What Does ATT Block on Androids?

Installing Applications from Sources Outside Android Market

Almost all Android devices can use the Android Market to download applications, but most allow you to download and install apps from other sources as well. Android applications come as an APK file you can save on your micro SD card or in the phone memory. You install the file by running it using a file manager application. To install these apps, you must enable the Unknown sources check box in the Applications section of the Settings menu. On AT&T handsets, the Unknown sources check box has been removed.

Tethering

The reference version of the Android operating system allows you to use the phone as a tethered modem for devices such as computers and other handhelds. When you set up tethering on your Android, the second device will use the phone's cellular data connection to connect to the Internet. The reference version of the Android OS supports Wi-Fi and USB tethering. You open the Settings menu, tap Wireless & network and select Tethering & portable hotspot. This menu option has been removed on AT&T handsets. AT&T does offer tethering through a proprietary application, but it requires one of the company's tethering plans to work.

Effects of Restrictions

While there are tens of thousands of Android applications on the Market, that's not all of them. Some developers prefer to use other methods of distribution, while other apps have been removed from the Market by Google. Tethering apps are an example. Google removed all the tethering applications from the Market at the request of AT&T and Verizon Wireless. Verizon Wireless still allows users to install third-party apps through other sources, so it is possible to install tethering applications by running the APK file. Not so with AT&T. Unless you root your phone and install a custom version of the OS, you must pay extra for a tethering plan.

Removing Restrictions

Only one way exists to remove these restrictions from your AT&T Android device. The stock version of the Android OS prevents programs from making changes to system files in the root directory. Rooting is the process of removing these restrictions. One of the benefits of rooting is the ability to install another version Android, called a ROM. You can install a ROM without the restrictions on tethering and installing apps from other sources. The process for rooting is different for each handheld, but most require you to use the Android SDK Manager software on a PC. The software interfaces with the phone and allows you to make changes to the settings and upload the files.