Smart Phones as Modems

By BEN CHARNY

A growing number of tutorials are surfacing on the Web that help consumers turn Apple Inc.'s iPhone and Palm Inc.'s Pre into Internet modems for their computers, a function many smart phone owners want but U.S. mobile phone carriers have been reluctant to allow.

As of Thursday, instructions and software for using iPhones as modems had popped up on several Web sites, including the popular Gizmodo gadget blog. Similarly, guides for turning the Pre into a modem have also appeared on the Web.

The function, known as "tethering," takes advantage of a smart phone's always-on Internet connectivity. When the device is tethered to a laptop or desktop computer, a user can surf the Web via the phone's wireless connection.

The interest in "tethering" iPhones and Pres underscores the slow response by networks to growing demand for the function. Neither AT&T Inc., which is the exclusive U.S. carrier of the iPhone, and Sprint Nextel Corp., which has an exclusive deal to carry the Pre, have authorized tethering with these devices.

An AT&T spokesman declined to say why the company has not yet made iPhone tethering available. The company has said it plans to make the feature available later this year, but has not disclosed when or pricing.

A Sprint spokesperson said tethering is a feature that isn't available for Pre service plans. He declined to say why or whether tethering would be offered for the Pre.

Critics say the U.S. carriers' reluctance to support tethering for the iPhone and the Pre is confounding, particularly because the two carriers both support the service for other devices, including the BlackBerry from Research In Motion Ltd. The service costs up to $60 a month.

Analysts say one possible explanation for the different treatment could be the usage habits of iPhone and Pre owners in the U.S. Because the devices are built specifically for surfing the Web and downloading software, carriers could be concerned tethering would cause a spike in data traffic over the systems, something that might choke the networks.

By contrast, BlackBerry owners tend to use less taxing functions, like email, that are unlikely to clog the network.

Write to Ben Charny at ben.charny@dowjones.com

http://online.wsj.com