How Can I Use My Phone Internet On My Laptop

Should You Use Your Mobile Phone For Home Internet

You can create a mobile hotspot with your phone while youre on vacation. But will the hotspot feature work for home internet? Short answer: no, unless you barely use it.

Canceling your home internet plan sounds appealingwho doesnt want to save money every month? Youre already paying for internet service with your mobile phone plan, so sharing that at home via a hotspot could potentially save you some money every month.

Butand theres a big but hereusing your cell phone for home internet doesnt work for most people. It will only work for cell-phone-only households. If you dont have computers, gaming systems, smart TVs, or any other internet-connected devices, it could work. Folks who live in 5G areas may also be able to swing it better than the rest of us.

Jump to:

• Mobile hotspot FAQ

Pros And Cons Of Using A Mobile Hotspot

Using your cell phone as a mobile hotspot is handy while traveling and might be able to save you the cost of home internet service. But before you cancel your home internet plan, consider the lifestyle changes youll need to make, starting out by saying goodbye to weekend binge-watching. Lets take a look at the pros and cons of creating a mobile hotspot from your phone.

Using a mobile hotspot for home internet can work well for people with very light internet use. If you just use the internet at home to check email, shop online, and browse the internet, it might be a good idea for you.

Maybe you primarily use your phone for internet, and you only crack open the old laptop occasionally. A mobile hotspot could be a good option for you if you fit into this category.

But if youve already cut cable, and you rely on the internet for all your movies and TV, youll probably be better off sticking with home internet service. People who work from home uploading or emailing large files will also be frustrated by the limitations of a mobile hotspot.

Using The Connectify Tool

You must install another software program to trigger the hotspot on your device if you run other versions of windows, such as Windows 7 and 8. However, before this, you need to ensure that the device has an adapter.

Open the command prompt window to check this. Type netsh wlan show drivers and press Enter. The adapter information will then be displayed there however, the error notification will be displayed if the adapter is not available.

However, an external Wi-Fi adaptor tool can be used in that event. After the information is found, use the following steps to switch the hotspot on your PC:

Step 1: Download Connectify Hotspot on your PC and install it. Then, reboot the device for completing the installation.

Step 2: After you have seen the icon, open it on your desktop. Then, click the Try it Out option if you use the Free version.

Step 3: Select the Wi-Fi Hotspot selection from the Settings menu. Set the network of the hotspot with a password and an SSID name. Then, click the Start Hotspot option. After you finish your PC tasks, you must connect the mobile Phone to that SSID network to use the Internet.

Step 4: Open the wireless Internet connection, search the wireless network, and join it to the shared Internet.

This is all for the given method.

Also Check: How To Hard Reset Hp Laptop Without Password

Use Your Pc As A Phone

How to use your computer as a phone.

The Internet is a great big data pipe that can carry a lot of things, including phone calls. Watch our video, then come back here to learn how to use your computer as a phone.

Assuming you have a computer, you’ll need three things: the Net, some software, and some hardware.

The Internet

First the Internet connection. The higher the speed, the better. Unlike regular phone service, there’s never a direct connection between you and the person you’re calling. Like other Internet traffic, your call arrives in packets. The faster you can receive and send those packets, the fewer problems you’ll have.

The software

There’s no end of voice over Internet Protocol or VoIP programs out there. The most popular is Skype at Skype.com. It’s a free download and let’s you make free calls to anyone else with Skype and charges for calls made to landlines or cell phones.

You can buy Skype credit and pay as you go or choose a plan. From the U.S., plans range from $3 to $10 monthly depending on what countries you want unlimited calling to. Plans include a phone number that any regular phone can call. You can also buy a phone number separately if you want to pay as you go for outgoing calls.

An alternative to Skype is Gizmo5 from Gizmo5.com. Similar to Skype, calls to other Gizmo5 users are free and you can buy credits for making calls to landlines and cell phones.

The hardware

Emergency services

Lte Home Internet Service

If youre looking for plenty of internet data in an area where fiber isnt available, LTE home internet might be the right choice. This wireless broadband option connects your home to the internet through cell phone towers. As long as you have good cellular service at your home, theres probably a carrier that can deliver this kind of service for you.

• Big-name carriers like T-Mobile and Verizon offer home internet in select areas. These plans are relatively inexpensive and offer a lot of data.
• MVNOs offer home internet plans using cellular data to many other areas where the big names havent reached.

With this type of service, your speeds will be affected by your proximity to cell phone towers. Typical download speeds for LTE home internet are around 25 Mbps to 50 Mbpsabout the same as youd get on a cell phone.

Data effective 4/2/21. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.

*Verizon internet is $60/mo. alone or $40/mo. when bundled with a mobile plan, with auto-pay and paperless billing discount. Service currently available in select locations only.

You May Like: How To Hard Reset Hp Laptop Without Password

Are There Other Ways To Cut Your Bill

Take advice from a senior technology editor at Lifehacker and keep your fast internet, but find other ways to reduce your cellphone bill or, cut back on other bills. You could always consider, for example, using Google Voice or Zoom to make and receive calls when youre at home. Then you can shrink your phone services to reduce data and keep unlimited talking and texting.

Its really just a matter of what youre willing to do without and what your needs are at home. If youre someone who scrolls Instagram for your entire train commute to and from work, youd have to give that up under the above scenario and maybe youre not willing to take it that far just yet.

How To Tether Your Computer To Your Phones Mobile Data

You can tether your computer to your phone to make use of your phones SIM plan data. This can be done by either setting up a mobile hotspot, using bluetooth, or by connecting your phone to your computer with a USB cable.

• Tethering with a Mobile hotspotSetting up a mobile hotspot is actually quite simple. It can be done with both Android phones and iPhones. Make sure your phones data is turned on > go into your phones Settings > tap Mobile hotspot and tethering and turn on Mobile hotspot.Now that your Mobile hotspot has been set up, check for available hotspots on your computer. Click your computers mobile hotspots name, and enter a code/password if one was generated by when by your phone.
• Tethering with BluetoothBluetooth tethering is similar to tethering with a mobile hotspot. Make sure your phones data is turned on > go into your phones Settings > tap Mobile hotspot and tethering and turn on Bluetooth tethering.Now that your phones Bluetooth is live for tethering, search for the Bluetooth device on your computer and connect.
• Tethering with a USB cableUsing a USB cable, simple attach your phone to your computer. The remaining steps are similar to setting up your Mobile hotspot and Bluetooth tethering, except you turn on USB tethering at the last step to use this wired method.Find the connection on your computer and use your phone like a WiFi dongle.

Mobile hotspot and tethering on an Android device. Source: Whatphone

You May Like: How To Change Keyboard Color On Msi Laptop

Use The Internet Via Bluetooth

This works only with Mac computers. The steps are similar to connecting via USB.

• Open the Sharing panel in System Preferences and choose a particular connection as a sharing connection and select Bluetooth PAN in the using section.
• After that just pair via Bluetooth our Mac and the phone.

Notice that the reverse option is also available.

Pros And Cons To Google Assistant

If youre already integrated into the Google ecosystem, Google Assistant is a convenient option for calling your lost phone. However, it isnt without its downsides.

While the requirements for an iPhone or iPad are relatively light, Android users might run into some issues using this service. If your Android phone doesnt meet the requirements listed above , you wont be able to call your phone.

If Google Assistant is giving you too much trouble, remember that CallMyPhone only requires your phone to have a cellular signal.

Read Also: How Can I Watch Movies On My Laptop Without Wifi

How Else Can I Make Free Wifi Calls

You can use a variety of different apps to call for free but keep in mind that those apps only let you call users who have the same app installed on their computer or smartphone. Skype is a good example of that. PopTox is the only web browser based application that lets users make free internet VOIP calls to mobile phones. With PopTox, you no longer have to sign up to make international calls. No payment is required. You will not go through the hassle of paying fees and poor quality of calls. We connect your call directly from the web browser to the mobile or landline phone number. We realize that it is very important for you to stay in touch with your loved ones and we are constantly stiving to make international calls affordable and hassle-free.

Can My Phones Mobile Hotspot Replace Home Internet Service And Wi

A mobile hotspot could replace home Wi-Fi only for people with extremely low data usage. If you ever stream Netflix, scroll through social media, or watch TikTok, youll probably run out of data just relying on your phone’s mobile hotspot. And if you have a mobile hotspot device and try to use it for full-time home internet service, you could end up paying a lot more in service and data overage fees than you would by just signing up for a home internet plan.

So, the bottom line is that if you dont use much data at home, its possible to use the mobile hotspot feature for home internet, but it doesnt work well for most people. Data is just too expensive.

Read Also: Msi Laptop How To Change Keyboard Color

How Do I Know What My Mobile Hotspot Data Limit Is

If youre wondering what your mobile hotspot data limit is, youll want to check your cell phone plan, because every plan is different. Some plans dont allow mobile hotspot at all, while others have limits. There arent any mobile plans that offer unlimited, full-speed data for mobile hotspot. If they did, wed all cancel home internet.

Many cell phone carriers have monthly caps of 5 to 15 GB of data per month before they start slowing things down or charging you for data overage. Check out the details of your mobile plan and look for info about mobile hotspot or tethering. The mobile hotspot data limit is different from other data limit amounts. You can check with a customer service representative if youre having trouble finding out the correct information on your plan.

How To Tether Cellphone Internet To A Laptop

This article was co-authored by Luigi Oppido. Luigi Oppido is the Owner and Operator of Pleasure Point Computers in Santa Cruz, California. Luigi has over 25 years of experience in general computer repair, data recovery, virus removal, and upgrades. He is also the host of the Computer Man Show! broadcasted on KSQD covering central California for over two years. This article has been viewed 618,503 times.

This wikiHow teaches you how to use your iPhone or Android’s mobile data connection to access the internet from your laptop. Wi-Fi is the simplest way to tether, but if your laptop’s Wi-Fi isn’t working , you can use Bluetooth or a USB cable.

You May Like: How To Clean Out A Hp Laptop

How Can I Connect Internet From My Mobile To Laptop

Setting Up Samsungs Find My Mobile Service

Before you actually use Find My Mobile to find your phone, make sure youve activated the feature first!

If youve already signed your device into your Samsung account, Find My Mobile is probably already turned on. Still, it doesnt hurt to check. You can locate the Find My Mobile function by searching for it in the Settings app, or by going to Settings > Lock Screen and Security > Find My Mobile .

Now that youve accessed Find My Mobile, make sure you turn on any options youd like to use later. These include:

• Remote controls: These allow you to force a remote backup, retrieve your phones call and message logs, and enable battery saving features, among other options.
• Google location service: This provides more accurate location information, which is crucial when youre trying to track down your missing phone.
• Send last location: Your phone will send out its last location right before the battery runs out.

If youre trying to call your Samsung phone but suspect that the battery might have run out, the send last location feature could be a lifesaver.

Don’t Miss: How To Screen Record On A Dell Desktop

How Can I Turn My Laptop Into A Wifi Router

Here’s how you can turn your laptop into a portable WiFihotspot free:

How to Make a Desktop or Laptop Act Like a Router

Similarly, how can I use my laptop as a WiFi router in Windows 7? Turn Your Windows 7 Laptop into a WiFiHotspot. Click the wired network connection icon in the SystemTray and select Open Network and Sharing Center. In the screen thatopens, click âSet Up a New Connection or Networkâ underChange your Network Settings. Now select the bottom option to setup a wireless ad-hoc network

Herein, can I use my computer as a WiFi router?

It is possible to share an Internet connection withwireless-ready devices without using a WiFirouter. Nevertheless, your computer does need specialhardware to have such a capability. Most modern laptops alreadyhave internal wireless network adapters, and even somedesktops.

Can I turn my laptop into a hotspot?

How Do I Tether Using My Android Phone

You’ll need an Android phone with version 2.2 or later.

You then need to connect your phone to your laptop or tablet. Follow the instructions below to connect using either a USB cable, a portable WiFi hotspot or Bluetooth.

Once you’re connected you need to pair your phone with your laptop or tablet.

Recommended Reading: How To Clean Hp Laptop Fan Without Opening

How Can We Connect Internet From Laptop To Mobile