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Why can't I use my iPhone as a hot spot to my apple tablet if my phone is in my pocket?

In order to get my iPad to connect to my phone I have to take the phone out of my back pocket. I don’t have to unlock the phone or anything. Just take it out. If my phone is in my back pocket the iPad can’t detect the phone. Once the two are connected I can put the phone back into my bank pocket, and use the phone as a hotspot

invertedspear ,

Pretty sure it’s powering on the screen that does it. Even when sitting on a table I can’t hot spot till I pick up the phone, the movement of which powers on the screen. I thought it was getting a Face ID that did it, but if you’re saying you don’t have to unlock then it’s possible it’s wanting just enough interaction to know the connection is intentional so you don’t accidentally use up your data cap.

andrewta OP ,

I don’t think it’s interaction that is needed. Somebody else suggested that the human body is a huge chunk of water and that might be blocking the signal. I just checked. Could I use my phone as a hotspot without even touching the phone at all? The phone is sitting on the table, not too far for me. it works. And I didn’t do anything with the phone. So I think it’s just a matter of being in the back pocket and the human body blocking the signal.

viking ,
@viking@infosec.pub avatar

Never used an iPhone, but my android has a “pocket detection” feature where it shuts down a lot of background functions. Maybe something similar is at work there?

user224 ,
@user224@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

Just a question, you can turn that off, right?

If not, what phone is it? I like to avoid such power saving features.

viking ,
@viking@infosec.pub avatar

Oh yeah you can switch it off, and even define what should be switched off and what not. I have it set to display only.

user224 ,
@user224@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

Perhaps it stays at lower power level while no devices are connected, thus your body is enough to block it. But when you connect, it might increase the TX power so it suddenly works.
If you didn’t disable automatic connect, the client device should be sending probe requests for the hotspot’s SSID. Possibly the iPad also does this with lower TX power, so your iPhone doesn’t catch those requests either.

But that’s just a guess.
Also it’s possible there’s beam forming involved, but I am not sure if devices like smartphones can do that.

Kolanaki ,
@Kolanaki@yiffit.net avatar

Are you standing or sitting? Sitting on the phone might just be enough to block the signal with your body. If you’re standing, though that would indicate it simply doesn’t power the radio very much if it can’t pass through the material of your pants. I expect that from Bluetooth; not from wifi.

andrewta OP ,

Sitting. I’ll try it standing

user224 ,
@user224@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

Also, it’s just so easy to steal out of the back pocket.

astraeus ,
@astraeus@programming.dev avatar

I don’t understand why people are comfortable sitting on their phones

andrewta OP ,

I normally don’t. It’s just something that I noticed.

Kolanaki ,
@Kolanaki@yiffit.net avatar

I am more worried about breaking the phone when I sit down to ever keep my phone in my back pocket. The one time I did, it crushed the camera.

TeepoPeeto ,

Water is an excellent blocker of that signals frequency. The human body is like 80% water? Ergo you rear end where your back pocket is, will be good at blocking signal on the other side of you where ypur ipad is. Try a pocket in front of you to test that.

jol ,

Who the heck puts their phone in their back pocket??

bhamlin ,

Young adults.

Dozzi92 ,
@Dozzi92@lemmy.world avatar

I’m 36, so thanks for calling me a young adult. Wallet left, phone right. Keys front right cash front left.

dustyData ,

Same age, I don’t put anything on my back pockets, ever. It’s awfully uncomfortable and you risk breaking whatever you put there sitting on it. It also protects my hip and lower back.

Dozzi92 ,
@Dozzi92@lemmy.world avatar

Oh yeah I don’t sit on them. Had an S4 at one point and broke the digitizer sitting on the phone, so now it’s very habitual, remove phone and wallet, place phone on table, place wallet on phone. Obviously it’s situationally dependent. If I ride a rollercoaster they go in front pockets.

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