PDAnet Questions

[BigRussDaGOD]

okay this is kinda bugging me out because i dont want a 1000 dollar bill at the end of the month. i downloaded PDAnet [free version] last for my moto droid. works great. is there a data cap per month??? is there an extra charge on my account for using this 3rd party app??? i called verizon wireless TWICE to get a straight answer. they told me that since its a 3rd party app, that i will not incur any additional charges on my bill [even told them to note my account that they said this] so if there are any other droid users out there that use PDAnet that can answer these questions for me would be a big help.

[LtKen]

Not an easy answer, so here's the best I can do for you.

TECHNICALLY, tethering without paying Verizon the extra dough is a violation of the terms of service and they could slam you with huge penalties. Doesnt matter that you're not using their app -- the unlimited data you pay for on the phone is meant to be used on the phone, not a computer attached to the phone.

The short answer is, they'll only know you're tethering against the ToS if you pull down an insane amount of data. Stay reasonable, and you'll stay under their radar.

Also, never call VZW and tell them you're tethering without their software... no, they're not stupid, they know it can be done, but it's like asking a cop to keep track of you with a speed gun....

[BigRussDaGOD]

they didn't tell me thats its a violation of service. i basically just wanna use it for playing phantasy star online on schthacks server. not gonna be using it for let say bit torrent. what do you think is a reasonable amount??

[mach330]

they didn't tell me thats its a violation of service. i basically just wanna use it for playing phantasy star online on schthacks server. not gonna be using it for let say bit torrent. what do you think is a reasonable amount??

there's no absolute number in this. i've avg 2-3G/mo and some people here have used close to 5G. if you're just surfing the web and the occasional gaming, you should be ok. don't worry about it too much unless you start downloading some big files.

[LtKen]

You should be OK -- My personal limit is 2gb/month -- some people might consider this low, but I've always played fairly conservatively, and I dont have too many needs in my life for 3g tethering.

As for why they didnt inform you of the ToS, I have no idea. I could come up with all sorts conspiracy theories, but my bet is just an uninformed rep. Just remember it's Verizon -- they would never let you do for free something they could charge you for

[BigRussDaGOD]

yeah but is the cap from the author of the program, or verizon, because they said there is no cap cause i have an unlimited data plan.

[LtKen]

yeah but is the cap from the author of the program, or verizon, because they said there is no cap cause i have an unlimited data plan.

PDANet has no cap, nor does Verizon have a cap on the data you can get ON YOUR PHONE.

The ToS violation comes from tethering, and technically any data tethered they can hit you with penalties for.

Just keep it reasonable, and dont tell VZW what you're doing, and you'll be fine.

[nerdbox08]

Not an easy answer, so here's the best I can do for you.

TECHNICALLY, tethering without paying Verizon the extra dough is a violation of the terms of service and they could slam you with huge penalties. Doesnt matter that you're not using their app -- the unlimited data you pay for on the phone is meant to be used on the phone, not a computer attached to the phone.

The short answer is, they'll only know you're tethering against the ToS if you pull down an insane amount of data. Stay reasonable, and you'll stay under their radar.

Also, never call VZW and tell them you're tethering without their software... no, they're not stupid, they know it can be done, but it's like asking a cop to keep track of you with a speed gun....

Funny story.

I was in Verizon yesterday and I was asking some questions about data only plans and I mentioned that I knew that they hadn't set the Droid up for tethering yet, and the Verizon rep says, "You can download PDANet and use that to tether and it comes out of your regular data, so you have no cap"

Isn't that crazy?

Granted, it's one rep, but he was standing there in front of his co-workers AND manager and says it.

So yes, Verizon knows. Do they accept it? Seems some do. Be careful though, we have no conclusive answers to this question.

[LtKen]

Granted, it's one rep, but he was standing there in front of his co-workers AND manager and says it.

So yes, Verizon knows. Do they accept it? Seems some do. Be careful though, we have no conclusive answers to this question.

Yeah, they definitely know it can be done, my suspicions are that right now, it's a simple cost/effort thing. If such a small percentage of their users are tethering against ToS, then who cares -- as soon as the whole world starts to do it, I expect more policing of traffic.

The VZW employee who sold me my phone is also the first guy who told me about rooting -- they're people like us even though they work for the man. Unfortunately, those arent the same people VZW has who do punitive billing - I suspect they're much less gung-ho about PDANet.

Edited to cut down on the quote.

[New2u]

Yes they know you can do it, yes they know it's possible, yes they can charge you crazy amounts of money if they find you and really want to pursue the issue. PDAnet is a deterrent to their normal tether program. Seeing as they do not have a program like that yet for the droid, they may look the other way unless you go crazy with it. I do think though that once they have the program in place, and they want you to pay to use it, you will start seeing them crack down on it.