Source
r/ATT•
benwillard

Has anyone with Unlimited Choice tried using an iPad->iPhone via Personal Hotspot?

Mobile

Once in awhile I have to commute and connect my iPad to get news, etc. via Personal Hotspot on my iPhone.

Is this what’s explicitly not allowed in Unlimited Choice when it refers to no tethering? This is the only thing really stopping me from changing to Unlimited Choice (I have no need for Plus).

It’s only a few $ diff from my 25GB FAN discounted plan, but I’m tired of the kids ripping thru the 25GB and riding out the last few days of every month at slow speed.

Not sure it’s important enough to keep me from switching, but thought I’d check in to see if anyone has actually confirmed this won’t work by trying it.

Thanks in advance.

Posted Jan 10, 2018, 11:57 AM UTC

315
JFizDaWiz•

Hotspot is disabled on Choice plan.

5
benwillardOP•

Bogus. I guess I have to stop commuting.

So, that get disabled via a carrier update or something when I change plans?

1
JFizDaWiz•

It’s disabled by the plan, no carrier update involved.

2
benwillardOP•

Ok, so the iPad connects to the iPhone, but no data flows.

Appreciate the info.

1
ecs0013…on the ALLOVER Network•

Nah, you can't even turn on the Personal Hotspot feature - when you try to use it, you'll get a message that it's not supported and to call 611. AT&T used to do this with the original iPhone unlimited plan and also does it with the AT&T Prepaid unlimited and Cricket plans.

If your iPad is a cellular-enabled one, it may make more sense to get service on it.

7
chrisprice•

The way to use an iPad on Unlimited Choice is as a separate device. Swap the iPad for an iPad with LTE and add it as a second line. It's only $20/month if you have more than two lines already.

Did this for my mom and she's really happy with her tablet. She loves that it "just works" and doesn't ever have to connect to Wi-Fi anymore.

2
benwillardOP•

If I still commuted by train everyday, yes, absolutely - thank you for the suggestion. I’m only on the train once or twice a month now, so the only time I ever sit to use the iPad is at home where WiFi is fine.

The question for me is whether I’ll need personal hotspot vs. not having to police the kids data usage (it’s getting really old).

1
chrisprice•

You can add a physical hotspot for only $20/month too (like iPad, you have to have >2 lines to make it that rate though). A Velocity hotspot is $59 a Best Buy.

So then you wouldn't have to swap devices, but at the cost of having to carry a hotspot.

The reason it works like this is that AT&T gets to tout a physical hotspot as an additional line of service to investors, which they can't with hotspot on your phone.

May also be better for kids since they tend to have gobs of Wi-Fi devices. Only thing it won't work for is Nintendo Switch multiplayer (still can download games though).

2
satinkzo•

You can have dedicated hotspot devices on choice? Any speed restrictions like there is on phones?

1
chrisprice•

It functions same as phones, video capped at 480p - all other traffic throttled at 3 Mbps. But there is no 10GB cap like mobile hotspot on Unlimited Plus phones, just deprioritized after 22GB like any other device. Which on Choice you may never even notice since it's 3 Mbps anyways.

It's still a good option though for people that have >2 Choice lines, and want hotspot in a pinch - but won't ever need the regular bandwidth of full LTE speed.

1
IlluminatusUIUC•

It's still 20/month even if the pad is a second line. You may have to find a rep that knows how to provision it correctly.

1
chrisprice•

That's correct, it only applies to tablets and wearables. It's the "Unlimited DataConnect for Tablet Single Line Plan" - you're allowed up to two tablets and two wearables on a single-line Unlimited Choice or Plus plan.

I was thinking of hotspots - hotspots do not qualify for that add-on plan, and are priced same as smartphones for the second and tertiary lines.

1