The steps to share your connection differ from the type of your smartphone. Discover in this guide, how to do a connection sharing via android and via iphone.
Tethering, also known as tethering or modem mode, is a very useful smartphone feature that allows you to share your mobile phone’s internet connection with other users who do not have a Wi-Fi connection or a mobile data plan, or when they cannot maintain a stable internet connection. It’s about turning your smartphone into a hotspot in seconds and enjoying a safe and secure internet connection wherever you go.
What is tethering on a smartphone?
Connection sharing consists of using a smartphone (android or iphone) as an Internet access point via other devices without a Wi-Fi connection or a mobile data plan. Using this feature, the smartphone that transmits Internet services therefore becomes an “access point”, such as a wifi modem, which is used to connect another device (or several) to the Internet via Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or through a USB cable.
It is indeed possible to share a connection with another smartphone, a tablet, a desktop computer, a laptop or any other device compatible with 4G or WiFi. The device that benefits from your connection sharing will therefore benefit from the network coverage of your mobile operator.
It is an option present on most new generation mobile phones and tablets, which can be used for free and without time and Giga limits. The only drawback, to the detriment of the two connected devices, is that it increases battery consumption.
To connect a smartphone to two or more devices through connection sharing, it is necessary to go through several key steps. You will discover in the following how to proceed to share an Internet connection from android or iphone as simply as possible.
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How to share internet connection from android?
Most Android phones can share mobile data over Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, or using a USB cable. Here are the steps that can guide you to share internet connection via android:
Share your connection from android via WIFI:
To share an internet connection via android, you can follow these instructions:
- Make sure hotspot is enabled from your android
- Go to “Settings”
- Find the “Connections” function (or alternatively “tethering” because android devices have slightly different interfaces) and click on it
- Click the “Wi-Fi hotspot” box to enable it
- Select “connection sharing”
Once hotspot is enabled, you can choose to hide your smartphone, turn on security, and set hotspot to turn off automatically when no device is connected.
Ensuite :
- Go to “Settings” of the device you want to connect to your android.
- Click on “Login”
- Select “Wi-Fi”
- Find the name of your smartphone in the list of available Wi-Fi networks and click on it
- Type the password associated with your smartphone’s mobile hotspot and browse securely
Share your connection from Android via Bluetooth:
If you want to save on your mobile device’s battery consumption, you can use Bluetooth tethering instead of Wi-Fi by following these steps:
- Activate your mobile data network
- Go to your android’s “Settings”
- Look for the “Bluetooth” option
- Enable Bluetooth tethering by sliding the toggle switch.
- Activate “Bluetooth” on the other device
- Pair both devices with Bluetooth (android and the other device)
- Access the internet from the other device
Note that you must keep the two devices close enough to each other to maintain a good Bluetooth connection.
Share your connection from android via USB:
To share an Internet connection via USB, you will need a USB cable compatible with your mobile device. One end of the cable will have the standard USB plug for your PC and the other end will have a smaller USB plug for your mobile device:
- Enable mobile data network on your android
- Connect your smartphone to the other device using a USB cable
- Activate the hotspot on your mobile phone
- Enable tethering via USB
As long as mobile data is enabled on your android smartphone, you can connect to the internet on your PC or laptop. The good thing about using a USB connection is that it’s more reliable than the wireless connection options, it’s a wired connection that doesn’t allow the loss of bandwidth like in the case of a wireless connection.
How to share internet connection from iphone?
You can tether from your iPhone to one or more other devices in three different ways: using Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or via a USB cable. The methods are similar to those used via android, only the steps to follow differ.
Share your connection from iphone via WIFI:
To share an internet connection from your iphone:
- Go to the “Settings” menu of your iPhone
- Find “Cellular Data” and click on it
- Select “Connection Sharing” to activate it
- Check Wi-Fi password and phone name
- On the other device go to “Settings” then “Wi-Fi”
- Click on the name of your iphone in the list that appears
- Enter your connection sharing password
For newer versions of iOS:
- Go to “Settings”
- Click on the “personal hotspot” box
- Tap “Allow others to join” to ensure other users can access your network
- Enter the password on the other device to connect
Once a device is connected to your iphone, a blue indicator at the top of your iphone screen will tell you that your hotspot is active and how many devices are connected to it.
Share your connection from iphone via Bluetooth:
Before connecting your computer or tablet to the internet via your iPhone, you must pair your devices via Bluetooth by following these steps:
On your iphone:
- Access the “Settings” menu
- Select “Connection Sharing”
- Click on “Authorize other users”
- Activate “Bluetooth”
If the other device uses Windows:
- Go to “Add a Bluetooth device” then follow the instructions
- Then click on the “Bluetooth” icon in the notification area
- Select “Join a personal network”
- Right-click then click on “Connect via”
- Select the “Access point” box
If the other device is a Mac:
- Apple click apple
- Select the “System Preferences” box
- Activate “Bluetooth”
- Select the name of the iphone providing tethering
- Click on “Connections” then follow the instructions
- Select “Connect to network”
Share your connection from iphone via USB:
To share a connection from your iphone to a computer or a Mac, follow these instructions:
- Download the latest version of “iTunes” software on your pc
- Connect your iphone to your computer with a USB cable compatible with your iphone
- Click on the “trust” box on the “Trust this computer” window that appears on the pc screen
Now you can use your iphone’s mobile data to share an internet connection with another phone, tablet or computer.
