Buried inside almost every smartphone is a feature that few people use but on which I have grown to rely more and more: the ability to transform the phone into a Wi-Fi hotspot. Using my phone as a hotspot (also known as Wi-Fi tethering) allows me to connect my tablet or laptop to the internet anytime I have a couple of bars of signal strength — and share my internet connection with co-workers. It's my method of staying on top of business no matter where I am, allowing me to read and send emails, transfer data across the company's servers, and even catch up on the latest office gossip from the comfort of a full-sized tablet.
For a group of businesses wanting to collaborate, a phone hotspot
may be a real collaboration tool. The possibilities range from a group
concluding a group presentation in a van on the way to the airport to an
accounting team working in a conference room with an internet connection
independent of the firm they're inspecting. When the Wi-Fi goes down, it may
also provide a lifeline of connectivity for a home office.
It functions similarly to a specialized mobile hotspot, but
because it is built within your phone, there is nothing else to charge, carry,
or attempt not to lose. When connected to a mobile data network, the phone may
transform the data stream into a Wi-Fi signal that other devices can use. While
hosting the hotspot connection, the phone can still see websites on its screen,
make calls, and react to SMS.
I've revised the answers to the following 15 essential
questions concerning phone hot spotting after speaking with officials from
phone manufactures and networks about their products and using my Samsung
Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G as a hotspot on many field excursions. In a nutshell, using a best hotspot plan may make life simpler when traveling and, on occasion, at home.
What Is a Phone Wi-fi Hotspot?
A hotspot is essentially a combination of software,
hardware, and back-end network data services that transforms a phone into the
equivalent of a broadband modem and router. In other words, it may use Wi-Fi to
share a web connection to adjacent systems. This not only allows me to connect
my laptop and tablet to the internet, but it also allows me to share it with
coworkers as long as they are in range and know the password. Tethering through
Bluetooth and USB cords is also supported by some phones, but these methods are
less common.
How Does It Work?
To utilize a phone
as a hotspot, the device considers its data network connection as if it were a broadband
data source. It then sends this data locally, much like a mini-Wi-Fi router,
with the latest smartphones employing the 802.11ac or 802.11ax standard. As a
result, Wi-Fi devices within range may connect to the data signal as if it were
a normal old Wi-Fi network, which it is. A phone hotspot connects to the
internet via a cellular network and often shares that connection over Wi-Fi.
How Secure Is Using a Phone Hotspot?
Using a phone
hotspot can boost your security by allowing you to avoid using vulnerable
public hotspots at coffee shops and hotels. Because 4G data transmission is
normally encrypted using the Snow Stream cipher with a 128-bit encryption key,
it's just as safe and private as making a phone call or browsing the web with
your phone.
Those who can connect to one of the forthcoming 5G networks benefit from 256-bit encryption, the ability to reject phony mobile network transmission stations known as stingrays, and encryption of your name and location to thwart identity thieves. However, this is only true if the network implements these safeguards. A VPN can construct a stronger wall around your communications using AES 256-bit encryption on any mobile network, but it generally comes at the expense of performance.
The phone's hotspot employs WPA2 encryption between the
phone and the clients connecting over it, which requires a password of at least
eight characters. Some recent phones from LG, Asus, and Samsung support the
stronger WPA3 system, which secures the authentication part of the connection
better.
Which Phones Can Be Used as Hotspots?
The good news is that almost any Android or iOS phone on the market can be converted into a Wi-Fi hotspot. All it takes is a little setup adjustment that takes no more than a minute. Hotspot connections take place over whatever cellular networks your phone normally uses — thus if your phone supports 5G and is in range of a 5G network, it will utilize it for hotspot connections. Otherwise, it will use a 4G or 3G network as needed.
The "5G" emblem often replaces the "LTE"
or "4G" logo on 5G phones. There are a few dozen first-generation 5G
phones on the market, with the number expected to grow in the coming years as
networks are built out and the requisite handset chips become less expensive
and power-hungry. The following are some of the first, but as you can see,
neither Apple nor Google are represented. In the autumn, 5G iPhone and Pixel
devices are expected.
- Huawei
Mate 20 X 5G
- LG V60
ThinQ 5G
- Motorola
Edge Plus
- Nubia
Red Magic 5G
- OnePlus
8 Pro
- Oppo
Find X2 Pro
- Samsung
Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G
- Vivo
iQOO 3 5G
- Xiaomi
Mi Mix 3 5G
- ZTE
Axon 10 Pro
Which Networks Support Wi-fi Tethering?
All mobile networks enable the usage of a phone hotspot
since it is handled the same as other data. However, you must ensure that your
cellphone plan enables it. Most corporate plans and many consumer plans from
the Big Four (soon to be Big Three) national networks enable hotspot access in
some form or another, however the situation may shift over time when T-Mobile
and Sprint merge.
The bad news is that, while your talk and texting time are
technically limitless, networks often limit hotspot access to a fixed amount of
data per month at full speed (anything from 3GB to 100GB, depending on your
plan), after which it drops to a considerably slower pace.
What Kind of Devices Can Connect to a Phone Hotspot?
A phone hotspot may connect to any Wi-Fi-enabled device,
such as computers, tablets, other phones, and even gaming consoles. (We don't
judge what you do in your spare time.) Consider it another Wi-Fi source, only
this time it comes from your phone.
How Many Devices Can Connect to a Phone Hotspot?
Most Android phones can connect up to ten individuals at
once, however iPhones from the 4S model to the current iPhone 11 may support up
to five simultaneous connections, though this may be limited to four customers
by the network. Of course, the more users who share the internet throughput,
the slower each client's performance.
Where Can I Use a Hotspot?
As long as your phone is linked to your service provider's
data network, you may use a hotspot no matter where you are. In reality, any
location with a strong enough signal to browse the web on your phone may be
used as a hotspot with good results. I've used phone hotspots at home, at work,
on trains, in hotel lobbies, and in coffee shops all around the United States,
as well as in Europe and Asia.
There's also a significant benefit if your office's data
connection fails. When my office's internet connection went down for an hour
earlier this year, I used the hotspot capabilities of my Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G to
keep things operating. It wasn't as quick as I'm used to, but it kept the
emails and data transfers coming. Configuring the hotspot using the network's
name and passcode was crucial.
Is the Setup Hard to Do?
No, not at all. It's really one of the simplest
configuration modifications you can make. It differs for iPhones and Androids,
but it should just take a minute or two. A word of caution: Change the network
name and password for security reasons.
For an iPhone or iPad:
- · Begin by going to the Home screen and tapping the Settings button.
- · Navigate to the Personal Hotspot area.
- · Allow Others to Join by moving the slider switch to the right. (If you're still on iOS 12, the slider just reads "Personal Hotspot.")
- · Instructions now show towards the center of the screen, along with the network password; the network name is the same as the name of your device.
- · I recommend updating the password for security reasons by clicking the Wi-Fi Password area and entering a new one.
Because of the wide range of devices, giving instructions
for Android phones is more difficult. I've given steps for my Galaxy S20 Ultra
5G running Android 10, however your phone may change somewhat based on its OS
and network.
- · Swipe up or down on the Home screen to bring up the applications and enter Settings.
- · Tap Connections, then scroll down and tap Mobile Hotspot and Tethering, and then tap Mobile Hotspot to activate it. Depending on your software, the menu phrasing may alter (for example, "Wireless & networks" rather than "Connections"), and you may need to touch "More" to access the tethering and hotspot options.
- · Open the Mobile Hotspot section to change the network name and password, as well as whether you want the hotspot to use the 2.4GHz or 5 GHz Wi-Fi network.
- · You can check how many devices are connected to your hotspot network if you scroll down.
Once you've activated the hotspot, it will be discoverable
by devices looking for nearby Wi-Fi networks, but only people with whom you've
shared the password will be able to join. Begin by accessing your laptop or
tablet's Wi-Fi settings and searching for your new network. Then type in the
password. The system should be up and running in less than a minute.
With a QR code, some newer Android smartphones provide a
shortcut to hotspot connections. To accomplish this, first:
- · Tap the QR code icon in the top right corner of the hotspot phone screen; a QR code will now appear.
- · Aim the camera of the phone or tablet you wish to connect to it at it and take a picture of it.
- · Tap again to confirm that you wish to connect.
All told, it takes about 10 seconds to accomplish and get
online.
Disconnecting a device from a mobile hotspot is the same as
disconnecting from a stationary hotspot: either turn off Wi-Fi data exchange or
move to another network.
Important: To avoid leaving a Wi-Fi signal trail wherever
you go, switch off hotspot tethering as soon as you're finished. Your battery
will appreciate it as well.
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