Question about hotspot on a phone

[Velvis]

This is personal question with regards to using a hotspot on a cruise ship. I took a cruise about a year ago and the Wi-Fi plan only supports one device and only that device once you connect (no swapping between devices like other cruise lines.) During that cruise I was able to hotspot my laptop to my phone without issue.

I enjoyed the cruise so much I booked another one on the same ship. During that second cruise I was unable to hotspot with my phone (or my wife's phone which had its own ship Wi-Fi plan).

The laptop connected but said it didn't have internet.

Once I was in port and I tested it and when connected to cellular I was able to hotspot. (I didn't make any changes to settings etc.) But back connected to the ships Wi-Fi the hotspot stopped working.

This is more of a curiosity thing for me than how to hotspot my laptop (I have a foldable phone and a keyboard/mouse that works in a pinch), but I was surprised that hot spotting worked and then six months later it didn't. I didn't realize the ship network would be able to detect a device connected through a phone? I thought all traffic would look like it was coming from the phone. I don't think I made any changes to my phone from one sailing to the other.

Does anyone know how they might prevent hot spotting?

 

[britechguy]

A phone's mobile hotspot will not work at all:
1. If the phone is itself connected to WiFi.
2. If the phone is not connected to WiFi, but has no cellular data connection.

Some phones have the ability to share their own WiFi connection to other devices, much like Windows can. Mine doesn't.

For myself, since under Windows 10 and 11 you can share the PC's internet connection like a hotspot (See Settings, Network & Internet, Mobile hotspot). I'd use the PC to connect to the ship's WiFi then connect the phone via the PC's mobile hotspot feature if you can only have one device connected to the ship's WiFi.

 

[fincoder]

A phone's mobile hotspot will not work at all:
1. If the phone is itself connected to WiFi.

That's what I was thinking, so the post from @Velvis doesn't seem to make sense.

Unless the ship "Wi-Fi" plan is actually Cell-Fi, i.e the ship has their own cell transmitter so phones can get all services.

 

[Velvis]

So I was doing some thinking on this.
1) The ship uses starlink satellite service and you login to it at the beginning of the cruise via wifi.
2) It has occurred to me that the first trip I was using a Microsoft Surface Duo 2 Android phone and the second trip I was using a Google Pixel Fold.

Is it possible to the Duo had the ability to hot spot while using a wifi connection and the Pixel doesn't?

Are there any apps that can allow other phones to hotspot while connected via wifi?

 

[Diggs]

the Pixel doesn't

My Pixel 3a has no issues running a hotspot on WiFi. I find it strange it can do so in airplane mode.

Just a side note for a chuckle. When I do vanlife. There are times I am very rural and have a hard time getting a cell signal. Just raising my phone up a bit helps quite a bit. To that end I took a pool skimmer extendable handle/rod and put a cell phone holder on the end. I turn on my hotspot and extend it 15 feet up into the air. It clips onto the van's bumper and gives great reception. (I just need to remember to take it down before moving on.)

 

[Metanis]

My Pixel 3a has no issues running a hotspot on WiFi. I find it strange it can do so in airplane mode.

Just a side note for a chuckle. When I do vanlife. There are times I am very rural and have a hard time getting a cell signal. Just raising my phone up a bit helps quite a bit. To that end I took a pool skimmer extendable handle/rod and put a cell phone holder on the end. I turn on my hotspot and extend it 15 feet up into the air. It clips onto the van's bumper and gives great reception. (I just need to remember to take it down before moving on.)

View attachment 17037

Do the local birds check their email on your phone?

 

[Diggs]

Do the local birds check their email on your phone?

Hehe! No, but I have a little waterproof black zipper bag I put over it in bad weather (or I don't want to feel as stupid when others are around - heh)

 

[Diggs]

BTW - Does anyone recognize the picture on the wall behind the blue pole? It's the drawing that went with the patent application for the first laptop.