News
AT&T keeps iPhone tethering on hold due to traffic concerns
In a response to an Engadget inquiry on the subject, AT&T has said that it “cannot provide any details at this time” as to when, or if, U.S. iPhone users will receive the option to use the phone’s built-in tethering feature. “We know that iPhone users love their devices and mobile broadband, and that they’re likely to embrace tethering just as they have other features and apps – by using it a lot,” the company said in its response. “iPhone tethering has the potential to exponentially increase traffic, and we need to ensure that we’re able to deliver excellent performance for the feature – over and above the increases in data traffic we’re already seeing – before we will offer the feature.” AT&T Mobility CEO Ralph de la Vega said in November 2008 that tethering support would be coming “soon;” built-in support for the feature was added to the iPhone OS in June 2009, but AT&T said in October that more “fine tuning” would be required before it launched the feature.
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1
I really don’t understand this… I currently use AT&T’s Laptop Connect 5GB service and frequently bounce off the 5120MB limit. Not from work or software development related downloads, but from buying TV shows and movies from iTunes as well as youtube browsing.
Now, I’ve ordered an iPad which will have the unlimited 3G service, and I’ll just switch to doing all that bandwidth hogging stuff on it instead.
I switched over from Sprint’s unlimited service because, in spite of the fact that it was unlimited, it was dismally slow and latency was outrageously high.
Bottom line AT&T: Take some of those millions and billions you’ve been making off these exclusive Apple deals and upgrade your network instead of having another stockholder party you greedy bastards.
Posted by Luridis on April 29, 2010 at 6:04 AM (PST)
2
The likelyhood is that ATT is holding off on teathering to allow the ipad a launch as virtually the only laptop-like device on att’s 3g; this bodes well for the scenerio of the continued att only iphone. While a Verizion iphone would be a short apple finincial boon, att has proved a loyal partner; taking all the hits for the battery stingy data switching problems the iphone caused on the network in the early days of the iphone. Givin the fingerpointing early on by Verizion against the iphone, it is possible apple may stick with att alone well into 4g deployment.
Posted by Bill on April 29, 2010 at 6:29 AM (PST)
3
AT&T should concentrate on updating their network I don’t even have 3G where I live we’re still on edge. Apple should make there products open.
Posted by mike on April 30, 2010 at 3:50 AM (PST)
4
Almost a frickin’ year later (after Apple included the capability in iPhone OS 3.0) and AT&T STILL hasn’t delivered on this “soon” promise?
You know what? F*ck AT&T! They’ve had PLENTY of time to invest some of the millions they’ve made off of Apple exclusivity into their network but they’ve chosen to be greedy bastards instead.
AT&T has no intention of delivering on the promise of “iPhone tethering soon”. They’re just taking advantage of the Apple loyalists at this point by thinking, “We don’t have to do anything…these people love Apple products so much that they’ll put up with damn near anything we dish out to have their precious Apple devices.”
Sadly, they’re right. Apple needs to end the exclusivity with AT&T if for no other reason than to help even the playing field for their customers. I’d be willing to bet that a mass exodus of iPhone users to Verizon will be the only thing to make them change their ways.
Posted by Rockarollr on April 30, 2010 at 1:08 PM (PST)