O2 cheating the promise

So my slightly battered iPhone 3G can now be a tethered modem for my laptop. That’s something I actually find quite appealing for the occasions I’m out and about with no wireless access. What I don’t find appealing is the price of £15 per month. That’s an amount I’d rather not spend - especially given the few times I’d need it. ¹

There’s no doubt the iPhone has been a success for O2 - it’s the phone of choice amongst my peer group - a quite astonishing fact. With so many things I love about my iphone I’m already lusting after a new 3GS for the better camera, faster processor and video capability. Having it supply on-the-go access for my laptop would be brilliant.

Looking at O2’s decision it seems wierd that they would charge a customer the same as a mobile broadband user - especially when you already have the hardware. Moreover isn’t the iPhone supposed to come with unlimited data traffic? ²

So doesn’t this decision mean O2 are effectively charging users that tether for something they already own are entitled for? I can’t see how this thinking is living up to ‘We’re better, connected‘.

You’re back to the old tricks of charging me twice, how is this better?

Ok, so there are several arguments for charging (see footnote), but using this heavy handed monthly contract is going to drive users to crack their phones and use them anyway. For those wanting to crack it - a simple search on Google will tell you the details.

Come on O2 don’t be stupid. Let iPhone customers get a comparable access when they need it - how about you text when you need to activate for a day - then pay £1 for that day’s usage. This is capped to match the the monthly mobile broadband rate.

Fair and easy. And better, connected.

1. Using a tethered laptop would push up data use. Although 3G web speeds are a bit lame on the phone, research shows this perceived browsing speed is actually a function of the browser render speed and less about connection speed. Previous tethering speed tests show decent browsing speeds when using the phone.
2. Although the iPhone has unlimited data on it’s handset - this was a climbdown from the first releases. Originally marketed as unlimited the small print said provided a fairly measly data cap made it far from unlimited. Public pressure brought a clarification where unlimited started to mean unlimited. Any unlimited tariff is of course subject to a fair use policy. With it’s wi-fi support it’s easy to see how the iPhone actually uses less 3G than you might expect. Many of us have wi-fi at home, work, on the train and in urban areas, reducing the demand on O2’s 3G data network. Having a tethered phone changes our usage model and thus is likely to push up data usage.