[Atrix 4G Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] Jade Eyed Wolf:
I know AT&T could tell I was making phone calls with my AT&T branded Tab by the IMEI. That's why I sold it and got the international one, and carried on making the phone calls from it while giving AT&T the middle finger.

Also, as it turns out, I am a grandfathered smartphone unlimited user, my contract doesn't say anything about requiring a tethering plan (and therefore isn't binding to that effect). Additionally, I own an unlocked international Galaxy S2 (by far the best phone I have ever owned. Period.), and I tether with it all the time. I generally go through about 5-8GB of data monthly, and AT&T has left me alone about it. Additionally, I have an unlimited laptop connect plan which I can tether with as well, and I go between 15-30GB a month on that. All of this is within what I would consider to be reasonably normal internet use (Facebook, YouTube, Netflix, music downloads, Cloud services, etc.)

As for TTL, that doesn't really prove anything. You can have a virtual machine running inside your phone (like Ubuntu), and it can raise the TTL count by 1. Is that tethering? You can install 3rd party firewall software which creates a whole separate virtual gateway with its own IP address and packet inspection which can raise the TTL count by at least 1 as well. Is that tethering? If these things are considered tethering, then the definition (according to AT&T) needs to be more specific about what it considers tethering.

But you're missing the point here (I understand your point about signing an agreement and obeying the stipulations). The point isn't about breaking contract terms, the point is that the terms of the contract are -ridiculously stupid- in the first place, and serve only to raise the profit margins of the corporation and its shareholders.

The point is that we as consumers will continue to get screwed over if we keep being passive and say "Well, if those are the terms, those are the terms... may as well just take it... Not like I have any other choice..." when instead we should be saying "Those are the terms!? This is bull$***!!! We demand better terms which are fair and reasonable! Especially since we've had better before!"

When some of us here who still have unlimited plans deliberately go through 100+GB of data in a month, I don't interpret that as them choosing to be @$$hats to the other people on the network by consuming bandwidth, I interpret that as them saying "Screw you AT&T, because you screw me, and everyone else! Stop trying to rebuild yourself into the greedy, money grubbing, monopolistic bastard you were in the 80's by lowering service standards and raising prices. Instead maybe you should focus on a better customer experience by providing service that meets consumer demands, is reliable, and is priced in a fair and reasonable manner. Be competitive by investing in infrastructure improvement instead of buying out competitors for 10 times the price! Happy customers won't be @$$hats to you, if you're not screwing them!"

Consumers as a whole need to grow some balls, band together, and say with one big voice "We refuse to be treated this way!"

We're doing it with banks. Why not do it with cellular carriers too?

The only ones who wouldn't benefit from us all pushing back, are the shareholders... at least in the short term.

---------- Post added at 10:37 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:33 AM ----------

On one hand, yeah, I'd be fine with at least having that option available. On the other hand, why should I pay a total of $50 a month for something that I've always had for $30 a month? On the third hand (oh how I wish I had a third hand...), I pay roughly $50 a month for my unlimited laptop connect line, so I suppose nixing that one, and consolidating everything into one subscription, instead of paying for two separate lines, would be more reasonable in the long run.

But of course no US carrier would allow this... That's why the original GTab's calling abilities were crippled here in the US.

Having a device that consolidates things, and and "does it all" is bad for business. That's why they DON'T want you to have a tablet that can also double as your phone. That's why they DON'T want you to have a phone that doubles as your hotspot. They WANT to force you into buying another line subscription. They WANT to force you into buying added "features" just to be able to use the natural capabilities of your device, and use it to its full potential.

That's why tethering fees are a bunch of price gouging, money grubbing, bull$***!

US carriers have WAY too much control over hardware. Around the rest of the world, it's simple: you buy the hardware, and then you buy the service; very rarely do you buy the two together.

"Yeah, but buying the hardware upfront and unlocked is WAY more expensive than getting it subsidized by the carrier!"

True. However, just as an example, in the UK, I could buy an unlocked device for roughly $500 up front, and pay the equivalent of about $30 a month for service, and not just any service either, I'm talking unlimited texts and data, and a reasonable amount of calling minutes too.

We're getting raped over here, and there aren't enough people saying "we should not have to put up with this!"