[loneshark]

so as Boost will be bringing the 9670 to its lineup, can we use the WiFi antenna as a wifi hotspot for other devices like my laptop ??

[Motorcycle Mama]

No. You cannot.

[rdiddy_25]

Its possible if u buy a device such as a cradlepoint. Its not cheap but can be done.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[hljeffries]

I would say it depends on what you're willing to pay for. The phone can be used as a wifi hotspot through Sprint, but you have to pay extra for the option of doing so. Sprint charges it on the bill as though you have one of their wifi dongles. I know when we upgraded from the phones we had to the 9670 one of the selling points for us was that Sprint advertised you could use the phone as a wifi hotspot. When we got the phones we were asked if we wanted to do this and were told that it would be another $29.99 a month in addition to the regular plan and that's per phone.

Boost may be different. If the phone is designed for Boost then perhaps out of the great benevolence of their hearts they will allow whatever lock Sprint has on the phone's wifi abilities to be removed. I would doubt it, but I suppose it's possible.

I personally use TetherBerry and am quite happy with it. So long as I'm able to put the TetherBerry software on the device in question it syncs perfectly to the phone and works extremely well through bluetooth or USB. For whatever reason - Android phones can use Tetherberry to access laptops/desktops, but Tetherberry has not yet created the app to connect an Android Tablet with the tetherberry app on a phone. So I can connect all day long on my laptop through my phone, but my tablet is still reliant on being within a wifi zone unless I'm willing to pay Sprint an extra $30 a month for that ability with the 9670.

[ridesno159]

I would say it depends on what you're willing to pay for. The phone can be used as a wifi hotspot through Sprint, but you have to pay extra for the option of doing so. Sprint charges it on the bill as though you have one of their wifi dongles. I know when we upgraded from the phones we had to the 9670 one of the selling points for us was that Sprint advertised you could use the phone as a wifi hotspot. When we got the phones we were asked if we wanted to do this and were told that it would be another $29.99 a month in addition to the regular plan and that's per phone.

Boost may be different. If the phone is designed for Boost then perhaps out of the great benevolence of their hearts they will allow whatever lock Sprint has on the phone's wifi abilities to be removed. I would doubt it, but I suppose it's possible.

I personally use TetherBerry and am quite happy with it. So long as I'm able to put the TetherBerry software on the device in question it syncs perfectly to the phone and works extremely well through bluetooth or USB. For whatever reason - Android phones can use Tetherberry to access laptops/desktops, but Tetherberry has not yet created the app to connect an Android Tablet with the tetherberry app on a phone. So I can connect all day long on my laptop through my phone, but my tablet is still reliant on being within a wifi zone unless I'm willing to pay Sprint an extra $30 a month for that ability with the 9670.

The rep who told you this was really trying to get every last dime you had out of your pocket.

There is NOT a BlackBerry currently available that can be used as a wifi hotspt. This is a hardware issue, not something that could be added with a software update, or adding a feature to your Sprint plan.

Sprint does have a few phones that can be used as a wifi hotspot, but a BlackBerry isn't one of them.

[Motorcycle Mama]

i would say it depends on what you're willing to pay for. The phone can be used as a wifi hotspot through sprint, but you have to pay extra for the option of doing so. ...

huh?
.........

[hljeffries]

Yes I realize it's a matter of hardware and after just reading your reply I went to Sprint's site and pulled up the device and see that it has the wifi icon x-ed out as an option. I was stunned by that, because a piece of mail-out marketing material sent to my house last October point blank stated across it in big bold text, "Now you can use your Blackberry Style as a wifi hotspot!"

It was that statement and that mail-out that convinced us the Style was the one we both wanted. My husband travels for business extensively and we thought it was perfect that he could use the phone as a wifi hotspot. Further in the ad it stated that the phone could be used as the wifi hotspot in your house to replace your existing internet for all your devices. Now I don't know who would be willing to do that, but there it was as a marketing suggestion.

When I bought my husband's phone I purchased it through Wirefly. When I was activating the phone I asked the rep about using the phone as a wifi hotspot and was told, "Yes ma'am you can do that. It will be an extra $29.99 a month to enable the phone to use that service."

Interesting. I wish I still had the ad - I would scan and post it.

[matt62]

Unfortunately, not all salespeople/ads are well versed in terminology. I would venture to guess that while they said "hotspot" what they truly meant was "modem" whether they knew it or not. The Style can be used as a modem in order to access the Internet, but it cannot be used as a wifi hotspot. As was previously mentioned, Tetherberry is the best for your Style as it does not go through Sprint for access and therefore does not require an additional feature to your account which costs more. For a one time charge of $50 (or catch it on sale periodically for $25) you can use your BB as a modem wherever you have cellular service. As long as you have an unlimited data plan you are good to go.