Why not to USB/Hotspot Tether your MetroPCS Android Phone(s)

[Kaiser17]

This is just a guide I decided to write to warn those of you who Tether your MetroPCS phones and I know there are alot of you out there. Your Android phone is yours to begin with. Do whatever you want with it.. such as root it, flash roms on it, whatever to get a better, richer experience on it as Android is open source and you should be allowed to use your phone to its full potential.
MetroPCS cant do anything about you rooting and modifying your phone, the only thing they can do is void your warranty, but all you need to do is just flash the stock rom back on it and your all safe if your in a situation where you need to take the phone back to them.

Now to begin with the main part, DO NOT use Tethering apps that allow you to use your phone's internet connection on other devices because your MetroPCS account can be easily terminated if they find out, and there has been many cases where customers have had their MetroPCS service cancelled due to MetroPCS finding out about them tethering their phones. Look no further, its right in their terms which im sure 99% of you never looked at:

MetroPCS | MetroWEB | Terms of Use

Not only do they cancel your service, your phone's ESN gets blacklisted so it is unable to be used again on the MetroPCS network. So say you try to sell your phone to someone, that person wont be able to activate the phone on MetroPCS and people usually steer clear of phones with bad ESN's unless they knowingly buy it with a bad ESN.

Tethering your phone is really not worth it, just get a cheap Internet connection. If you can afford an Android phone and pay $50+ monthly on your phone plan(s) than im sure you have enough money in your wallet to pay for a cheap Internet Connection. Of course you don't have to listen to anything I have said just remember that this does happen and I made this article to make you all aware of it. Feel free to share this article but please give me credit and linkback to this thread.

 

[k0nane]

Similar items are in the TOS of every major carrier.

 

[TattooedDroid]

Side note, I called metro asking me how much data I've used this month and they said there was no way for them to give me that information. .. lol

 

[tiede]

Haha!
yup, and on the website, there's still no way to tell how much you used there neither.

 

[Kaiser17]

You guys can tell that to people who have had their service cancelled. And I dont see the big fuss in all this you guys are making. This thread was to give users a heads up and if you dont want to follow it then you don't have to.

 

[TattooedDroid]

Maybe, just maybe, these two ppl are like a ghost user hired by metro? There are firms out there that make a killing by doing just that. Posting on facebook, twitter, almost any type of online gathering or social media. To stir attention or act of sometype of unofficial spokesperson for the given company. If I recall correctly that was both users 1st posts...

Just saying.

 

[don0017]

This area of the of the forum isnt my home (Huawei device here). But I couldnt help but be interested. As discussed in the Optimus M forum, tethering is a gray area. However, I did try a search and browsing, (maybe I missed it), I would like to see a few posts of people who have had their accounts suspended from tethering.

In accordance with that TOU, it specifically says that they will cut off MetroWEB, not your MetroPCS account. Although because it is a gray area, they can do what they want, however, unless its written anywhere else in the TOU, they are just agreeing to killing off MetroWEB internet access and whatever comes with it (email, nav, etc)

Now chances of them finding out, provided there is any sort of enforcement going on, depends on how you use your tether and how they are enforcing.

Do they put built-in codes into our phones telling them we're tethering (someone posted verizon doing this @ the Optimus M forum); are they looking at our usage data? or perhaps looking AT our data (uhh, isnt this illegal?)? Does it have to be something extreme, like their network is being hacked into through a tether (or perhaps suspension in accordance with their TOU is their first course of action to prevent network being breached hack)?

Despite if you're 1x or 3g or 4g, whenever you access data, it uses full blown throttle of bandwidth available to you (again, available to you, even if its not much); if its clogged, its clogged; if its open, its open. We're held back by limitation of phone, limitation of network, etc.

Now there is a difference between rate of data, how much data, and time spent on data (read that sentence again ). I can definitely see a MetroWEB being cancelled if you turn your phone into a dedicated home access point (LOL, my apologies, but...seriously?!?!?! you're gonna turn metropcs into an internet provider??)

That being said, my phone is rooted, 3022 PRL (is that legal too then?), and I have tethered (twice too; house electricity went down and I used the internet; and the other, my friend wanted to do a check-in on facebook). If anything, I don't touch my phone while tethering, it gets hot anyways.

 

[Kaiser17]

I respect all of your thoughts and opinions here, and there is nothing wrong with you guys sharing your views. I just didn't express myself properly, so I apologize if you guys misunderstood me.

As I keep saying the whole purpose of this thread was to let you guys know more about what can happen if you are found to be tethering, not to scare you guys or anything.

And I think this thread has got out of hand so if a moderator and kindly close this.

 

[Steven58]

Just fyi, there's a thread like this in the suggestion box section. I've deleted argumentative posts. They and the personal attacks are strickly against policy. I am posting this PSA here to say that no one will be infracted now, but I wouldn't count on that leniency going forward. Consider this a mass warning to the arguers and attackers.

I'm going to close this thread. If you disagree, please PM me with your reasons and we will discuss the merits of its resurrection.

Steven