How to Use the iPhone as a Modem Without Jailbreaking 2.2.1

Apple chooses its network partners carefully to ensure that cellular data access is available to all iPhones.

A significant aspect of the iPhone's usability is its Internet access. By connecting to the Internet via Wi-Fi, cellular data and the 3G network, users have access to a host of functions and features that are normally reserved for computers. Therefore, most iPhone contracts include unlimited--or large amounts of inclusive--cellular data, to ensure that customers get full use of their device. This easy access to cellular data needn't be restricted to the iPhone, and with the right settings, it can be shared with other devices.

Things You'll Need

• iTunes
• Tethering package

Instructions

1. Connect the iPhone to your computer using the USB cable, and launch iTunes.

2. Open the iPhone's settings page in iTunes, and click the "Check for updates" button. ITunes will then download and install the latest version of the iPhone's firmware, which, from version 3.0 onward, will include the ability to tether the device to a computer and share its cellular connectivity.

3. Allow the iPhone to update without interruption. Once the update has completed, contact your network provider and order a bolt-on tethering package.

4. Open the "Settings" application on the iPhone, and select the "General" menu. Tap the "Network" menu, followed by the "Internet Tethering" settings. Slide the "Internet Tethering" switch to "ON."

5. Connect the iPhone to your computer either using the USB cable or by Bluetooth, and the computer will detect the iPhone as a new network. Allow the computer to connect through any security software it might be running, and the iPhone will share its Internet connection automatically.

Tips & Warnings

• Several tethering packages are available, with different amounts of allotted data per month depending on your requirements.

• Tethering is impossible on iPhones running anything prior to the 3.0 firmware update, without jailbreaking it first.

• A computer will use a lot more data than the iPhone, so be careful not to exceed your tethering package's data allowance.

References

• Apple: System requirements for Internet tethering