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Basically, I want to be able to tether my laptop to my iPhone 4 but I don't want to pay for extra service or lose my unlimited plan. I've heard there were some apps that had easter eggs but are no longer available. I've also heard that you can do some things if you have a developer account.

So, are there any free, simple ways to do this without jailbreaking my phone?

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Just a caveat that New Zealand and Australia (and other countries) have tethering as a free option. –  glenstorey Dec 7 '10 at 2:51
Good point... this question is primarily with regards to operations in the US although it could be interesting to compare options in other countries (so jealous!). –  longda Dec 7 '10 at 18:54
Don't be jealous... In new Zealand we don't have unlimited plans –  Matt Frear Dec 27 '10 at 9:58
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2 Answers

It's probably not an easy way but since there have been some apps snuck into the app store that had hidden tethering abilities: http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/07/apple-approves-pulls-flashlight-app-with-hidden-tethering-mode/ It's clearly possible to do this in an app but not one that will be in the official store. One way around this would be to spend the $99 for a developer account, find some source code, compile it and install it onto your device. Don't mind the hand waving around finding appropriate source code though.

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[Breaking this two answers so I can post both links.]

For a while you could hack it by updating the carrier file (for me it had the side effect of breaking visual voice mail) : http://reviews.cnet.com/activate-tethering-on-iphone-without-jailbreaking Something similar might be possible for iOS 4 but perhaps it's a just a well kept secret.

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That link doesn't work when viewed on an iPhone (sorry can't test on a pc cos I don't have Internet access, hence my need to tether!) –  Matt Frear Dec 27 '10 at 9:50
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