Announcements with iPhone 4 UK price details kept popping up last week like costly mushrooms with Orange, O2 and Vodafone all showing their hands. Three has confirmed that it will be the last of the remaining networks to reveal its iPhone 4 deal and it looks like it could be holding an ace – free tethering! Intrepid phone sleuths have got their hands on a Three carrier update and free iPhone 4 tethering evidence is lurking within it…
3G Forum member DBMandrake went delving into the iPhone 4 Three carrier update and discovered that tethering is configured automatically. He claims: “It should work with no special data plan…in fact, they won’t be able to tell apart the phone and tethering data use.”
If he’s right, that would mean the Three iPhone 4 packages will undercut the other networks by offering free tethering as part of its standard iPhone 4 data deals. So far the other iPhone 4 carriers are charging extra for the service so it could be Three’s killer offering.
iPhone 4 tethering from Vodafone will cost you £5 a month for 500MB, £10 a month for 1.5GB and £15 a month for 3GB. Orange has announced iPhone tethering bundles starting at £5 a month and will give you 3GB worth of tethering data with its £75 a month, 24-month contract. O2 hasn’t detailed its iPhone 4 tethering deals yet but currently charges for the privilege if you’re rocking an iPhone 3GS.
The Three iPhone 4 tethering looks like it’ll be limited to one Bluetooth connection at a time so you won’t be turning your new iPhone into a MiFi replacement. But you should be able to tether one device via Bluetooth and a computer via USB. DBMandrake says he’s tested the tethering with his iPhone 3G and found it also works over 2G connections.
We’re still waiting for official iPhone 4 UK price details from Three, T-Mobile and Tesco Mobile. Since this iPhone 4 tethering info comes directly from a Three carrier update pushed out through iTunes, we’re fairly certain it’ll be part of the network’s iPhone 4 offering but we still need to see what other goodies it’s got in store for us.
Let us know: would having iPhone 4 tethering included for free as part of your data deal make you choose Three over the other networks? Take a look at our iPhone 4 UK price buyer’s guide for the best iPhone 4 deals so far.
Out June 24 | From £free on contract | Apple (via 3G Forums)
