Android tablets and dongles

[WithaPickleOnTop]

Does anyone have a wifi only tablet that they can put a dongle In so that they can get mobile internet ?

[WithaPickleOnTop]

No one?

[WithaPickleOnTop]

Guess not

[flatmum]

you would need a tablet with a USB port which I don't think any of te smaller tablets have - would be too bulky. so if you have say a google nexus 7 or an iPad most people access the Internet on the go by using IP tethering via blue tooth to their phones and using their phones Internet connection (what i am doing at the moment), you can get versions with their own GPRS connection like your phone but the. you need another additional monthly contract.

some of the larger hybrid tablets like eg Samsung ativ smart PC have USB ports and you can use a dongle direct to access the Internet.

[FormaLurka]

A plugin dongle is so yesterday :)

I have a HTC One phone which I use as a portable WiFi hotspot which I use to surf on my iPad.

If your phone can't do that then Google mifi. It's a portable WiFi hotspot gadget the size of a thin pack of cigs. Depending on your home requirements, you can even use it at home and hang your pc/laptop off it.

[WithaPickleOnTop]

Tethering is out. giffgaff don't allow it. Mifi might be the way forward but then I'm carrying 3 gadgets. Also it will have limited data access.

[FormaLurka]

Solution is simple. Dump Gidgaff :)

I'm with Three and I regularly use up 3-5gb of data. Alternatively, go for a phablet. Amazon is selling Samsung Mega 6.3 inch phone for £300 phone only. You now only have one gadget. or if you want a premium phablet check out Sony Xperia Ultra.

[tribpot]

Mifi is how I do it - Tesco Mobile don't allow tethering either, so I carry a Vodafone one around, it's so light you'd never know it was there.

[FormaLurka]

Anyway tethering is different beast to using your phone as a WiFi hotspot. I know because I tried tethering my phone to my laptop via usb cable and I couldn't. However I can use my phone as a hotspot.

Looking your settings screen or Google your phone and 'WiFi hotspot'

[flatmum]

its tethering via bluetooth - you need to change phone contract I think or try a bigger tablet/laptop. How can giff gaff stop you tho? if you have GPRS on your phone, say and iphone, and you connect the iphone to your tablet via bluetooth - how can they tell?

[FormaLurka]

GPRS? Tethering? Bluetooth? Sorry flatmum but the mobile world has since moved on.

My contract does not allow me to tether. I don't know how 02 & Co know but they do. However, my phone (HTC One X) allows me to turn it into into a mobile wifi hotpot.

[flatmum]

Sigh yes and how does your phone connect to your iPad?

[flatmum]

I have an iPhone, nexus 7 and a laptop all of which I use the Internet on via my phone. The iPhone connects to all these devices using Bluetooth. The phone connects to the Internet using wifi if I am in a wifi area (such as on the tube as I have Virgin 120MB broadband) or using the phones cellular connection if not which is GPRS or 3G depending on the area (soon to be 4G as I am on three)

You should be able to do this OP, the technology is out there as you can see!

[FormaLurka]

flatmum - I switch on the WiFi Hotspot option on my phone. I then switch on my iPad WiFi and it 'sees' my phone alongside my home WiFi router.

I'm guessing that the technology is the same as the MiFi gadget mentioned upthread.

[flatmum]

That's right, it 'sees' it through the magic of Bluetooth.

[FormaLurka]

That is like saying that your home WiFi uses Bluetooth to communicate with your tablet and/or laptop.

Talking about GPRS kind of dated you straight away . Like I said, technology has moved on and your knowledge is a few years out of date so you sound kind of silly trying to speak authoritatively about the subject.

[flatmum]

Yes you're quite right, GPRS is an out of date term still used generically for a cellular network by people that have been in the industry for a long time.

[NetworkGuy]

flatmum - while you may be connecting using Bluetooth, FormaLurka is setting the phone to provide a wi-fi (802.11 ethernet) service like a broadband router at home/ office, and not using Bluetooth in her case.

OP - not many networks allow tethering (officially, even if it has worked in the past) unless you are on their more expensive or top of the range contract.

Three's One Plan ( SIM only, use an unlocked 3G mobile ) allows for unlimited data with tethering and was reduced in July from £25/month to £15/month (2000 minutes, 5000 texts, plus 3000 "3 to 3" minutes). Since it has unlimited data, you'd never need to change settings in the tablet when home, just plug the mobile phone into a charger and carry on using it for data to the tablet...

I know that is more expensive than some GiffGaff deals, but if you don't want to carry a third device it might be a sensible solution (as long as you have coverage where you need access from the tablet).

[WithaPickleOnTop]

Networkguy when I finished my 2 year contract with apple, paying 65 per month foot one gb per month i was choosing between three and giffgaff. As I'd had a nightmare experience on three a few years ago I chose giffgaff. And they've been brilliant. Seen mixed reviews of three. Would I still need a dongle and can I just plug it straight into a hudl?

[ChloeFerguson]

Hi,

Just thought you might be interested in this...There's a 16-page tablet guide free in tomorrow's Daily Mail. If you have a tablet or thinking about getting one the guide will give you helpful tips about how to make the most out of a tablet. Click here if you want to find out more dailym.ai/1n2T4e9 or pick up the paper tomorrow.

[NetworkGuy]

Very sorry, OP - had not seen your query until today. Still likely to be mixed views on Three (and unfortunately, on 31/01 they upped the price from £15 to £20 a month for the One Plan, and there are rumours of them introducing {near future} a limit on how much data is allowed using tethering…

Sorry, don't know enough about the HUDL to know what it can handle.

Few networks are providing tethering anyway, so a MiFi or '3G tablet' (or even '4G tablet') might be a way forward, but I think all the networks charge silly (high) money per GB, apart from Three One Plan {which allows the tethering, so can have multiple devices sharing that 3G mobile connection).