While I currently have a Sprint Overdrive hotspot (WiMAX which, for now at least, is still unlimited) that I use for daily tethering, I don't think I should have to pay such a premium on my regular data plan if I need to tether to my phone for a few minutes to grab a file or perform some other quick, small task. If I were relying on the tethered connection regularly or for more data-intensive tasks, I wouldn't mind paying extra.
Maybe in the days when phones relied on WAP over GPRS and consumed much less bandwidth vs. a laptop, I could understand this. However, today's smartphones with the "real web", music/video streaming apps, and the like, easily can consume data on par with the big boys.
The funny thing is, the carriers are increasing speeds of their data networks, while throttling/capping limits remain the same, if not lower. This means we'll consume our monthly allotment much faster. Sure, there's a 42Mbps connection but you'll eat up your 5GB cap in 15 minutes...
While I currently have a Sprint Overdrive hotspot (WiMAX which, for now at least, is still unlimited) that I use for daily tethering, I don't think I should have to pay such a premium on my regular data plan if I need to tether to my phone for a few minutes to grab a file or perform some other quick, small task. If I were relying on the tethered connection regularly or for more data-intensive tasks, I wouldn't mind paying extra.
Maybe in the days when phones relied on WAP over GPRS and consumed much less bandwidth vs. a laptop, I could understand this. However, today's smartphones with the "real web", music/video streaming apps, and the like, easily can consume data on par with the big boys.
The funny thing is, the carriers are increasing speeds of their data networks, while throttling/capping limits remain the same, if not lower. This means we'll consume our monthly allotment much faster. Sure, there's a 42Mbps connection but you'll eat up your 5GB cap in 15 minutes...