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Is tethering on EVO for sprint free?

Just tried it on my Evo, it showed the icon for hotspot in the notifications bar, but then displayed an error message saying I hadn't payed for such services. Then it proceeded to leave it running, but on my Macbook I couldn't get any actual signal from it, even though I could see the network.
 
I have the hotspot add on, and i just plug into my netbook with ubuntu and click usb tether. Don't know if it'll work without hotspot add on.
 
I had this same question. Its on this forum somewhere. Anyway. 4G tethering is free IF you are on stock 2.1. There was a loophole in the software in 2.1 which allowed it. There is NO charge for it if you didn't sign up for hotspot when you activated your phone.

In 2.2 they closed the loophole so IF you upgrade to 2.2, then you will lose 4G tether.

I'm on stock 2.1 and didn't order hotspot service but have free 4G tether. If you're on 2.1, first, turn on 4G and wait for it start. Then turn on tether. Connect something to it. The password is 1234567890.
 
For those who couldn't find the wep key for the hotspot just go into the hotspot app and its under the ssid. you can even change it from there if you want.
 
And to be clear, PDAnet/EasyTether/Android Wifi Tether usage breaks your contract. If Sprint bothered to check somehow, they could disconnect your service.
 
cabbie said:
you can have wired tether for free using HTC sync.
Click to expand...


this sounds intriguing, but I can't see how to set it up. I plug my android in, tell it "USB tethering", and the phone shows up as a network connection on my computer. status=connected, speed=425.9 Mbps.

As soon as I try to access anything, the phone reports "Data Call Failure. error code 67. Registration failure. Your PCS Vision username and/or password may be incorrect"

I was told by Sprint that the hotspot service costs $30/month to connect up to 3 devices, but that USB tethering to one device was included in the data plan. Sounds like either Sprint or I was confused?



edit: did some more research, to no great resolution. Looks like "Phone as Modem" once worked out-of-the-box (5G cap), but Sprint decided to turn that feature off, maybe around the time android 2.2 came out. It seems they veiw the unlimited $30/mo mobile hotspot as a REPLACEMENT, not an alternative. The official literature is still VERY vague. I see a couple places where it is implied that usb tethering just works, or that HTC sync allows it. However, sync 2.0.40 does not have the tethering features when I install it, in contrast to what the manual shows.

Here's the best info (ie, most detailed rumors!) I found: a thread on Sprint's community site.
 
exBBuser said:
Well there are two kinds of tether,wireless tether and wire tether. Wireless is not free unless you root your phone, however you can get your wired tether to work without rooting by downloading pdanet is an app and is in the market. Just follow the instructions.
Click to expand...

Thanks so much for pdanet.. it works great. It's easy to install, and its gonna make my job a hell of a lot easyer at the same time saving me the cash otherwise used for paying Sprint for the service.
 
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