Android’s new Instant Hotspot feature will not be available on Samsung devices

Google just rolled out its latest Android Feature Drop today, and it’s one of the most exciting feature drops I can remember. The two features I’m most excited about are part of the new Play Services cross-device module, which brings Apple Continuity-style magic to your Android devices. For example, the new Instant Hotspot feature lets you connect your Android tablet or Chromebook to your phone’s hotspot with a single tap. Instant Hotspot works with phones running Android 11 or later, with one notable exception: Samsung devices. According to Google, Instant Hotspot will not be available on any Samsung device.

If you have an Android tablet or Chromebook that lacks cellular connectivity, you may find yourself having to use your phone’s data connection to get the device online. Most phones support sharing your internet connection with other devices by creating a mobile hotspot. Since you probably don’t want random people using your data, you’ll need to set a password for your mobile hotspot.

This means that the process of connecting a Wi-Fi-only Android tablet or Chromebook to the Internet requires pulling out the phone, turning on its mobile hotspot, finding the mobile hotspot in your device’s Wi-Fi list, and finally entering the password you set. to join him. This whole process can be a hassle when you’re out and about, which is why companies trying to create a device ecosystem usually offer some way to instantly connect your Wi-Fi-only device to your phone’s hotspot.

For example, Chrome OS has long had Instant Tethering, which allows one-click Internet access on a Chromebook. All you need to do is pair your Android mobile phone with your Chromebook, and when the Chromebook detects that it can’t connect to any nearby Wi-Fi network, it will display a message that you can click to instantly activate and connect to your phone’s hotspot.

Android’s new Instant Hotspot feature is very similar to Chrome OS’s Instant Tethering, except it also works with Android tablets. This means you can instantly share your Android phone’s hotspot with your Android tablet when it needs it, all without entering a password. Samsung phones can already share their mobile data connection with Samsung tablets thanks to the company’s Auto Hotspot feature in one UI, but without Instant Hotspot support, they won’t be able to instantly share their mobile data connection with non-Samsung tablets.

It’s not exactly clear why Instant Hotspot isn’t available on Samsung devices. This feature is part of Google Play Services, which is available on all Google-certified Android devices, including those from Samsung. It’s likely that Samsung opted out of this particular feature, perhaps to encourage users to purchase devices within their ecosystem. Regardless, Samsung users will still be able to instantly share their phone’s hotspot with their Chromebooks thanks to the existing Instant Tethering feature. And they will also be able to continue to do the same with any Windows PC via Windows Link.