Using Cell Phone as WiFi Hot Spot

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Ken

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Jan 1, 2002
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My son tells me he uses his smart phone as a wifi hot spot when traveling if wifi not available. He said he can even use his laptop in his car. Anyplace he gets a cell signal he can connect his laptop to the internet.

Is this possible with the cell service providers here? Anybody doing this with Orange?
 
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dv8

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Sep 27, 2006
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i do not know what you mean but i'm doing it. geez, it's almost like blue lagoon love making, no? :)

anyways, i have a smart phone with internet plan from claro. i can plug it it to my laptop, tweak the settings and connect to the internet via my phone should house internet go down. you can do the same with any other provider, i am sure. you just need the cable.
 
Auryn

Auryn

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Apr 22, 2012
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The thing with "tethering" is that it depends on the data plan, and the carrier. If you have a data limit on your phone, using it for this purpose can eat up data really fast. Even with unlimited data, when too many people are using the phone as a hotspot, connection speed slows down.

I know that with AT & T, tethering was included in their 4G plan, but Verizon charged $20 extra to include unlimited tethering- although I think its free now. It would depend on what Orange or Claro include in their plans, I'm interested in finding out too.
 
K

Ken

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dv8 said:
i do not know what you mean but i'm doing it. geez, it's almost like blue lagoon love making, no? :)

anyways, i have a smart phone with internet plan from claro. i can plug it it to my laptop, tweak the settings and connect to the internet via my phone should house internet go down. you can do the same with any other provider, i am sure. you just need the cable.
Click to expand...

You are doing what I asked about?

Does anyone know if same is possible with a plan from Orange?
 
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Taca?o

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Dec 30, 2012
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Derfish said:
Not to hijack your thread, but I have a different question. I have Claro and the minutes seem to go very fast. Tonite I spent $150 on minutes and made one call that couldn't have been more than 2 minutes, just to the lady who does my laundry to see if it was ready to pick up.And trying the next call I had noi minutes. Is there a website where I can make a complaint? I dialed *91 and was not able to understand enuff to see if there was a remedy there.

Thanks for any help here.
Der Fish
Click to expand...

That is not possible! Or maybe I'm talking smack cos I haven't used Claro for over 6 months but I remember even buying 100 DOP worth of credit that let me talk on the phone longer than that.

But come on now, Google and type in Claro Domi.. and it already gives you an outcome.

Claro -Rep?blica Dominicana :ermm:

And don't the stores (hell on every street corner) have Claro agents?
 
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SKY

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Apr 11, 2004
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Dial *22 on your phone and you will hear how many minutes you have. Or you can dial *122# and see it right away on your phone. Then you can see what is happening. It cost about 7 pesos a minute with the card system.
 
K

Ken

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Jan 1, 2002
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Derfish said:
Not to hijack your thread, but I have a different question. I have Claro and the minutes seem to go very fast. Tonite I spent $150 on minutes and made one call that couldn't have been more than 2 minutes, just to the lady who does my laundry to see if it was ready to pick up.And trying the next call I had noi minutes. Is there a website where I can make a complaint? I dialed *91 and was not able to understand enuff to see if there was a remedy there.

Thanks for any help here.
Der Fish
Click to expand...

Since you recognized that you were hijacking the thread, was this necessary because something prevented you from asking your question in a new thread?
 
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DR Mpe

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Mar 31, 2003
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Ken said:
You are doing what I asked about?

Does anyone know if same is possible with a plan from Orange?
Click to expand...

I have Orange unlimited data plan, using the phone as a hot spot, and it works fine in most places.
 
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Koreano

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Jan 18, 2012
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Taca?o said:
That is not possible! Or maybe I'm talking smack cos I haven't used Claro for over 6 months but I remember even buying 100 DOP worth of credit that let me talk on the phone longer than that.

But come on now, Google and type in Claro Domi.. and it already gives you an outcome.

Claro -Rep?blica Dominicana :ermm:

And don't the stores (hell on every street corner) have Claro agents?
Click to expand...
This happened to me when I arrived on 4th. I pressed *122# and I saw I had like 105 pasos left and made one short phone call and received one call and all the prepaid minutes was gone. I suspect claro might be charging data. I left my data on while all this happened so now I turned off mobile data.

And does anybody know if claro has 4G network in DR? My phone is showing it's connected to 4G. Maybe it's HSPDA+ and it's showing as 4G? I don't know...
 
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dv8

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Sep 27, 2006
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i consulted miesposo:
we can use mine (and his) phone as a wi-fi hot spot. actually, no need for the cable here, they can work with the bluetooth. you go to settings, then tethering and portable hotspot, you set it up and voila. it works.
with some phones you need a cable (some iphones, some BB). in others you do not.
it does use your internet plan, of course, so this should not be your first option for wireless internet on the go. depends on what you will use...

and it seems like all providers can do it. you just need a phone with an internet plan.
 
Auryn

Auryn

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Apr 22, 2012
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DR Mpe said:
I have Orange unlimited data plan, using the phone as a hot spot, and it works fine in most places.
Click to expand...

As long as there is decent service, this should work anywhere. The iPhone 4 and up doesn't require an outside app- just Settings->Personal Hotspot->On. Cellular data must be enabled for it to work. Apps that allow a smart phone to be used for tethering work well (on iPhone or Android) unless your carrier has a problem, finds out, and disables it.

If you are using your phone this way, it sounds like Orange has no additional charges for tethering.
 
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Mauricio

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Nov 18, 2002
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I use my iPhone as hotspot all the time, Claro plan, without problems. It works better using the connection by Bluetooth instead of wifi though.
 
beeza

beeza

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Nov 2, 2006
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I have an iPhone 4 on Orange with the Leopardo plan (unlimited internet) I can personal hotspot via bluetooth to my iPad or MacBook when I'm out of the house and I have allowed colleagues to connect via WIFI on their laptops. At one time I had three guests and my iPad connected and I was still receiving emails on my phone.
 
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guitaristachino

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Dec 18, 2015
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What download/upload speed can you get? I just need 2-3Mbps.
Is there a contract? Can tourists purchase a router and say 5GB plan? About how much?
Thx
 
V

Virgo

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Oct 26, 2013
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guitaristachino said:
What download/upload speed can you get? I just need 2-3Mbps.
Is there a contract? Can tourists purchase a router and say 5GB plan? About how much?
Thx
Click to expand...
Data speed will vary widely (anywhere in the world) depending on 3 main factors:
(1) signal strength (often determined by how far you are from the nearest cell tower), (2) technology(2G vs 3G vs 4G), and (3) how many people are using the network (especially the cell you are using) at the given time.

Back in June I made two measurements at two different locations and I got 12Mb/7Mb (D/U) in one instance, but only 2.3Mb/1.Mb (D/U) in another. I think both were 4G but I no longer remember.

I don't think buying a router (for short term use) is a good idea since (as discussed by others) your phone can create its own hot spot from which you can feed other devices. A router would make sense if you were to get a fixed Internet connection (landline or cable).

Anyhow, on prepaid basis (getting a local SIM card which costs nearly nothing, you pay for the usage, NO long term contract) from Claro you can get 3Gb of mobile data for about US$25 and you have up to 30 days to use it (if you use it up before 30 days you can buy more, of course). 1Gb (also 30 days) would cost you aboutUS$15.
 
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pularvik

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Jan 2, 2011
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Having no land lines I am interested in this info. However, my friend does this and when she is on the internet her phone is "busy". So, if you are gaining the internet,---are you losing the phone????
 
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Virgo

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Oct 26, 2013
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pularvik said:
Having no land lines I am interested in this info. However, my friend does this and when she is on the internet her phone is "busy". So, if you are gaining the internet,---are you losing the phone????
Click to expand...
Perhaps your friend is using the old dial-up Internet method, in which the Internet works over a normal phone call (you actually call a normal telephone number provided by the service provider in order to get connected to the Internet). Obviously the phone is busy when one is connected to the Internet, in such case. But very few use such method now in most regions (and even fewer use it over a mobile phone line).

What we are talking now is to share the Internet service that "comes with" the phone. One should be able to keep this Internet on all the time and still receive phone calls.

However, depending on the technology (3g, 4g, etc) the Internet may be (automatically) cut off while the voice call is in progress (and automatically restored when the call ends). You would notice this for example if you were downloading a file or watching an Internet video when the call arrives.

To my knowledge the above problem would NOT happen over a 4G (LTE) connection (which is "all data" from the ground up, by design).

Notice that even if your have a phone and a plan that support LTE there may be no LTE coverage in the specific location you are. The phone would automatically connect over 3G or 2G in that case.
 
M

Meemselle

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Oct 27, 2014
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I also discovered that there are parts/zones in Sosua where Claro works better in one and Orange in another. I used to live in a Claro zone. Now I live in an Orange one. (matches my hair).
 
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Jaime809

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Aug 23, 2012
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guitaristachino said:
What download/upload speed can you get? I just need 2-3Mbps.
Is there a contract? Can tourists purchase a router and say 5GB plan? About how much?
Thx
Click to expand...

Claro's 3g speeds will top off at ~3mb/sec. You can indeed purchase (as a tourist) a little wifi router and a 3gb plan prepaid plan (bring your actual passport, not a photo copy). Anything more than 3GB of data requires a contract plan, and they don't usually approve tourists without some form of long-term apartment/condo arrangement. On a prepaid plan, 3GB of data is ~$600RD, or ~$15US. So you can refill it easily if you churn through 3GB by downloading movies and videos. I forgot how much the wifi router is, but is not expensive. I believe the 3G product now is only a USB stick, and the portable wifi is a 4G device, capable of 15mb/sec or more (with proper coverage). Both will take a normal-size SIM card (at least at the time of my purchases they did).
 
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