iPhone 4 and 4S

[jaayne]

Why O' Why do I have to pay more £££ to use my iPhone as a modem, when other non-iPhone's can use this feature out of there usual data allowance??

Why am I being charged more because I have a specific device? If I take my sim card out of my iPhone and put it any Android phone running 2.1 or higher or even the Samsung Wave I can use the wired and wifi tethering options for free and have the data allowance come out of my standard plan..

What gives Voda!!!

[Tomo1971]

I think you will find that tethering is chargeable on all phones, not just the iPhone. There is only one network that allow tethering on the data plan, voda isnt it! S.

[jaayne]

nope, because ive tried it ...

my wife had a Samsung Wave for a while and when our AOL died out, i threw my iPhone sim in her phone and we used the tethering option for a few days, when my bill came in I had no extra charges, but my bill said I used 700mb out of my 1GB allowance, i usually use about 300mb...

im also told the same thing at the voda stores, any phone that can tether data can use it free of charge as long as you keep within your allowance but iphone users have to pay £5 extra per month regardless of the extra data used,

so again... voda.. what gives??

[James · Accepted solution]

Hi Jaayne,

I understand your frustration regarding this.

Basically when it comes to tethering you can use your data bundle for this on any handset other than the iphone, the reason for this is down to the setup of the Apple iPhone software.

The iPhone software is set up to use a different APN (Access Point Name) for tethering than normal internet access and as such it then comes with its own bundles and charges.

James

eForum Team

[jaayne]

Thanks for the reply, but that's the most pointless answer I could get about this !!

Just because the iPhone has a different APN for tethering does not justify charging extra money for a service that every other customer with a different phone can use for free! It's because of the elitism surrounding the iPhone , when you like at the pricing structure it's given is highly over priced compared to other phones of a similar RRP!!

A different APN setting costs nothing to Vodafone the charge is simply an excuse!!

Hmmmmm.... I think I'll have to contact Watch Dog

[jaayne]

I would also like to add that all contract's are for the sim card (service) and not the phone, the phone is seen as a free gift, so why are Vodafone (and other networks) charging extra for tethering on iPhone's only?

I cant stress enough that if I put my Vodafone sim card into say a Nexus S I cant tether my laptop/iPad/PSP or any device through my Vodafone service plan at no extra cost as long as I stay within my monthly quota..

From the Vodafone UK Contracts..

Summary of the most importaqnt Terms and Conditions

2. This agreement is for your SIM card and the minutes, texts, data and other services that you use. This agreememnt does not cover buying or maintaining any mobile equipment that we have given you.  

This is simply cheating us, the customer, out of more money simply because the logo on the back of the phone has an Apple on it..

[jaayne]

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James wrote:

Hi Jaayne,

I understand your frustration regarding this.

Basically when it comes to tethering you can use your data bundle for this on any handset other than the iphone, the reason for this is down to the setup of the Apple iPhone software.

The iPhone software is set up to use a different APN (Access Point Name) for tethering than normal internet access and as such it then comes with its own bundles and charges.

James

eForum Team

---

I would like to offer some clarification for people who end up reading this post from my recent phone call to Vodafone CS

What I have just been told is totally contradictory to what I have been told from Vodafone stores and what the moderator of this forum has suggested as a solution to my post.

According to the kindly Vodafone CS rep, all iPhone contracts get the Tethering Bolt-on FREE OF CHARGE and that the £5 monthly charge is for non iPhone tariff customers.

This was initially my problem, I bought my iPhone independently of my Vodafone contract hence why my Tethering option on my iPhone was not working. I am now on a iPhone tariff and my Tethering is working, while this is an excellent solution for me, I am still concerned about the misconceptions/misguidance/mis-selling/lies or what ever you want to call it about how these Tethering options work and are sold/mis-sold. If I go into a Vodafone store or CPW or Phones4U and take out a Vodafone iPhone contract and talk about Tethering I am offered and sold the £5 bolt-on, but apparently I do not need it, the option for Tethering is enabled by default and is FREE OF CHARGE as long as I stay within my monthly data allowance. Also the Vodafone CS rep I spoke to told me that the £5 charge is reserved for non-iPhone tariff customers, again this is another lie.. 

If someone buys say, the new Nexus S on £30pm they get a free phone, 300minutes, ULT TxT and 500MB - if they do not take the £5 bolt-on they CAN STILL use Android's Tethering option FREE OF CHARGE as long as they stay inside their 500MB limit.

I find this very frustrating that these cheap tricks are still being used to steal more money off of potential and existing customers, I am so glad I didn't let the Vodafone store automatically add the £5 Tethering bolt-on to my account.

[gooshy]

According to the kindly Vodafone CS rep, all iPhone contracts get the Tethering Bolt-on FREE OF CHARGE and that the £5 monthly charge is for non iPhone tariff customers.

Can someone from Vodafone comment on the above post.  I'd love to hear what is the "official" party line is.  There is a huge amount of confusion here. 

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[TomBoyNI]

I would like an 'official' comment on this too, this argument has been going on for years and I think it needs a 'Sticky' with fact only!

[gooshy]

+1 for a sticky.

[jaayne]

ohhh the official statement is worse than the hullaballo vodafone have caused! After numerous phone calls to Vodafone I have been able to confirm that indeed I was lied to twice buy the Voda 191 reps and that the Tethering charges are

- £5 per day without a bolt-on

- £5 per month with a bolt-on.

apparently the confusions comes from Tethering being 'available' for all iPhone Voda users, as opposed to being disabled i.e. on O2 until you call customer services to activate the bolt-on, this way 'vodafone customers can enjoy an easier tethering experience', but are then ripped off with the charges.

But this still does not excuse Voda 191 lying to me and telling me that Tethering was 'free' and that the allowance would come out of my normal mobile data, I have sent an email to Vodafone to make an official complaint about this and look forward to seeing their response!

[James]

Hi Guys,

When it comes to the iPhone and tethering I can see that there is a lot of confusion however, Tethering is charged separately from the 1GB of mobile internet use that you get as part of your pay monthly price plan. As soon as you tether your laptop or netbook to the internet, you'll pay £5 for 500MB that lasts for 30 days. Use more than 500MB in that time and you'll pay £5 for each extra 500MB.

James

eForum Team

[gooshy]

---

James wrote:

Hi Guys,

When it comes to the iPhone and tethering I can see that there is a lot of confusion however, Tethering is charged separately from the 1GB of mobile internet use that you get as part of your pay monthly price plan. As soon as you tether your laptop or netbook to the internet, you'll pay £5 for 500MB that lasts for 30 days. Use more than 500MB in that time and you'll pay £5 for each extra 500MB.

James

eForum Team

Thanks for the reply.   This answers the first part of my question.   Now can you explain the scam part  of it?  Why does this not come from my monthly allowance?  If I dont use all my 1000MB why can I use this for tethering?

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[jaayne]

---

James wrote:

Hi Guys,

When it comes to the iPhone and tethering I can see that there is a lot of confusion however, Tethering is charged separately from the 1GB of mobile internet use that you get as part of your pay monthly price plan. As soon as you tether your laptop or netbook to the internet, you'll pay £5 for 500MB that lasts for 30 days. Use more than 500MB in that time and you'll pay £5 for each extra 500MB.

James

eForum Team

---

Yes indeed.... but why are we being forced to pay more money than Android users? Android (as a OS) uses a lot more data than the iPhone anyway because of Background Services and the Widgets that it utilises, and Android users can use their Tethering options within the confines of their standard data allowance. Why cant iPhone users??

Please Please Please don't fob us off with the 'Its because Apple have programmed the iPhone to accept a different APN for tethering'  story, because frankly were not stupid..

.. There is no reason why Vodafone cant simply set the APN fpr tethering (which is a server side setting) to the same details as our standard wap.vodafone.co.uk APN, and yes yes yes it does work because there was an old trick I've just found out about on the web, it describes setting a custom profile APN which was downloaded to the phone. This worked on all the UK networks and allowed iPhone's (3GS's at the time) to use tethering out of their standard allowance but once the network's and apple caught on it was squashed!

This whole fiasco is very disappointing.

... ohh look.. Three give their customers the ability to tether their phone without charging them extra..... i.n.t.e.r.e.s.t.i.n.g!!

[jaayne]

would the moderator please remove the SOLVED tag from this thread.. this discussion is far from solved, as were are still to be informed as to why we have to pay more than everyone else for tethering ??

[Nabs]

wow, some anger going on here.

As it stands Apple have developed tethering in such a way that networks charge extra when using it (don't know why it's such a big deal that VF do when all the other major networks  also partake in this so called scam). It has been developed differently to other platforms

If you guys can sit tight for iOS 4.3 then you should get wifi tethering giving you a level playing field with android and more ammo for an arguement. Untill such time the arguement doesnt really stand as the devices are not comparable in their capabilities.

And if your still not happy dump you iPhone and get yourself an Android handset, much more flexible with less restrictions!

[gooshy]

You sure apple force Vodafone etc to charge more for Tethering?   When I was with 3 and when I go back to 3 at the end of my contract, they never changed me for tethering and consuming data which I had already paid for.

Really disappointed with vodafone since switching.  I assume ill get another email asking me to fill in my personal details etc so someone can get in touch with me to discuss this issue further.  But you know what?  I'm really tired battling with vodafone for information and a proper 3G service.

[jaayne]

not too sure if Apple force the charge for tethering on the networks but it would'nt suprise me as Apple are known to be very greedy when it comes to their cut..

But Apple do give the networks the 'choice' to charge for tethering, its all down to the APN setup of the iPhone, Android phones are set to use the same internet details (APN) for mobile data and tethering, the iPhone uses seperate internet deails for mobile data and tethering, this way the network knows what connection is being used and can charge accordingly.

You are correct that Three do not charge for tethering, they are the only UK network thats does not charge.

I spoke to Voda 191 about this and they said they are 'forced' to charge extra because of the different APN - this is rubbish! just set the APN for tethering as the same for mobile data, its not that hard.

[normski]

The very day that my Iphone 3GS arrived this time last year and I discovered that tethering WASN'T included despite the lies of the Vodafone person I ordered the phone from, I rang Vodafone and asked them to either include it for free or shove the phone where the sun doesn't shine.

Free tethering was added to my account that day.

I have just ordered an Iphone 4 for my wife and it will receive exactly the same treatment, even though she willl never use it for tethering.

The other option if you are outside the 7 day "hand it back" period is reduce your tariff by a £5'r (or even more so you are winning) if you can do without the extra minutes.

[jaayne]

what normski has said seems to be very very true, I logged an official complaint with Vodafone over this issue and have been given a tethering bolt-on free of charge to use until I upgrade my contract.

This has worked out fine for me, but what about all the other people who are being mislead, misadvised and over charged for tethering?