Hotspot and Ford Streaming

[aporzio1]

If I sign up for the AT&T hotspot, Do I also need to get the Ford streaming subscription or will the hotspot also provide internet access to the Sync features like music streaming and Alexa?

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[RickMachE]

The hotspot is a hotspot for your phones and tablets. Period. Many people just use their phone's hotspot.

Ford Streaming is a specific service. It's for music, podcasts, and audio books, via Lexa, for a monthly fee. It doesn't give you a hotspot. https://www.ford.com/support/how-tos/sync/sync-4a/how-do-i-use-ford-streaming/

If you want to use features in Sync, like watching a Youtube video, you need to connect via WiFi either to your phone's hotspot, or to a hotel, restaurant, or your home's WiFi. NOT Ford Streaming, NOT the Ford hotspot.

No, they could not make it more confusing.

 

[generaltso]

If you want to use features in Sync, like watching a Youtube video, you need to connect via WiFi either to your phone's hotspot, or to a hotel, restaurant, or your home's WiFi. NOT Ford Streaming, NOT the Ford hotspot.

Ford Streaming does provide the ability to watch YouTube without connecting to WiFi. However, Ford Hotspot does not.

 

[HondaRacer]

The vehicle hotspot is for your personal devices to access the AT&T cell network for data if needed (ex: a WiFi-only iPad).

Ford streaming is for your vehicle to stream data (YouTube, music, news, etc..) from the AT&T cell network to the Sync screen.

They are separate and independent services.

 

[hack-e]

If you want to use features in Sync, like watching a Youtube video, you need to connect via WiFi either to your phone's hotspot, or to a hotel, restaurant, or your home's WiFi. NOT Ford Streaming, NOT the Ford hotspot.

Is there some technical reason why the car's Ford Hotspot can't be used for the car's YouTube? I know the car does not allow you to connect it's WiFi connection to the car's Ford Hotspot, so what I mean is do you know if there is a hardware limitation that prevents this, or is it just being blocked intentionally? Perhaps to encourage purchasing the Ford Streaming?

I am able to get the car's YouTube app to use the car's Ford Hotspot, but only by going through my phone: my phone connects to the car's hotspot, then I share that internet connection from my phone's hotspot, then the car connects to my phone's WiFi hotspot. It's just a few button presses, but it's so stupid to have to do that.

Why can't the car just use its own cellular hotspot directly?

 

[The Black Horse]

I can not think of a bigger waste of money then paying for "Ford Streaming".

In its current state its laggy and slow youtube at best.

 

[Neil4Real]

Is there some technical reason why the car's Ford Hotspot can't be used for the car's YouTube? I know the car does not allow you to connect it's WiFi connection to the car's Ford Hotspot, so what I mean is do you know if there is a hardware limitation that prevents this, or is it just being blocked intentionally? Perhaps to encourage purchasing the Ford Streaming?

I am able to get the car's YouTube app to use the car's Ford Hotspot, but only by going through my phone: my phone connects to the car's hotspot, then I share that internet connection from my phone's hotspot, then the car connects to my phone's WiFi hotspot. It's just a few button presses, but it's so stupid to have to do that.

Why can't the car just use its own cellular hotspot directly?

It is just Ford wanting max cash! Most other vehicles have this - where you get in car internet connectivity for the apps and hotspot for one price. Ford needs to unify them.

Just so you know, you're not actually sharing your car's hotspot by what you're doing. That isn't possible. You can only hotspot your phone to share your phone's cellular connection, which is what you're doing. You might as well just cancel your hotspot subscription and do this, that's what most everyone else does as cell plans generally include hotspotting for free or the same price as Ford's, but it then gives you freedom to use the hotspot wherever you want, if needed.

 

[hack-e]

Just so you know, you're not actually sharing your car's hotspot by what you're doing. That isn't possible. You can only hotspot your phone to share your phone's cellular connection, which is what you're doing.

But I turned off my cellular connection. Are you saying that with my cellular turned off, turning on the phone's hotspot secretly turns it back on? Or could it be that it actually is sharing the car's hotspot?

Edit: I have, many times in the past, when my phone didn't have a cell signal but did have a WiFi connection, have turned on my WiFi hotspot and connected it to other devices.

 

[Neil4Real]

But I turned off my cellular connection. Are you saying that with my cellular turned off, turning on the phone's hotspot secretly turns it back on? Or could it be that it actually is sharing the car's hotspot?

Edit: I have, many times in the past, when my phone didn't have a cell signal but did have a WiFi connection, have turned on my WiFi hotspot and connected it to other devices.

Odd, I've never heard of that being possible, but maybe it is a thing now. I have never been able to turn on my phone's hotspot and it shares the WiFi connection I'm connected to. It has to use cellular data.

 

[hack-e]

Odd, I've never heard of that being possible, but maybe it is a thing now. I have never been able to turn on my phone's hotspot and it shares the WiFi connection I'm connected to. It has to use cellular data.

I found that this capability, to share a WiFi connection, is something that Google Pixel phones have had since Pixel 3. I have a Pixel 7 Pro.

 

[RickMachE]

I found that this capability, to share a WiFi connection, is something that Google Pixel phones have had since Pixel 3. I have a Pixel 7 Pro.

You are correct, Pixel phones can share a WiFi connection. I just verified this on my Pixel 6a phones, turned off cellular, turned on hotspot, connected 2nd phone to the hotspot on the first phone, then verified I could surf the internet and that neither phone was using cellular.

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