Can I use a pay monthly Phone Sim in a Dongle?

[james057]

As subject. I've googled and searched this forum but I can't find a definitive, uptodate answer. I am currently using a Huaweii dongle with a data sim connected to a router for home broadband (our land line speed is pathetic). It works pretty well, but I can't help noticing the offers that come around on ordinary phone sims that give much more data for substantially lower monthly cost. I am aware that there is a no technical reason why this won't work provided the APN is set correctly, but are there any terms and conditions that prevent it?  And are there any service differences such as lower speeds, drop-outs, blocked sites or whatever?

Thanks

[BandOfBrothers]

In my opinion there shouldn't be anything in your Terms and Conditions to stop you using your sim card in a dongle as long as it's for personal and not business use @james057

Open the below link and navigate via...

Consumer.

Airtime agreements and charges guides.

Mobile.

Vodafone mobile acceptable use policy (from 11 January 2018).

And you see how Vodafone expects you to conduct your account coupled with the Terms and Conditions. 

Vodafone terms-and-conditions.

After all people do similar with Payg sim cards and the Terms and Conditions are similar.

My colleague at work has a Vodafone Contract that has 100Gb of Data allowance so he's practically stopped using his ISP Broadband and uses his Vodafone allowance instead which he's now being doing from last year.

The only sites that would be initially blocked are adult sites to which the content bar can be lifted in your myvodafone by using a Credit Card to prove your age, or pop in to a Vodafone Highstreet Store and they'll lift the bar there. 

The other blocking software is Vodafone Secure Net App.

Content-control-settings / How-do-I-access-agMobilee-restricted-content-on-my-mobile-device.

Vodafone Content-control.

[james057]

Thanks for the detailed reply. I had read the same T&C and come to the same conclusion. I just can't help thinking there's a "gotcha" somewhere, when a data sim is £30 for 50gb and a phone sim is currently £20 for 100gb.  It makes you wonder why they even offer data sims separately, or is it purely marketing?

[BandOfBrothers]

There must be a demand for data only sims @james057 I assume or Vodafone would discontinue them.

You're very welcome for my reply. 

[barryd999]

I have a business client that needs to put a Vodafone sim in a 4g router as Vodafone is the only provider with a signal where he is. They currently have a data sim in it but its limited to 100gb a month which isnt enough.  I dont think Vodafone do an unlimited Data sim but they do of course do an unlimited phone sim.  As I understand it the 2018 Eu directive means phone sims have to work in all devices.    Is there any reason why an unlimited phone sim would not work and provide true unlimited data on a network with a 4g router?    It is for a business and home use.  

If it is possible though what happens when  (or if) we leave the EU?

[Sugarpaste88-ci]

Have you successfully used your mobile SIM in the dongle?

[Mytheroo]

it depends on the (V)MNO.

You say there's nothing technically stopping you but there are three easy methods:

The first is IMEI filtering:   phones have ranges of IMEI numbers, tablets are on other ranges, dongles are on other ranges. The (V)MNO can just block all non-phone ranges.

The second is TTL monitoring: TTL is Time to Live, and is a number (usually 64 or 128) that originates when a packet is sent from a device. Each network boundary it traverses, the number is depricated. When the TTL number hits zero the packet is dropped.
Your dongle includes a network boundary and thus the TTL is 1 less than expected. This can then be filtered out (dropped).
The 3rd method is just monitoring traffic. For example, if the (V)MNO sees a request packet to Time.Windows.com then they know you are either hotspotting or dongling.

[vegtable]

I believe that OFCOM dictates that operators can't restrict tethering and which device you can use your SIM in. Changes came about in 2018.  So yes, you can use your phone SIM in a dongle - however, you might not be able to get port forwarding to work.......

[Mytheroo]

excellent info,I did not know Ofcom did that...... is probably why I've noticed a distinct drop in speed on 4G, and its actually unusable in the town centre (on Three)

https://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2018/10/three-uk-quietly-removes-tethering-caps-from-4g-mobile...

so, ignore my warnings over tethering (though i'd prefer the 30GB cap back and the better service)