Internet Tethering with AT&T

I have used TM for about 5 years, have used Cingular and Sprint (yuck!) I'm pretty happy with TM. On it right now in Sumner WA. Now and again I have a small patch of roaming, but so small, I can wait to call when I'm back in TM's service area.
Panhandlepat, You can disable the volume strip in settings and the alarm has to be dismissed as well as set to off. Once I figured those things out, I love this phone! Wish they had a 3G version, I think the new G1 phone they offer is fugly!

 

the 1st dash the touch strip did not work AT ALL traded it after2 days. the 2nd worked ok for a year i guess but the volume of rings calls etc was erratic (sp?)
if you dont DISMISS and turn alarm OFF on one day it would go off for DAYS at that time. the pics from it i posted on here got compliments such as "THAT was taken with a PHONE!?" LOL

 

Thanx for the answers guys. Telco, are you on the road yet? Seems like I saw you were, so that leaves me wondering a few things.
How much is a dash phone if we ADD it to our existing T-mobile account of 2 phones. (I can research that, but if there's any discounts, I'd want to see that)
How is the truckstop wifi (although I hate to use truckstops when I don't need a shower/fuel)
How often can you find wifi elsewhere? I like to chat nightly with my research group.
Will Skype work on these phones? If so, do you add it to the 'pooter or to the phone? Seems like you'd just put the program on the 'pooter.

 

Yes. ATT 's data package comes with 5GB of data. After that are additional charges.One advantage I found with a tethered connection is that there's no commitment like there usually is with a PCMCIA card. I just used mine while out of town for a month. Added the dataconnect before I left and removed it when I returned.

 

I have the LG Shine ... got it when it first came out in Jan '08 ... in May of '08 I looked into Tethering ... it was a mess (well for me it was) ... I actually had to bring my laptop into the store ... it too was also brand new ... and AT&T spent 2 days trying to get my phone to Tether with my laptop ... I am not sure if owning a Tashiba Satellite had anything to do with it not Tethering ... eventually they got it to work ... I had to get a Tethering package ... which cost just as much a month as if owning a aircard ... $60 ... and the down fall was when you were using your Tethered phone you could not recieve calls nor text messages ... I was told by a friend who Tethered a AT&T phone that you could ... so I was a little confused ... also when Tethering your phone, you run a little faster than dial up even after the 3G started ... shortly after I had my phone Tethered I got it untethered ... I was not happy ... and if I was going to be paying that much .... I might as well have the air card and be able to recieve/send calls, texts, and run a fast internet connection ... do not let them fool you about unlimited air time ... when I purchased the air card in May '08 it was unlimited ... not sure when they changed their package but my boyfiend Crow was using my aircard on the road ... and we had not problems with over usage ... heck it was unlimited ... Crow decided to buy his own aircard ... was told that it was unlimited ... and the aircard packages are no longer unlimited ... I think 5GB ... you can get the unlimited internet on your phone ... and that is a good deal ... but you are limited to what you can see and do ...

 

For what its worth. Verizon offers high speed USB internet for $50 per month. Up to you whom you chose.

 

Okay, got an offer from T-mobile. Adding a line to our family plan (9.99) plus internet (24.99) will come with a blackberry 8820 (nice and big with a querty keyboard) for only $150 with the 1yr plan.
Now, the blackberry has a usb cable, so I assume it can be tethered to the pc for net usage? The reviews on this model say it doesnt have the camera and is a bit clunky with a lot of scrolling to view web pages, but I guess that is moot if I use the laptop and a tether.
Anyone using this model/setup with T-mobile for their phone/pda/internet?

 

Red, tethering on a cell phone is tricky at best. First off, you are exposing yourself to astronomical charges even if you tell the carrier about it and purchase the proper plan. Some folks do it and get along fine. Just about all the carriers do everything they can to keep you from tethering. AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon will charge you the same price for an air card if you want to do it legal. You are better off with an air card at that point. Even then, they limit you to 5 gigs and charge ridiculous overages if you use more than your allowance. 5 gigs is plenty, though if you stay off of youtube and other sites with streaming video, but it's something you need to be aware of going in, and AT&T is very deceptive about it.
Then there is the option of tethering without telling the carrier, or what they call "under the radar," which is what you are talking about doing with T-mobile. Yeah, it can be done, but you are going to get raked over the coals if they find out about it. Unlimited data on the phone usually doesn't apply to tethering it to a PC. They don't like that. Also they can tell if your tethered or not. Something in the way it connects leaves a signature and they can tell.
There is a program called PDANet, that lets you tether and they claim the program will hide the fact that you are tethered. But they offer no guarantee. People have done it and gotten away with it for years. The trick is not using so much data that they will notice. Google the words PDANet, blackberry, and junefabrics. My mother uses this program on her palm treo, I set it up for her last year. But she only uses it sparingly, pretty much only for online banking during the week, and maybe for a week every few months when she goes to Florida. Her carrier, Sprint, has never once complained about it.

Your best and safest bet is to go into the pilot and pick up that Slingshot modem. It's takes $250 to start it up, but it's one of the best deals out there as far as I'm concerned.