Your Old Android Phone Can Be The Perfect Travel Companion - Here's How

Ever get stuck in a hotel room where the Wi-Fi lets you connect only one device at a time? Some might even try to charge you if you connect more than one device. This kind of limitation can be annoying, especially if you're traveling with family and need to connect multiple laptops, phones, or even a gaming console to the hotel's internet. Well, depending on what kind of phone you have, you might be able to bypass this limitation by turning your Android phone into your very own personal Wi-Fi router, making your smartphone one of the best tech gadgets you can carry when traveling.

The trick here uses your phone's built-in mobile hotspot feature, which typically allows you to share your device's mobile network as a Wi-Fi signal for other devices to connect to. This is great for connecting other devices to the network on the go, but when you're in a hotel, it makes sense for you to use the free connection that your room offers. This trick is also handy for using smart cameras to secure your hotel room.

Of course, the first thing you need to do is connect your Android phone to the hotel's Wi-Fi. Once connected, sign in with whatever system the hotel uses. Some, for example, require you to connect to a specific webpage and sign up using your name and room number. When the device is fully connected and you can access the internet, it's time to move on to the next part, which requires you to turn on your phone's mobile hotspot feature.

Depending on what kind of phone you have, the exact name of the hotspot feature might be different. For instance, on newer Samsung devices, the feature is called "Mobile Hotspot and Tethering," hidden under the "Connections" list. For others, you can usually find some variation of "Hotspot and Tethering," so look around in your phone's Settings for something similar to use your mobile hotspot.

When you've located the feature, look for another feature often called "Share Wi-Fi" or "Wi-Fi Sharing." This is the option that actually shares the connected Wi-Fi network as your hotspot, and without it on, you'll simply start up your phone's regular mobile hotspot, which can eat up your allotted data each month. This may be an issue depending on what provider you have and how much hotspot data you get each month. Note that some devices don't utilize a toggle for this feature. For such devices, pay attention to the Wi-Fi notification at the top of your screen when turning on a mobile hotspot. If the Wi-fi signal doesn't disappear, then your device should be sharing it instead of your mobile network.

You'll also want to make sure you customize your hotspot name and password, as you don't want others connecting to the network through your device. When you're ready to connect your devices, you can then look for the network name you set up in your laptop or console's Wi-Fi network list, enter the password, and enjoy access to the hotel's Wi-Fi without worrying about a capacity limit.

Before you go checking all of your emails, your bank account, and all your other personal accounts, though, it's important to remember that hotel Wi-Fi is not inherently safe to use. Just like other public Wi-Fi networks, it can be susceptible to bad actors who want to siphon off your browsing data and personal information. Of course, there are ways to protect yourself — like using a VPN or just being mindful of what sites you access.

Still, it's vital to keep in mind that even when connected through your phone's mobile hotspot feature, you're still using the hotel's network, and anyone with access to the information being transferred through it may be able to see what you're doing, to a degree. When using hotel Wi-Fi, you'll definitely want to avoid accepting any sketchy security certificates and be sure to follow some of the same safety tips for remaining safe while using airport Wi-Fi.