This wikiHow teaches you how to use your iPhone's cellular data connection to download apps from the App Store without using a Wi-Fi connection.
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Download to an iPhone
Step 1. Launch the iPhone Settings app
It is characterized by a gray gear icon placed on the Home of the device.
Step 2. Select the Wi-Fi item
It is located at the top of the "Settings" menu.
Step 3. Disable the Wi-Fi slider by moving it to the left
It will turn white indicating that the iPhone's Wi-Fi connectivity has been disabled. Until you activate your device's data connection, you will temporarily lose access to the web.
Step 4. Press the "Back" button
It is located in the upper left corner of the screen. You will be returned to the "Settings" screen.
Step 5. Select the Cellular option
It is located under "Wi-Fi" in the "Settings" menu.
Step 6. Activate the Cellular Data slider by moving it to the right
It will take on a green color. In this way, the iPhone will be able to access the internet and download content using the cellular data connection and the traffic included in your tariff plan, without the need to use a Wi-Fi connection.
Step 7. Scroll down the appeared menu and activate the App Store slider by moving it to the right
It will take on a green color. It is located within the "Use cellular data for:" section. This way you will have the possibility to access the App Store using the iPhone data connection and download applications without having to use a Wi-Fi connection.
Step 8. Press the iPhone Home button
It is the round button located in the center of the bottom of the screen. The Settings app will close and you will be taken back to the Home screen.
Step 9. Log in to the App Store
The corresponding application is characterized by a stylized white "A" icon on a blue background. It is located on the Home of the device.
Step 10. Find the app you want to download
You can consult the list of apps in the tabs First floor, Categories or Charts located at the bottom of the screen. Alternatively you can use the function Search for App Store to search for a specific program.
Step 11. Start the download
Download the selected app exactly as you would if you were connected to a Wi-Fi network. When the Wi-Fi connection is disabled and the cellular data connection is active, the iPhone will use the traffic included in the tariff plan to allow applications to be downloaded from the App Store.
Part 2 of 3: Download to Computer
Step 1. Launch the iPhone Settings app
It is characterized by a gray gear icon placed on the Home of the device.
Step 2. Select the Cellular option
Step 3. Activate the Cellular Data slider by moving it to the right
It will take on a green color. In this way, the iPhone will be able to access the internet and download content using the cellular data connection and the traffic included in your tariff plan, without the need to use a Wi-Fi connection.
Step 4. Select the Personal Hotspot option
This feature allows sharing of the iPhone's cellular data connection via Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or USB cable. In this way the computer will be able to access the internet via the iOS device and the data traffic included in the tariff plan of your telephone operator.
Step 5. Activate the Personal Hotspot slider by moving it to the right
It will take on a green color.
If your iPhone's Wi-Fi connectivity is turned off, you will be prompted to choose from the following sharing options: Turn on Wi-Fi and Bluetooth or USB only.
Step 6. Connect the computer to the iOS device
- If you want to use the connection Wifi, locate the wireless network generated by the iPhone in the list of Wi-Fi networks in the area.
- If you have chosen to use the connection Bluetooth, you will need to pair the iPhone to the computer before you can continue. After that, select the iOS device from the computer's Bluetooth settings list.
- If you have chosen to use a cable connection USB, connect the iPhone to the computer. Now select the iPhone icon from the list of network devices connected to the computer.
Step 7. Launch iTunes on your computer
In order to download iPhone apps from the App Store using a computer you will have to rely on iTunes.
Step 8. Download the app of your interest from the iTunes App Store as you normally would
iTunes will allow you to download iPhone apps from the store and sync them to your iOS device later. The computer will be able to access the internet using the iPhone as a router, taking advantage of the traffic included in the data connection of the tariff plan you have subscribed to with your telephone operator.
Step 9. Sync iPhone with iTunes
If your iOS device isn't set up to auto-sync apps, you'll need to do this manually. Click on the iPhone icon located under the iTunes "Play" button, click the tab App located in the left sidebar of the program window, click on the button Install placed next to the app of your interest and finally click on the button Apply located in the lower right corner of the iTunes window.
If you are having trouble syncing your iPhone with your computer, check out this article to find out how to sync via USB cable or Wi-Fi connection
Part 3 of 3: Enable Automatic App Refresh without Wi-Fi Connection
Step 1. Launch the iPhone Settings app
It is characterized by a gray gear icon placed on the Home of the device.
Step 2. Scroll down the menu appeared to be able to select the iTunes Store and App Store item
Step 3. Activate the Updates slider by moving it to the right
It should turn green. It is placed inside the section Automatic downloads. This way the iPhone will be able to automatically update all the apps installed on the device.
Step 4. Activate the Use cellular data slider by moving it to the right
It will take on a green color. This will allow the iPhone to download updates automatically using the cellular data connection.
If the iPhone is connected to a wireless network, it will still use the Wi-Fi connection to download updates. The data connection will only be used if a wireless internet connection is not available
Warnings
- If an app is larger than 100MB, you won't be able to download it from the App Store without using a Wi-Fi connection. This is a restriction imposed by the iPhone's iOS operating system, so it is not possible to increase this limit.
- Some cellular telephone operators prevent the use of the "Personal Hotspot" feature linked to sharing the data connection with other devices.
- The iTunes App Store is different from the Mac App Store. For this reason, you can download iPhone apps from iTunes and then sync them to the device later.
- In order to enable automatic download of app updates, you need to sign in with your Apple ID.
