There is a rumor based on a leaked AT&T document that we may soon have the ability to tether our iPhones to our laptops. The rumor looks pretty weak, so I won’t go into it here. But tethering is something that Apple and AT&T should consider.
A lot of my business friends have either a mobile phone or some sort of card that they can use to connect their laptops to the net from virtually anywhere. In addition to providing connectivity in places that don’t have wi-fi, it also provides security in a world where account IDs and passwords are sniffed from public wi-fi hotspots.
The type of people that would have both an iPhone and a MacBook (me!) are exactly the type of people that would want them to tether. The added value would be huge.
Now you might say: what good is a Edge-network-speed connection to a MacBook. The answer is: infinitely better than no connection. Even at slow speeds, it would allow you to get your email and check on critical information.
The iPhone should be the premier phone of choice for “the connected,” but it never will be until it has this key feature.