Turn Your Smartphone Into a Wi-Fi Hotspot

North Carolina-based TapRoot Systems announced this week its WalkingHotSpot software, which turns 3G/Wi-Fi-enabled smartphones into mobile Wi-Fi hotspots. Currently, only Windows Mobile and Symbian S60 devices are supported, but TapRoot says support for more OS’s is underway.

The software essentially turns a 3G/Wi-Fi-enabled handset into a Wi-Fi router that can offer a broadband Internet connection to multiple other Wi-Fi-enabled devices, such as laptops, MP3 players, or iPod touches.

The solution is aimed at carriers rather than consumers, although interested users can sign up to be notified when a demo download is available—or to be alerted when/if their carrier decides to offer the download.

While the WalkingHotSpot software will support any form of mobile broadband, only HSDPA/UMTS (AT&T Wireless's high-speed service) handsets will be able to support WalkingHotSpot Wi-Fi service and voice calls simultaneously.

“We see this as a truly disruptive technology,” said Bob Bicksler, TapRoot’s CEO.

TapRoot is promoting the solution as secure, energy-efficient, and extremely user-friendly.

Also announced this week, was the TapRoot WHS Server, which provides carriers with “the ability to manage and control subscriber accounts, authenticate WalkingHotSpot devices and clients, as well as collect subscriber usage information.”

Both the WHS Server and the WalkingHotSpot software are currently available to carriers for implementation.

Naomi Graychase is Managing Editor at Wi-FiPlanet.