Using phone hotspot as main internet service, bridged to home wireless router?

[holden j caufield]

I never knew this since my wife takes care of this bill but she's paying $80 for cable internet. I'm shocked as I used to pay $20 with ATT though the speeds were dinky. I'm wondering, can I tether hot spot my phone 24/7 (heat concerns?), then use my dd-wrt router to bridge the connection. The LTE is much faster than any internet I've had.

A few questions, can I buy just a tablet/data plan for internet only and not get throttled. My current plan says it will throttle me after 3gb of data (do they throttle?, I've actually only used 100mb each month for the last 3 years).

We do use a lot of netflix so that would go over 3gb quick.

 

[podspi]

And this is why we don't have unlimited mobile data plans anymore.

I'm sorry, but it's true. The amount of RF bandwidth we have just isn't enough to support lots of people using their mobile connections as their main internet connection.

That being said, are you sure the $80 doesn't also include television, landline? $80 sounds very high, even for say Comcast.

 

[holden j caufield]

$80 for only internet, we get no TV, and have no landline. Speedtest says 15mb down, 6 up so it's way over priced.

 

[sweenish]

It would help to actually look at the bill instead of saying what you think you do or don't have.

Just taking the lesson learned from first post and applying it.

 

[cpacini]

I never knew this since my wife takes care of this bill but she's paying $80 for cable internet. I'm shocked as I used to pay $20 with ATT though the speeds were dinky. I'm wondering, can I tether hot spot my phone 24/7 (heat concerns?), then use my dd-wrt router to bridge the connection. The LTE is much faster than any internet I've had.

A few questions, can I buy just a tablet/data plan for internet only and not get throttled. My current plan says it will throttle me after 3gb of data (do they throttle?, I've actually only used 100mb each month for the last 3 years).

We do use a lot of netflix so that would go over 3gb quick.

It certainly is possible, but it would probably be cost prohibitive. There are really no available plans from any if the major carriers that would meet your needs for less than what you are already paying.

Any of the plans from att or Verizon will not be unlimited and getting a large enough data bucket to cover frequent Netflix streaming would cost way more than $80. T mobile has an unlimited plan for 80 plus tax but is limited to 5gb tethering which probably won't meet your needs, and wouldn't save you any money.

Cricket offers a 20gb plan for 56 and MetroPCS an unlimited for 60, not sure if they allow tethering though. Iirc from when I used to have metro it's another 5 or 10 bucks a month for hotspot service

 

[podspi]

I'd like to add that tethering is become a lot harder nowadays. The only way I've been able to get around that (even when tethering TO another android device) is via VPN.

Carriers have gotten a lot more serious and it's unlikely you are going to "pull a fast one" on them, so to speak.

I certainly understand not wanting to give up too much personal information, but who is your ISP? Talking about ATT and dollars makes me want to say the U.S., but I am not aware of any cable provider that charges that much for so little. That doesn't mean they don't exist, but yikes.

 

[holden j caufield]

Don't think this idea will work since I use probably use a few 100MB or or less a month browsing forums but youtube/netflix take too much data.