iPhone users have been waiting for tethering for a long time. More specifically, AT&T customers are still waiting for it. Since the WWDC 2009 Keynote Address, where it was announced that iPhone OS 3.0 would support tethering, AT&T has said they would support it... sometime.

Appmodo.com is reporting that iPhone tethering will not be available this year. They suggested that AT&T had previously gone on-record saying "that iPhone tethering would become available 'sometime this year'" -- presumably referring to this quote on CNet.com, from AT&T Mobility chief Ralph de la Vega who said (in November of 2008) that "iPhone 3G users will be able to use their phones as wireless modems at some point next year," which would obviously mean 2009.

The Appmodo story links to an article by Andrew LaVallee, writing for The Wall Street Journal's Digits blog, who quotes an unnamed spokesman for AT&T who refused to say when tethering would be available and said: "Whenever we offer new features, we want to offer the best possible customer experience. For tethering, we need to do some additional fine tuning to our systems and networks so that we do deliver a great experience."

Appmodo seems to think this is a change in AT&T's official stance, but LaVallee explicitly refers to it as "the company's prior statement."

When it comes to iPhone tethering, has Appmodo gotten the story straight before? Well, on June 17th they quoted a source who said "The highly anticipated tethering option will also be delivered towards the end of July with pricing around $55 per month..." -- then on June 19th, AT&T explicitly denied the $55 cost via their Facebook page.

On July 9th they quoted the same source saying that MMS and tethering were coming in September, and repeated the "around $55" estimated cost which had already been dismissed on the record. Appmodo added, "Our source is from an undisclosed reputable AT&T employee." So much for that. Granted, we've also been off the mark on tethering rumors, but we're trying not to make such a habit of it.

When will AT&T make tethering available? The answer is that no one outside of AT&T and Apple knows. AT&T isn't saying, but what Appmodo is seeing as a change in the answer, the WSJ says is the same line they've heard before. Given the way Appmodo has been reading the tethering tea leaves, I am highly skeptical that this represents an official schedule change -- sure, tethering might not show up until 2013, but that was just as true last week as it is today.

In between watching those Sunday NFL games, we're hoping that you're snacking on some TUAW goodness. For your munching pleasure I thought I'd cook up some of the interesting tidbits that have accumulated in our inbox this morning and present them to you for consumption.

First, from TUAW reader Tom, is a fascinating look at a pre-Apple "Apple logo." Apparently in 1969, Piaggio Vespa, world-famous for their Vespa scooters, had an Italian ad campaign featuring apples with both sides missing a bite. The campaign used the Italian phrase "Chi Vespa mangia le mele," or "He who Vespas eats apples." Echoes of the campaign can still be found on various Vespa websites, including the USA site where you'll find many dingbats and buttons are apples with a bite or two taken out of them.
Next, TUAW fan Keith pointed out something interesting. If you go into Settings > General > Usage, there's a list of your iPhone usage. Down near the bottom of the list of statistics is a section called Tethering Data.
This shows up on 3G / 3GS models, since tethering is allowed by many carriers. Of course, as "Seth the Blogger Guy" notes in the AT&T video, American iPhone owners don't get the joy of using their iPhones as wireless data modems for laptops because the AT&T network has insufficient capacity. We've talked previously about AT&T's view on tethering; read here for more info. Of course, there's always the jailbreak option. Read on for more news tidbits.

I like to joke that "Iowa is a great place to live, but I wouldn't want to visit." Residents often complain that there's nothing to do (other than milk cows and shuck corn). One can only stand so much antiquing.

But we do have a few things going for us: clean air, relatively light traffic, lots of space, and perhaps the best cell phone plan for the iPhone.

Recently, reader PC Drew, a US Marine living in Japan, sent us a note to let us know about the challenge he had in finding an iPhone plan while visiting his wife's family. A contract plan was out of the question, of course, because of his length of stay and the fact that he's still under a two-year Softbank agreement in Japan. And due to AT&T's, shall we say, "perplexing" lack of a prepaid plan for the iPhone, the official carrier in the States wouldn't help him.

He could have stopped by a Best Buy and picked up an O2 Universal SIM Card for less than $10. That would have provided the ironically-named PC with $0.17 per minute calls but that's it -- no data, no included text messages, and no tethering ability.

After searching a bit for a prepaid solution, he stumbled across the MEGAtalk Nationwide plan from regional GSM carrier, i wireless. This no-contract, no-credit-check offering gives the customer 30 days of unlimited calling, with roaming and long distance, for $49 plus taxes.

But wait, there's more! Not only did PC get unlimited voice minutes, but he also had unlimited SMS texting and, here's the kicker, unlimited data usage. And, with the proper hack, i wireless customers can tether their iPhones for free. Yes, you read that right... free tethering on an unlimited data plan!

Of course, getting a service plan from an unofficial carrier (read: non-AT&T, at least in the United States) requires your iPhone to be SIM-unlocked. This has become much easier over the past two years and most cell phone shops can perform the procedure if you're too nervous. PC had already performed the necessary steps, as he often finds himself in areas that aren't exactly covered by his Softbank contract.

Okay, now for the downer. Because it's a T-Mobile affiliate, i wireless doesn't offer iPhone-compatible 3G service. In fact, they only offer EDGE speeds in their Iowa-based footprint, unless you're traveling to an area with T-Mobile 3G. As a result, that unlimited data is a bit crippled speed-wise, but it's still a heck of a deal.

So, if you're planning on traveling to Iowa -- say, to Fort Madison for the 62nd Annual Tri-State Rodeo in September -- or if you're "lucky" enough to be stuck living here, you might want to take advantage of what's probably the most economical cell phone service plan available for the iPhone anywhere in the USA.

UPDATE: Quite a few readers asked if this plan is available outside of Iowa, so I contacted i wireless directly to find out more about its policy. Yes, you can sign up for this plan, even if you don't live in the i wireless footprint area, however, the representative I spoke with pointed out that this plan may expire at any time, which would seriously affect the customer's ability to use his or her phone effectively. If you are interested in further details, please contact i wireless directly.

DISCLAIMER: I own a computer and cell phone store that sells this particular prepaid plan. But the above story is absolutely true; PC Drew did contact TUAW to brag about his bargain find, without knowing me or my connection to the product.

While it was rumored that AT&T would charge an additional $55 to enable U.S. customers to use internet tethering on the iPhone, the company has scrambled to deny that claim by posting an update on its Facebook page:

"There are a lot of reports out there, but wanted you guys to know that rumors of $55 tethering plan on top of an unlimited data plan are false. We'll have more news to share when the iPhone tethering option is closer to launch."

I'm guessing one of two things has happened.

1. The $55 tethering option price that leaked was real, and AT&T is now in damage control mode. Perhaps realizing that they're overdosing on bad press already, they might be considering following in the footsteps of other telcos and let people tether the iPhone for free, or at least at a far more reasonable price.

or,

2. AT&T is doing the typical corporate PR thing, and by telling us that tethering won't cost $55, they'll expect their customers to be grateful when it actually costs "only" $35 instead.

I'm not a betting man -- when I visit Vegas, I go to visit family and for the cheap drinks -- but if I was, I wouldn't lay down any money on option 1.

[Via Macworld]

While US iPhone users are stuck waiting for AT&T to get their act together, Rogers in Canada has stunned iPhone users by not actively trying to screw users right out of the gate as they did when announcing the data plan pricing for the iPhone last year. After a high-profile backlash, Rogers was forced to offer more reasonable data plans for iPhones, and it appears they've learned their lesson this time.

As we all know by now, tethering is built in to the iPhone 3.0 firmware, and as long as you are on a data plan that gives you at least 1 GB of throughput per month, you can use iPhone tethering for no additional charge in Canada until at least the end of 2009. It's unclear what will happen next year, and it seems that Rogers isn't sure yet either. But rather than simply not allow it while they figure it out (as AT&T is doing), they chose to allow it.

My guess is the execs at Rogers are doing a few things here:

1. Looking to increase goodwill after the disastrous data plan fiasco last year
2. Wanting to watch usage patterns to see just how popular tethering turns out to be, to help them determine price points
3. Using the drug dealer method of marketing -- get people hooked, then jack up the price

Of course, this is assuming they will revert to their evil ways; it would be nice to think that Rogers has actually turned over a new leaf and wants to provide reasonable service for a reasonable price. My guess is that most users of tethering are like me in that they want to have access to it for emergencies, but don't actually need it on a day-to-day basis. In that regard, allowing tethering as part of the not-inexpensive <1 GB data plans that Rogers provides makes reasonable sense.

So, does anyone think Rogers will continue to do what makes reasonable sense next year when it comes to tethering, or will the lure of a few extra dollars be too much for them to resist?

Citing an exclusive source from within AT&T, appmodo reports that "tethering support is coming later this summer" is AT&T-speak for "tethering support is coming at the end of July."

It won't be coming cheaply, however; appmodo's source says a tethering option will cost AT&T customers a whopping $55 a month.

While this is cheaper than the $70 rumor that's been making the rounds, it still strikes me as ridiculous that AT&T is charging additional money for this option in the first place. Considering their "unlimited" data plan is reportedly only unlimited until you reach 5 GB or so in any given month, it seems preposterous for AT&T to charge their customers an extra fee to use the iPhone to access the internet via tethering. But, since AT&T's wrangling caused Skype to be restricted to WiFi only and SlingPlayer Mobile to be almost totally crippled compared to the same software on different models of smartphones running on AT&T's network, perhaps this shouldn't come as a surprise.

With all the negative press AT&T has been getting over the past week, I have to wonder: what do they have against the iPhone?

Editor's Note: As many of our commenters have pointed out, several other sites have posted instructions and a hacked carrier file to allow tethering on AT&T-activated iPhones immediately; some have linked to an application that allows one-click tethering. We encourage anyone who is trying one of these procedures to be cautious in your network usage, as you may rapidly run afoul of your contract terms with your carrier.

While I trashed Vodafone NZ's pricing in a previous post, in at least one way it's far ahead of U.S. telco giant AT&T: internet tethering using the iPhone is already possible over Vodafone's network without resorting to lengthy, kludgy, and unsupported hacks. Who knows how long tethering will stay supported here, or how long it will take before Vodafone remembers to charge extra for it, but for now, tethering is go in the Southern Hemisphere.

Tethering works over both USB and Bluetooth. Using USB to tether simply requires enabling internet tethering in the iPhone's settings, then plugging the iPhone into an available USB port on your computer. The Mac will automatically recognize the tethered iPhone, and your connection will be up and running.

Bluetooth tethering obviously requires enabling Bluetooth on both your iPhone and computer, and then selecting "Connect to Network" from the Bluetooth drop-down menu. Once again, the rest of the setup is automatic -- it really doesn't get much simpler than this.

The speed of the internet connection appears to be comparable to the iPhone's standard mobile speed using USB, but Bluetooth was only about half as fast. I didn't remain tethered for long for fear of gulping down my meager monthly data cap, but for the time I used it, tethering worked with no issues whatsoever.

For my money, having tethering available in little ol' New Zealand long before the U.S. will have it puts AT&T in an even less flattering light -- while AT&T has far more users spread over a much larger area than Vodafone NZ, AT&T also has more towers and more money to pour into their infrastructure.

Any other international iPhone users managed to get tethering working on their networks? Sound off in the comments, and be sure to let us know what network you're on.

Read on for a pictorial guide to enabling tethering over Bluetooth.

Congratulations! When Apple releases iPhone OS 3.0 next week, we'll finally be gaining the following features ...

Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS)! ... unless you're on AT&T.

Tethering! ... unless you're on AT&T

A brand new 16GB iPhone 3G S for only $199 with a two-year contract! ... unless you're on AT&T and already own an iPhone 3G.

AT&T has long been the subject of grumbling from the community of US iPhone users who want to use their phones legitimately. Ever since the original release back in 2007, it feels like AT&T has been trying to play catch-up when it comes to service and tower availability. But, the release of the iPhone 3G S might be the straw that breaks the camel's back. I can walk down to my local AT&T store and pick up a cheap handset for less than $100 that will have MMS. AT&T knew this day was coming. The company may wail and gnash its teeth, complaining that it aren't ready for this, but it should be, especially since Boy Genius Report tells us that all AT&T needs to do is manually remove the opt-out code!

It was even apparent during the keynote yesterday that Apple sounds pretty disgusted with how far behind AT&T is dragging them. Notice the absence of any AT&T personnel on stage. Had AT&T been on the ball to begin with, it most likely would have taken center stage -- boasting about all the improvements that would garner shiny new services for iPhone users and more money for the corporate coffers. But it didn't, and the tension coming from Apple during the moments when MMS and Tethering were announced was pretty tangible. Apple had all of these features that people have been begging for ready to go, and now Cupertino is forced to wait for AT&T to finish twiddling its thumbs and do what it should have done two years ago. I wouldn't even be surprised if AT&T somehow found a way to block copy/paste!

A small footnote on Apple's iPhone page indicates that MMS support from AT&T will be coming later this summer. Another note on the 3.0 software pages says that tethering isn't available in the U.S. and some other countries, although Engadget cites AT&T sources who say it's coming -- there just isn't anything to announce yet.

Then there comes iPhone pricing. Those expecting a repeat of last summer's offer to replace their current iPhones with the latest model on the cheap are being sorely disappointed. You can read full details on that kerfuffle thanks to one of the recent additions to our team, Michael Jones. However, our commenters do have a point with that one -- those who bought the first generation iPhone paid the full price right off the bat, but later buyers were able to get the iPhone 3G at a subsidized price. Like with any other subsidized phone with any other carrier, you'll have to pay a pretty hefty price for the privilege to upgrade before you're eligible. For me, that'll be in October 2010. By then, the iPhone 3G s4π will most likely be out. Still, people aren't happy with this one either.

The ramifications for AT&T will come when it sits down at the negotiation table with Apple to extend its current gig as exclusive carrier for the iPhone in the United States. Apple won't forget that AT&T didn't have key features in place when they needed to be there. If Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint, or any other carrier can convince Apple that they would be ahead of the game while AT&T lags (and, believe me, it wouldn't be that hard of an argument to make), Apple will take its toys and go elsewhere. And loyal iPhone users would follow. I know I would.

Update: We've heard from two separate developers (Ari Weinstein and Jake Marsh) that they've put together quick and easy methods for enabling tethering on 3.0 iPhones (an all-in-one tool and a full user guide, respectively). Check out the links for details.

When something so appealing as the possibility of wireless Internet access anywhere you go is dangled in front of you, is it any surprise when you reflexively reach for it? After developer Steven Troughton-Smith inadvertently turned on the tethering controls on his upgraded-to-3.0 iPhone, several people made a deliberate effort to enable the feature. Posts on personal blogs and at the MacRumors forums testify to the successful quest, and there's a specific walkthrough posted and a UK-specific IPCC file kicking around.

Of course, it goes without saying that tethering your phone, in the absence of a carrier contract that permits such connectivity, is the sort of thing that may get you in a spot of trouble. Examples of such potential hazards include extremely large data bills, summary termination of your account, or hair on your palms. While jailbroken phones have been tethering for some time with few issues, past performance is no guarantee of future outcomes.

Ars Technica's Justin Berka quotes MacBlogz, which claims a source at AT&T confirmed that tethering for the iPhone will closely resemble the phone-as-modem plans already available for BlackBerry.

The plan will cost at least $30 a month, and the cost will be rolled into a new plan for the iPhone. The source said that the plan will cap data transfer at 5GB, and AT&T will terminate the tethering connection if you go over the limit.

Also mentioned is the connection process: iTunes may be required to at least set up the initial tethering configuration, and may be required every time you connect.

Speeds will apparently start at 30kbps for areas serviced only by GPRS, and top out at 1000kbps for a really spectacular 3G connection. No release date was mentioned.

All this comes from deepest Rumorland, of course, so all due caution is advised. MacBlogz says the source has worked at AT&T for "some time now" and the rumor could be taken "relatively seriously."

How's this for a telephone game: Technologizer's Harry McCracken reports that AT&T Mobility CEO Ralph De La Vega told Michael Arrington that the iPhone will be allowed to work as a tethered wireless modem for notebooks. It will be available "soon." Allegedly.

Our own Mike Schramm noted possible correspondence from Steve Jobs himself in late August suggesting that talks were already underway with AT&T.

We all know it's technically doable. Both NetShare and iModem take care of tethering quite nicely. The sticky wicket is getting AT&T's permission: the strain could be too much for the telco's 3G network to bear.

At this point, we don't know if AT&T's plans to allow tethering include any rate increases or bandwidth caps. Got any theories? Let us know by leaving a comment.

A few weeks back on the Talkcast, we had an interesting little discussion about just where Apple's boundaries were on the App Store -- so far, you really only get kicked off if you charge too much, if your apps vibrate wrong, or if you steal someone's copyright. Oh, and there's that one more little exception: if you provide folks with the ability to tether the iPhone's networking ability to your own Mac.

But now the rumor mill says that last one might just have been removed because Apple is planning a tether solution of their own. Gizmodo claims that one of their readers is corresponding with His Steveness himself (a fact we find obviously dubious, but hey it's Friday of Labor Day weekend, so we'll give 'em a pass). You'd think that Steve Jobs would reveal the fact that AT&T and Apple were trying to offer a tether solution through a slightly better venue than a quickly jotted "Sent from my iPhone" email, but remember how we first heard about the SDK -- the man knows how to stick important pieces of news in strange places.

The original emailer mentioned tethering for the fee of an extra $30 a month (which seems exorbitant considering that Netshare did it for a one-time charge), but then again, AT&T's networks are going to get even more waterlogged should something like this come down. So odds are if Apple does work out a deal, it's not going to be cheap.

Over at iPhone Atlas they're reporting that AT&T is not planning to offer a tethering option for the forthcoming iPhone 3G. Right now AT&T does offer the option for many of their 3G phones, which allows you to use the phone as a cellular modem on a laptop as part of a $65/month data plan. According to an AT&T spokesman, however, no such Phone-As-Modem plan will be offered for the iPhone 3G.

I certainly would have been interested in tethering, especially since the 3G iPhone will allow you to receive calls while transferring data. Given that AT&T is basically eliminating the iPhone's special status vis-a-vis their other smartphones, bringing it into line with the BlackBerry and WM data plans, it's a shame that they're not willing to offer parity on the tethering side. How many of you would be willing to pay extra for 3G tethering on the iPhone?

Lo, and the cries of the Mac Blackberry faithful went up, and indeed they were a fractious multitude: "Where is our dial-up networking?" they wailed. "We are paying for data service on these things, and it's EVDO, and everyone else is doing it!" And they saw that those with Intel Macs could tether their Blackberries within Parallels or VMware, and did get online after a fashion, but they said "This is a silly hack, not good." And they saw that Pulse would give them a proxy server and Bluetooth, but they cried "This is slow, and we crave USB!"

And the developers of iMobimac did hear this loud kvetching, and did indeed release upon the multitudes a private beta of a new, USB-based DUN tool. No way to gauge final performance yet, and the beta release notes warn that Safari may not detect the proxy server running on your machine, but it's a start. You may sign up for the beta at the iMobimac site, and may the broadband be with you.

Who cares whether Apple or AT&T might shut down your account or slam you with an exorbitant data bill - cre.ations.net figured out how to tether your iPhone to get web access with... well, EDGE. It may not be Wi-Fi or even EVDO, but EDGE should be able to save the day in a pinch, but none of us make any guarantees as to how long AT&T will permit this or what this hack could do to your bill. Proceed at your own risk.

That said, the cre.ations.net hack isn't exactly for the faint of heart either. You'll have to run some utilities, tinker with the command line and stand on your head to get this all set up properly, but once it is, the trick apparently works pretty well. Also, it appears the author wrote this so users across Mac OS X, Windows XP and Vista can play along, so you can take liberties with that work notebook and get hacking.

Of course, I would chalk this feature up as yet another that would be great if Apple made far easier by building into the iPhone's software. Many, if not most, smartphones (and even regular phones) can be used for tethered web access, and a software update down the road would make a lot of mobile users happy.

[via MacRumors]

Thanks Will and Kender