Hotspot feature and its extra-cost service. I cannot justify that expense if I have to lock it in for a whole two-year contract, but I would find it useful sometimes.
For example, if I plan to be traveling in a certain month and want to add this service for $30 for that billing cycle but drop it later, could I do so?
boomerbubba said:
I am interested in the optional Mobile Hotspot feature and its extra-cost service. I cannot justify that expense if I have to lock it in for a whole two-year contract, but I would find it useful sometimes.
For example, if I plan to be traveling in a certain month and want to add this service for $30 for that billing cycle but drop it later, could I do so?
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Click to collapse
If you add/remove the hotspot service before your billing cycle they should be able to change it whenever you want.
Personally though, if you just root your phone, you can have free tethering whenever you want!
You don't have to commit to it, you can add and cancel whenever.
I heard that if you want to use the full-fledged mobile hotspot funstionality to connect to multiple devices, you must pay the $30 mobile broadband service, but if you just wanna tether to one device using, says, PDAnet, you don't have to buy the plan. Is it true? There are EVO users who claim that Sprint cut it off once they know you're tethering w/o plan even just to one device using PDAnet.
FrankCummings said:
I heard that if you want to use the full-fledged mobile hotspot funstionality to connect to multiple devices, you must pay the $30 mobile broadband service, but if you just wanna tether to one device using, says, PDAnet, you don't have to buy the plan. Is it true? There are EVO users who claim that Sprint cut it off once they know you're tethering w/o plan even just to one device using PDAnet.
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I believe the official statement from Sprint is that this is allowed. However, the last time I used PDAnet, it wasn't very good, and I much prefer the root approach to it, as that way you can tether via wifi as well.
The only way Sprint will actually know if you are tethering is if you are using HIGH AMOUNTS of data CONSTANTLY. Which in that case, they have the right to cut you off if its obvious you are tethering on a constant basis.
But simply tethering a few devices to browse internet, stream videos/music doesn't use up TOO much data. The most I've ever used was about 200MB when I had 3 laptops tethered to my phone for about 1.5 hours.
$30 bucks a month for tethering is ridiculous unless you plan on being tethered for days on end.
The rooted tether works perfectly on my Nexus, to connect laptops, my DSi, friends iphones/ipod touches etc and is best of all free.
NeonMonster said:
The only way Sprint will actually know if you are tethering is if you are using HIGH AMOUNTS of data CONSTANTLY. Which in that case, they have the right to cut you off if its obvious you are tethering on a constant basis.
...
$30 bucks a month for tethering is ridiculous unless you plan on being tethered for days on end.
The rooted tether works perfectly on my Nexus, to connect laptops, my DSi, friends iphones/ipod touches etc and is best of all free.
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Nevertheless, there is a difference between what the terms and conditions might forbid, and what you might get away with only because it is selectively enforced at the carrier's discretion. From Sprint's point of view, reading the agreement you sign, you might be considered to be cheating them out of payment for a premium service. You might think that "ridiculous," but you signed a contract.
I know about under-the-table, rooted tethering and hotspot creation. I can go to the dev forums and read about that if and when I need to. My question is about the business terms and process for following the contract.
The hotspot is $29.99 a month. You can turn it on and off all you want. If you only use it for the weekend, that's all they charge you for. I do it like twice a month with evo. I just chat with them and it takes like 3 mins. Most of the time I use USB tethering. I have 2.2 and cant root yet so I use PDAnet. Awesome little program. I have a good 4G so I use the hell out of it.
I've talk to sprint about it and the USB and Bluetooth tethering is fine. Free
Use PDAnet and it will work 4G and 3G.
If I plan to use the PS3 or Wii. Ill chat with a rep and turn the WiFi Hub on for a few days.
Bad news! I am at a buddies house using WiFi Router, and then Internet Sharing over Bluetooth PAN and just got a text from the new AT&T owned T-mobile service center saying my teather/WiFi sharing will be blocked unless I purchase a special plan from them...
I LOVE my HD2 Leo, but after everything they've put me through over the last 2 years, this may be the final insult. Free teathering and recently the way cool xda WiFi Router app have been a benifit allowance that now will be tossed on the plate of the all mighty cash cow.
I wonder if a cooked ROM HD2, or 3rd party app might get around this, but alas! They probably detect the networked devices different IP. Can we Yanks please flood T-mobile customer service with requests to stop this greedy new rule? If one has the unlimited data plan, what does it matter which device is using it?
greedy? why is it greedy? the networks are tehre to make money aswell as provide a service, the data plan you have is normally for mobile data use only, the network im on do not allow tethering at all due to the sheer volume of data than can be used when you hook a laptop up tot he data connection
nothing will get around it if they are using software to detect what header data is being sent
is it truly unlimited tho? my proivder says it is unlinuted buyt there is a soft cap of about 20Gb whcih if you are using that on a mobile phone is absolutely crazy, it is stop people using a cheaper mobile data connection than havin to pay for proper broadband
AtticusPhynch said:
Bad news! I am at a buddies house using WiFi Router, and then Internet Sharing over Bluetooth PAN and just got a text from the new AT&T owned T-mobile service center saying my teather/WiFi sharing will be blocked unless I purchase a special plan from them...
I LOVE my HD2 Leo, but after everything they've put me through over the last 2 years, this may be the final insult. Free teathering and recently the way cool xda WiFi Router app have been a benifit allowance that now will be tossed on the plate of the all mighty cash cow.
I wonder if a cooked ROM HD2, or 3rd party app might get around this, but alas! They probably detect the networked devices different IP. Can we Yanks please flood T-mobile customer service with requests to stop this greedy new rule? If one has the unlimited data plan, what does it matter which device is using it?
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Which plan do you have?
Richy99 said:
greedy? why is it greedy? the networks are tehre to make money aswell as provide a service, the data plan you have is normally for mobile data use only, the network im on do not allow tethering at all due to the sheer volume of data than can be used when you hook a laptop up tot he data connection
nothing will get around it if they are using software to detect what header data is being sent
is it truly unlimited tho? my proivder says it is unlinuted buyt there is a soft cap of about 20Gb whcih if you are using that on a mobile phone is absolutely crazy, it is stop people using a cheaper mobile data connection than havin to pay for proper broadband
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Click to collapse
You are lucky, T_Mobile has a 5GB soft cap, unless your 20GB quote was a typo and was suppose to be 2GB.
You are right if they are looking for people tethering then they will find you. I tether a good bit so I know they will find me eventually and I will hate it. I mean no matter what someone says about it, this is a clear injustice to the consumer. The consumer should have the right to use their devices and services they pay for in the manor they wish. Not be told 'Hey sorry but we can nolonger offer this service for free". It is a crock if you ask me.
I don't know why you say a cheaper mobile data service. Cause I pay $30 USD a month for my unlimited data, and it is $30 a month for a broadband service on a USB broad band device for my computer through T-Mobile. It uses the same dang network as my phone at the same dang speeds. So please tell me why I should have to pay for a "proper broadband" service, if I already have it with my phone? All you get when you get a broadband device is the cost of the device coupled with the monthly payment for the services. It is even worse that they want you to pay for something that has been free for a good while now just to add to their profits. It has nothing to do with this bull you heart about overloaded networks and the sort, those are all just a legitimizing statements to say "Hey we are right to instate these news regulations", and the mindless masses to not question the real legitimacy of it.
T-Macgnolia said:
You are lucky, T_Mobile has a 5GB soft cap, unless your 20GB quote was a typo and was suppose to be 2GB.
You are right if they are looking for people tethering then they will find you. I tether a good bit so I know they will find me eventually and I will hate it. I mean no matter what someone says about it, this is a clear injustice to the consumer. The consumer should have the right to use their devices and services they pay for in the manor they wish. Not be told 'Hey sorry but we can nolonger offer this service for free". It is a crock if you ask me.
I don't know why you say a cheaper mobile data service. Cause I pay $30 USD a month for my unlimited data, and it is $30 a month for a broadband service on a USB broad band device for my computer through T-Mobile. It uses the same dang network as my phone at the same dang speeds. So please tell me why I should have to pay for a "proper broadband" service, if I already have it with my phone? All you get when you get a broadband device is the cost of the device coupled with the monthly payment for the services. It is even worse that they want you to pay for something that has been free for a good while now just to add to their profits. It has nothing to do with this bull you heart about overloaded networks and the sort, those are all just a legitimizing statements to say "Hey we are right to instate these news regulations", and the mindless masses to not question the real legitimacy of it.
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no not a typo, thats what some people have downlaoded before being cut off, personally i dont use anywhere near 500meg because i do all my browsing etc when im conencted to wifi in the house, people seem use the data connection on their phone for their home internet which is what causes the high volumes
Has anyone figured out the best way to enable the wifi tethering capability?
I know on the s4, all the roms came out with this feature, it seems the s5 is still not rooted yet, what is everyone using, exploit or app?
this has been posted, but the best way to accomplish this right now without root is with FoxFi ( paid as far as i know and use now ) .. then USB or Bluetooth tether. you can then while tethered activate "wifi share" for your wifi devices. ..... if there is another method please someone post it!
verizon s5 are not allowed to do it..
Wow, what in the world is going on here...
Verizon may have made their last move. I just bought my phone with new 2 year contract, can i return and cancel my contract within a certain time period or am I inevitably effed?
I can not and will not put up with anymore of big Red's nazi ways, I am paying for a service and at the price im paying more than justifies my using of said service in any and every way that i want. If this does not get resolved soon, its a deal breaker for me and verizon. Not that it will make any difference...
and I hate that it would essentially make me move to a lesser carrier with less coverage and internet speed, but big red is starting to do that guv'mint thinking and i dont like where this is headed.
inebriat3d said:
this has been posted, but the best way to accomplish this right now without root is with FoxFi ( paid as far as i know and use now ) .. then USB or Bluetooth tether. you can then while tethered activate "wifi share" for your wifi devices. ..... if there is another method please someone post it!
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Click to collapse
donkey poo!!!
I require a real wifi tether, usb and bluetooth are too restrictive and time consuming.
I hope a few of the more experienced devs can chime in on whether this is something to wait for or just return/sell the device immediately?
naturalstamina said:
Wow, what in the world is going on here...
Verizon may have made their last move. I just bought my phone with new 2 year contract, can i return and cancel my contract within a certain time period or am I inevitably effed?
I can not and will not put up with anymore of big Red's nazi ways, I am paying for a service and at the price im paying more than justifies my using of said service in any and every way that i want. If this does not get resolved soon, its a deal breaker for me and verizon. Not that it will make any difference...
and I hate that it would essentially make me move to a lesser carrier with less coverage and internet speed, but big red is starting to do that guv'mint thinking and i dont like where this is headed.
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If you have one of their new plans which I'm assuming you do since you upgraded, you absolutely can use native hotspot. I ran it yesterday. You have to turn it on via settings instead of the traditional way of tapping the Wi-Fi app.
Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk
Settings->More networks->Mobile hotspot
tpike said:
If you have one of their new plans which I'm assuming you do since you upgraded, you absolutely can use native hotspot. I ran it yesterday. You have to turn it on via settings instead of the traditional way of tapping the Wi-Fi app.
Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk
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I upgraded, and paid full price for it....
kprice8 said:
I upgraded, and paid full price for it....
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Did you try the method 2 posts up?
Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk
No. For the reason of having unlimited data.
Sent from my SM-G900V on xda Premium app with no root
I gave up the unlimited data plan and went with the Share Everything with 6gb of data. I did an analysis of my data usage for the past year and found that I never used more than 2gb a month. The unlimited talk and text is more important to me than unlimited data. Although I use the web quite a bit on the phone, I use wifi at home and at work, so it limits my 4G data usage substantially.
Verizon will eventually find a way to eliminate unlimited data altogether, or with some of the new Internet legislation being pushed throttle the bandwidth to the point that it's useless.
I don't understand what people are doing to use 30gb a month or higher unless you are using the plan as your home ISP service connecting multiple devices, or streaming movies all day long.
mike163 said:
I gave up the unlimited data plan and went with the Share Everything with 6gb of data. I did an analysis of my data usage for the past year and found that I never used more than 2gb a month. The unlimited talk and text is more important to me than unlimited data. Although I use the web quite a bit on the phone, I use wifi at home and at work, so it limits my 4G data usage substantially.
Verizon will eventually find a way to eliminate unlimited data altogether, or with some of the new Internet legislation being pushed throttle the bandwidth to the point that it's useless.
I don't understand what people are doing to use 30gb a month or higher unless you are using the plan as your home ISP service connecting multiple devices, or streaming movies all day long.
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I have Verizon Home Fusion for home internet and I do not have wifi at work. Largest amount of data I can subscribe to per month is 30GB/month, for my home. I'm too far off the road for cable, DSL, and I didn't want Satellite (which still has limits).
I'm grandfathered into unlimited. I use about 30 GB a month tethering, mostly updates for the XBOX One, downloading stuff from the usenet, streaming Netflix or HBO Go to my iPad when I'm at my camper, which is in the woods.
I hope you have an understanding now of how someone can use 30 GB per month.
On an average month, prior to acquiring my GS5, I was using about 45gb of data. That's web surfing, PC and Xbox 360 gaming, and streaming videos. On HEAVY months, I was up around 75gb of data used. My lightest month to date of data usage was 29gb of data. No way in heck I am giving up my unlimited when I have no home landline internet.. This IS my salvation.
Well in response to the OP and to others who may be confused, WIFI tether (as well as bluetooth and usb) is built in and available as long as you have the share everything plan. Until we get root there will be no native wifi hack. I've been told a talented dev has an s5 in hand, i bet it wont be too long until root is achieved, after which native hacks will be forthcoming
It takes time, has anyone here had the s4 before the s5? Do you recommend me to get the s4 or s5? I'm looking to upgrade but I have to pay full price for the phone because I use about 100 gb every month, the only two things that make me doubt is that wifi tether is not posible yet and since I eat my fingernails I can't open the usb with my fingers on the S5 lmao
razzrmaxx said:
It takes time, has anyone here had the s4 before the s5? Do you recommend me to get the s4 or s5? I'm looking to upgrade but I have to pay full price for the phone because I use about 100 gb every month, the only two things that make me doubt is that wifi tether is not posible yet and since I eat my fingernails I can't open the usb with my fingers on the S5 lmao
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On that note, (heh) if you wanted to, and I wanted to, but was talked out of by a dumb BBY mobile rep, was getting the Note 3 which is rootable.
tpike said:
Well in response to the OP and to others who may be confused, WIFI tether (as well as bluetooth and usb) is built in and available as long as you have the share everything plan. Until we get root there will be no native wifi hack. I've been told a talented dev has an s5 in hand, i bet it wont be too long until root is achieved, after which native hacks will be forthcoming
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Click to collapse
Thanks for your reply but I need to activate on the unlimited plan and although when I'm home I don't use that much but when traveling it sure is much cheaper than paying 7-20 bucks a day for WiFi access in some places.... not having root is no good in this particular case especially because I rely on it for work and has never been an issue until now. And giving more money to Verizon is not an options unlimited is already 125 per month
Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk
kprice8 said:
On that note, (heh) if you wanted to, and I wanted to, but was talked out of by a dumb BBY mobile rep, was getting the Note 3 which is rootable.
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I'm currently still using my n3 cause it's rooted and running my rom. It's got Wi-Fi tether hacked as do most roms.
Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk
Suggestion
To kprice8
What I would do if I were you. Put your 4G SIM card back in your old device until root becomes available. That way you have the Wifi Tether and can use your Unlimited data. And at the same time you can use your S5 for all your apps and such. But use the old device for calling and texting. Just my suggestion. You are lucky, I would never give up that unlimited plan. And these devs are extremely clever you'll have Wifi Tethering on your S5 in no time.
Spelunker10 said:
To kprice8
What I would do if I were you. Put your 4G SIM card back in your old device until root becomes available. That way you have the Wifi Tether and can use your Unlimited data. And at the same time you can use your S5 for all your apps and such. But use the old device for calling and texting. Just my suggestion. You are lucky, I would never give up that unlimited plan. And these devs are extremely clever you'll have Wifi Tethering on your S5 in no time.
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Not an option. Took BestBuy up on their trade in offer. Didn't consider this at the time. But for the future, now I will know better...