Blog from Anywhere by Using Your Iphone as a Broadband Modem

The iPhone has quickly become one of the most used smartphones on the market. In addition to its rich user interface and plethora of apps, the iPhone also enables customers to use it as a tether for accessing the Internet on another mobile device. Internet tethering is often used to share the Internet connection of a phone with a laptop, thus giving the laptop the ability to connect and surf the web without being forced onto the small screen of the iPhone. It can also allow applications on the laptop to connect without additional configuration, enabling email clients, special work programs, or other Internet connected applications to work as usual.
The setup process for enabling Internet tethering is fairly straightforward. However, it should be noted that there is currently an additional charge associated with Internet tethering ($20/month through AT&T and Verizon). There are options available if you wish to jailbreak your iPhone, though it does void the warranty and may be in violation of your service provider agreement, so this guide will stick with the official, approved method.
First, be sure your iPhone software is up to date. Starting with 3.0, Apple included tethering, but additional fixes have been released, so the most up to date software is ideal. Next, go to Settings > General > Network and then “Set Up Personal Hotspot” or “Internet Tethering” (pending on your software version). From here, you may be prompted to contact your provider to establish that you do in fact want the Internet tethering option (this prevents users from accidentally adding an additional charge to their monthly bill).

From this point, you can either connect your laptop to your iPhone via the USB cable included with your iPhone or over Bluetooth. For Windows, open Network Preferences and select iPhone. For Mac, a pop-up should appear that will walk you through the final process. With some of the newer updates to the iPhone OS, you can connect your computer(s) over Wi-Fi. This offers an easy way to connect multiple computers at one time, as well as other devices such as an iPod touch or portable gaming system. However, you will use much more data the more users you have at the same time. This could pose a problem as both carriers currently cap data and then charge extra if you go over the limit, so be conscientious of the amount of data being used of your allowed usage from your broadband offers so you are not surprised with over-usage charges.
Internet tethering with the iPhone is a great way to spread the 3G connection around to your laptop, friend’s iPods, or any other Wi-Fi device. It can make emailing documents and staying up to date at work or home much easier. However, just be aware of the amount of data being used. Computers have many more programs that run in the background and download updates without your knowledge when compared to a smart phone, so be aware of what your computer may be downloading.