The iPhone 4

Wi-Fi tethering on the iPhone was previously only available for jailbroken devices. The MyWi application (available for $19.99 from the Cydia installer on jailbroken devices) can connect to a cellular network on the iPhone 2G, 3G, 3GS, 4 and iPad to create a personal Wi-Fi hotspot.

The app also enables USB and Bluetooth tethering on the same devices. More information on MyWi can be found on the developers website, intelliborn.com.

No such app is available for non-jailbroken devices. However, with the latest iOS 4.3 software update (available to download from March 10, 2011 onwards), the iPhone 4 also gets the personal Wi-Fi hotspot option officially. Using the new feature, three devices can connect to the iPhone 4 using Wi-Fi, and another two using USB and Bluetooth.

At this point, it’s not clear as to why Apple is not offering the feature on older devices like the iPhone 3G/3GS or for that matter on the 3G version of the iPad.