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No matter what phone you use, you need data. You need a cellular data plan to get that data when you're not home. AT&T is one of the best carriers. With some AT&T plans, you can use your smartphone, whether it's a budget phone or one of the best, to share data with your other devices using a hotspot. This guide helps you identify if you have an AT&T plan capable of creating a hotspot and how to use it.
Android phones have a handy feature that allows you to share your cellular connection with other devices, turning any phone into a Wi-Fi hotspot. In many situations, this can be a lifesaver. If you own a 5G Chromebook, like the Acer Chromebook Spin 714, or a 5G tablet, like the Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra, getting online isn't a problem. But for many other devices requiring the internet, you need a secure connection to a Wi-Fi source or be plugged in directly.
How to use a personal hotspot on your AT&T phone
For those times when you want to share your network
Many of us use our smartphones as the primary method for streaming and viewing content online. They are always on, can be used anywhere, and are near us frequently. They are the ultimate entertainment device we can access on a whim. However, there may be times when you want to share your phone's network connection with other devices. You can easily use your AT&T phone data as a hotspot on one of the best Chromebooks for a better big-screen experience. In this guide, we show you how to activate and use the personal hotspot feature.
How to use a personal hotspot on your T-Mobile phone
T-Mobile's hotspots are easy to set up. Here's how it all works
Going without the internet when you need it for multiple devices can be frustrating. One common on-the-go option is to use a hotspot. Mobile hotspots on smartphones use the phone's data connection to create an internet link or Wi-Fi connection that your other devices (and your friends or family) can share. That helps you get internet where you couldn't use it before, such as on long trips, in rural areas, or in spots where you don't want to pay or join crowded networks, like the airport or a stadium.
If you're a Verizon customer, you can use your data plan to turn your phone into a personal hotspot. This lets you connect devices to the internet via your data connection, which is perfect if you're using one of our favorite budget Chromebooks in an area without a Wi-Fi signal.
Android 12 will make it harder to use a 2.4GHz Wi-Fi hotspot
It's all but a legacy option in DP3, with a separate "maximize compatibility" toggle to enable it
Frequent travelers know that Android's ability to create a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot anywhere is a lifesaver. But it's also best to use 5GHz Wi-Fi if at all possible, because the close quarters of use for a laptop result in higher speeds. The latest change spotted in Android 12 Developer Preview 3 really steers users towards that choice, going so far as to hide the 2.4GHz setting in another sub-menu.
In the market for a new wireless service provider? It just so happens that T-Mobile remains the only carrier in the United States to offer a try-before-you-buy "Test Drive" to see if the network is right for you. Now, it's changing its own game up with a revamp to the program, expanding its loaner length and switching out iPhones for hotspots.
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One of the main promises of 5G is bringing ultra-fast internet to homes. Instead of laying fiber cable underground, which is extremely costly and time-consuming, ISPs can set up 5G towers instead. HTC announced a product at Mobile World Congress designed just for that use case — the simply-named '5G Hub.'
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Google added Wi-Fi hotspot functionality to Android way, way back in the days of Froyo, but it took carriers several years to come to terms with it. Now, you can share your LTE connection with a few restrictions on most devices and carriers. The Pixel 3 and 3 XL do something new with hotspot mode. You can enable the Wi-Fi hotspot while you're connected to Wi-Fi, allowing your phone to share that connection with other devices.
With all the recent issues cropping up on the Pixel 3 and 3 XL, it's probably about time for some good news, right? As it turns out, the Pixel 3 on AT&T has access to network features most other unlocked phones don't — including Wi-Fi calling, HD voice, and creating a hotspot.
Android P will come packing so many new features that it’s hard to keep up with what’s changed. One helpful function that slipped under our radar is the ability to have your Wi-Fi hotspot turned off automatically when no devices are connected.
Here we see the wild NETGEAR Nighthawk router in its natural habitat - the beautiful forests of the northwestern United States. He's a massive beast, towering over the other woodland animals, but he's a gentle giant. You can see him hunting for fish in the local river - truly one of the most majestic inhabitants of the forest.
Busy beavers everywhere now have another way to get work done while they travel. Skyroam has just announced its newest product, the Solis. It's a diminutive orange puck that packs the one-two punch of both LTE-powered Wi-Fi and a 6,000mAh battery. Service is even provided without a contract via fixed-price day passes. You can pick one up for yourself as of today for just $149.99 at Fry's Electronics.
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- The wait is over for those who need to use their phone as a hotspot for Chromecast-powered content consumption. The Play Services 11.5.03 beta allegedly fixes this issue. If you aren't part of the Play Services beta, you can easily pull the requisite version for the fix down over at APK Mirror.
Around the world, a lot of people rely on their mobile devices as their only point of access to the internet and don't have a WiFi connection or router at home. For many of those people, using a Chromecast would have been impossible if it weren't for one small logical workaround: creating a hotspot with their phone that the Chromecast can connect to. Unfortunately, that workaround is no longer, uhm, working right now and it sounds like the latest Google Play Services is to blame.
Road warriors, rejoice. Verizon has unveiled a new entry into its Jetpack series of hotspots, the MiFi 7730L. It brings with it improvements and access to LTE-Advanced in available markets. Up to fifteen devices can connect simultaneously and securely.
"Connected cars" are all well and good, but you need a pricey new model or a mobile hotspot to see the benefit. Samsung thinks it has a solution for everyone with an older car: a gadget that plugs into a standard On-Board Diagnostic port (OBD) and rebroadcasts mobile Internet on local Wi-Fi. It's a simple idea, but one that's easy and unobtrusive. The company calls it the Samsung Connect Auto.
We've seen mobile hotspots for cars before, but I don't think I've ever heard of one that uses the ODB-II communications port on your vehicle for power, freeing up that precious cigarette lighter for things like chargers. The ZTE Mobley is just that.
A new leak points to big changes about to hit T-Mobile, and these are the good kind of changes. According to TmoNews, the carrier will be adding mobile hotspot to all active plans (even prepaid) on June 12th. It will also boost some hotspot caps and stop using hard caps entirely.
If you're a hotel manager, especially at a big, fancy hotel where people can expect to pay a convenience fee for running water, you might be tempted to charge an iniquitous amount of money for your guests to access the Internet. Your guests, in turn, might tell you to suck it and use the Wi-Fi hotspot feature built into just about every new smartphone being sold today. That might make you turn around and consider doing something drastic, like, say, implement an elaborate system of jammers to block or spoof signals and make personal Wi-Fi devices useless. You might also be a dick.