iPad won't tether to iPhone, yet

By on Jun 4, 2010 at 9:04 AM
mobile June 4, 2010

iPadiPhone Tether Conversation

I think we all just assumed that using AT&T’s new iPhone tethering plan to get sweet, cellular-data goodness on your iPad wasn’t going to be allowed, but…now it is official. TechFlash has received word from AT&T that an iPad to iPhone tether is currently not possible. While the software code to allow Bluetooth tethering is included in the iPad’s code base, the feature has been disabled (geohot, we need some help on this one!). TechFlash did publish this cryptic message from AT&T:

Asked for further info, AT&T referred additional questions to Apple, describing this as an iPad/iPhone issue and not a matter of AT&T policy.

Makes sense, we can’t see why AT&T would care how you use the 2GB of tethering data you’re paying for each month; especially since overage rates are clearly defined. Maybe someone should write an email to a certain CEO and ask him for a one sentence/word clarification?Read

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51 Comments

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  • Hammer

    Would bluetooth tarnish the iPad’s battery reputation?

    • David Lane

      All Apple needs to do to address any battery issues is to implement a message when you turn on bluetooth tethering. Something like “Please note that Bluetooth Tethering will reduce your battery life.” Then it is up to the user whether or not they want to use this feature and for how long.

      With such simple non technical solutions available to answer the battery issue, it becomes increasingly likely that Apple’s resistance to this feature is more to do with selling 3G iPads than anything else. The oddity of this is that it primarily punishes Apple’s own customers because you can easily tether iPads via WiFi to most other smartphones.

  • Pherball66

    ATT cares be use if you are using your iPhone data to tether the iPad, then you are not signing up for an iPad data plan and they cannot rape you.

    • David Lane

      The more data you use, the more AT&T make. The economics of this are fairly well worked out despite a few early day slip ups.

  • blah

    Just get a palm pre and use that to tether to your iPad.

    I’m sure Apple would respond quickly to add iPhone to iPad tethering if they saw a bunch of folks using Palm’s, or worse, they’d figure out how to disable it like they did palm pre to iTunes sync.

  • MacMan

    Using my Evo in hotspot mode running 4G to the iPad right now. Suck it AT&T

  • Rone

    I’m tethering from my iPhone right now to write this message on my ipad. I know for a fact it can be done.

    • Fanfoot

      I assume you’ve got a jailbroken iPhone and are running a Cydia WiFi application on your iPhone to accomplish the “tethering”. An unjailbroken iPhone supports tethering via either USB cable to a computer or via BlueTooth. Which is different than what you’re doing. Lower power, which is good, but only supports one device. The reason it doesn’t work is the iPad is crippled. Hopefully Apple will fix it soon if we raise enough of a stink.

      • Jim

        Aluratek 3G USB cellular router for your iPhone and you can wifi your iPad. No jailbreak!

    • http://www.bgr.com Mary

      Could you please tell me how you tether iPad to iPhone are you using a actual line ,if so where did you purchase.
      we could not find a iPad+wifi+3G when we wanted it so purchased just the iPad +wifi . We were told we would be able to tether to our iPhone,
      But could not find info as to how to do it.We are on the road a lot ,and thought the whole setup sounded great,as we already have iPhones with 3G.
      Thanks for the help

    • John Richardson

      what is the secret to tether the iphone to the ipad?

    • NTWRKMNSTR

      HOW!?!? :-) :-( :-)

    • http://www.creativedesign.ie CreativeAnto

      I have the new iPhone 4 plus 32GB iPad Wi-fi, how can I achieve the tethering you say you have been using successfully to post this comment…?

  • ich bin ein iPhoner

    I love how all the tech sites are passing this story around today as if it is news when everyone has known this since before the iPad launched. Steve Jobs himself said it wasn’t going to tether in an email. Two options: (1) Jailbreak your iPhone or buy and EVO and see what tethering does to your battery life (2) Suck it up and spend the $25/month on an iPad data plan. It’s not that much money. I waste $25 all the time on less useful things than having internet everywhere without killing my phone’s battery.

    • WalterSobchak

      Hook the ohone up to a power supply! And tether! At least with an evo you have that option. With the iphone, you have the option to…. get an ipad data plan also

      • ich bin ein iPhoner

        Did you just yell at me while agreeing that tethering drains your battery? Anyway, if there is a power receptacle handy to charge my phone while tethering then there is a good chance I am somewhere where wi-fi is also likely available. For the record, I completely agree it’s nice that EVO gives it’s customers that option. I think Apple’s reasoning is that they don’t want to piss off consumers who don’t visit tech blogs all day and thus won’t understand why their iPhone’s battery life sucks because they are tethering to their iPad.

      • Fanfoot

        We’ll have to see what Bluetooth tethering, which is what is being discussed here, not creating a Wifi hotspot which is what the Evo does, does to your iPhone battery life. We’ll be able to test that by tethering a laptop to the iPhone and watching what happens, since its the iPad that’s the broken side of this. It *may* not be as bad as you think. And a bunch of the time I want this I might be in a hotel room or whatever and be able to plug in so it would still be useful. Options are always good.

  • jaxstate

    AT&T wants you to pay for a data plan for both products if u own them. Plain and simple.

  • Joseph

    Apple’s reasoning is very clear. Each Apple device is to be a node, a leaf, not a branch. If they allow tethering between the family of devices without going through Mother (AT&T), then they risk losing huge margins on 3G models of iPad since no one with a smartphone would bother buying one. And last I looked, that’s a rather large market these days.

  • The Robot Devil

    AT&T and Apple have learned that no matter how badly they screw their customers they will still line up at their doors to buy their products.

    • Apple & AT&T

      Yes, Apple has a stranglehold on the market. But ATT is on its way out. The minute the iPhone goes elsewhere, and it will, soon. ATT is out of business, almost overnight. Financial analysts (the ones making the big bucks, so they know what they are talking about) estimate that when ATT looses the iPhone, they will loose 40% of their customers. No company can take a hit like that. So if you are on Sprint or Verizon – Hello iPhone, Bye Bye ATT. :)

      • StevenGlansburg

        The experts have no idea what they are talking about. They have the iphone was going to Verizon for two years… yeah it will some day. That is like saying yeah one day its going to rain during a drought.

      • Reggie S

        I doubt seriously that AT&T will be out of business whenever the iPhone is available on another carrier. those “analysts that get paid the big bucks” are some of the same ones who sat back and watched Wall Street run wild since the Clinton years and offered almost no concerns about the impending doom.

        When and if the iPhone is offered by another carrier, will AT&T take a hit? Most likely. will it be 40%? Definitely not. AT&T’s current iPhone users are nowhere NEAR 40% of it’s total mobile users so you are suggesting that 40% of it’s customers are gonna jump ship to another carrier to get an iPhone, subject themselves to ETFs, etc., when they can get the iPhone with AT&T? (Please remember that not everyone is as upset with AT&T as the few who cry and scream in blogs on the internet!)

      • Fanfoot

        Don’t take him so seriously. He’s just a troll. He’s not quoting anybody. No analyst actually said that. He’s just stupid.

        Generally agree with you. AT&T *will* lose customers, and it might be enough to hurt, but a) Verizon aren’t getting the iPhone soon–the VZ Prez said as much, and b) AT&T is instituting huge ETFs if you leave before your 2 year contract is over, c) a lot of people are going to renew contracts to get the iPhone 4 before VZ gets the iPhone, d) a lot of AT&T iPhone customers are on corp plans and don’t get to make such decisions themselves, e) a lot of AT&T customers are on family plans and it isn’t that simple to jump ship, f) VZ also sucks, g) by the time VZ actually gets the iPhone there will be lots of great Android phones out there and much of the appetite for the iPhone will be saited already… etc.

  • Attention Bus Riders!

    You can connect (tether) just about any smartphone to an iPad. Screw AT&T and Apple. 1-You need to jailbreak your iPad 2-You may need to jailbreak or root your phone 3-Depending on which phone you have, there are different options. You can connect thru bluetooth with some phones. While with others, you can create a wifi spot for your iPad. Just Google it and you will find how to do it or go to youtube. Or if you have the 3G model, why pay ATT, go and use someone else’s 3G plan. Attention short bus riders! – Yes you can actually use another carriers sim card in your iPad. See youtube for directions. As far as spending $25 per month and it being not a lot of money. Hey if you want to throw away $25/mo, send it to me every month and I’ll get your iPad and phone tethered. By the way, I am using my BB Storm 1 to tether to my iPad through bluetooth.

    • Joseph

      I like hanging my head out the window and letting my tongue flap in the breeze even at stop signs. I wave my cell bill at people as we drive by. The wheels on the bus go ’round and ’round.

    • tyler

      dude ill send you 25 bucks if u help me out and help me do this. i have a moto droid with verizon and a regular ipad wifi please help ill send money.

  • Shumdit

    As others have said, you can tether your iPad to your iPhone if you jailbreak and use MyWi or PDAnet. I did have a problem connecting when I got my 3G version of the iPad at first but turning Wi Fi off and then back on with the iPad seemed to correct it and it’s worked ever since.

  • Reggie S

    pushing that kind of data over a BT connection (under the current BT stack) would kill the battery on both devices, wouldn’t it?

    besides, how will they be able to sell thru the 3G version of the iPad if they allow tethering. best option is to get one of the “mi-fi” devices that are available. (AT&T even has a couple of models due out soon.)

  • http://gumballtech.com besweeet

    This is a another reason as to why everyone should jailbreak ;) .

    • tyler

      jailbreak voids ur warranty not worth it

      • http://twitter.com/lissathecocoa Melissa Boone

        The warranty is only 1 year anyway; once that’s up, there’s really nothing holding you back.  And I’ve had my iPhone for a full year and haven’t had to use the warranty anyway.

  • Rell

    lol @ the picture

  • Beall

    I’ve been tethering my ipad to my iphone since day 1. Sorry ATT

  • Len

    This is more of an Apple issue than AT&T. If Apple allowed tethering out of the box, what would be the point of paying more for a 3G Ipad?

  • http://twitter.com/RolandoCalderon Rolando Calderon

    I live in the Dominican Republic, the iPhone works great over here because its no the to Largest carriers in the country “Claro” and “Orange” so to all my friends in the states, really hope you can get that Phone on Verizon, cause the hardware is awesome and it works great on a good network, BTW tethering in this country is Free :)

    • ‘merican

      But you live in the Dominican Republic…I think I will just jailbreak or pay for tethering instead of living in that hellhole to have free tethering.

  • Nick

    I would e-mail AT&T, but I would hate to receive a C&D

  • Vince

    I just got an email front Steve jobs and he said that once he’s milked you out of all your money, he will give you tethering.

  • Hi-Fi

    And what about us poor folks with a WI-FI only iPad?!?!?!?!?!!? Argh!!!!!!!!

    Ok now all calm, just found sprint’s got MiFi. Woot!

  • http://sumocat.blogspot.com Sumocat

    Why is everyone banging their head on the wall about this? Tethering to iPhone is via USB or Bluetooth. iPad can’t connect to the Internet via USB or Bluetooth. It’s not that complicated.

    • Fanfoot

      Cuz that’s a completely artificial limitation. The Broadcom chip, the BCM4325, CAN support tethering via Bluetooth. Its just that Apple has disabled it. And we think they shouldn’t have and that disabling it is bullshit. If you jailbreak your iPad and install iBluever from Cydia, you CAN do this. But I shouldn’t have to jailbreak the device to do basic stuff like this. Especially when competing devices are support this stuff out of the box.

      Dear AT&T: Given this situation I’m going with a Sprint MyFi device and will be giving them my money instead of paying you for tethering and overages. Hope you’re happy with your stupid choices.

      • Roddzilla

        Dude, been there done that. Wait until you see what the Sprint bill looks like when there isn’t 4G available for that MyFi.

        I returned that sucker after 2 months.

        Seriously.

        Roddzilla

  • http://onsupport.org sean peotter

    when is someone going to make a ipad to iphone cable to do the teathering? makes sense to me… but i’m probably a dumbass.

    • ‘merican

      No probably about it.

    • Shaman23

      I already did this. Take a piece of CAT5, cut both connectors off the ends. Strip back about 2MM of shielding from the individual strands on each end. Randomly jam one end into the bottom of your iPhone dock connector… twist the strands from the other end all together in a nice arrangement — Shove this end into the iPad headphone jack.

      Voila, you’re tethered and good to go. No jailbreak or anything.

  • LGgeek

    I waited to see what iphone offered over what I have on jail-broken 3gs, not much. two cameras,high resolution screen ( on small screen not biggy) and folders ( have categories).

    So I bought a 3gs iPad instead. Now I could get a data plan ( it’s not pay as you go which I would get but sign up for a month and it automatically renews) and if AT&T offered a buy as many minutes as you like type of plan I would sign up.

    Even if they offered me something reasonable since we have a 2 iphone family plan like another $10 a month since I’m already a customer and they could pretend they would like to keep me.

    As it stands now I’m just using the iPad on wifi and considering the iPhone 4 mess starting to look at android as a possible replacement . I will have to check out what kind of tether options I can do but I’m not going to sign up for another full AT&T account.

    AT&T will be apples undoing.

  • Cato

    I just asked apple about this, and they say it’s at & t’s fault. lol

  • Bozo

    You’re all wrong, don’t you see the real pattern here? Tethering is ultimately locked to maintain competitive edge in the future, an insurance policy. It’ll be unlocked when sales slump or if another product or service truly threatens its lead, because re-releasing it in another color just isn’t gonna cut it anymore.

  • Andrew Munchbach

    You make me smile.

  • NutzOnYourFace

    Can you post some comments on CNN for me, crybaby? They seem to cover the news a couple hours after FoxNews does.

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