Hotspot capability/performance
I have a iPhone 8 (MQ992LL/A1864) and an iPad mini 4 (MK8D2LL/A1550). Both have cellular and are connected connected to T-Mobile’s 4G LTE service. The with the exception of actual phone calls, both have the same features from T-Mobile.
The issue I am having is with the capability/performance of the hotspot on the iPad mini 4.
For testing I am using an iPad 9.7 2017 WiFi (MP2H2LL/A1822).
I configure and enable the hotspot my iPhone 8 and connect the iPad 9.7 2017 to the iPhone 8 using WiFi. Then I stream a video from Hulu or Netflix. The video opens and plays just as quickly as if playing the video directly on the iPhone 8. Web browsing is at the same speed as is directly on the iPhone.
Next, I configure and enable the hotspot my iPad mini 4 and connect the iPad 9.7 2017 to the iPad mini 4 using WiFi. Then I stream a video from Hulu or Netflix. Most of the time the rotating circle just continues to rotate as if it were buffering the video and the video never plays. Sometimes the video will play jerkily and stop frequently for buffering. It is impossible to watch. Web browsing does not work or is extremely slow. If I play a video from Hulu or Netflix directly on on the iPad mini 4, it usually plays normally. It is only the hotspot that is an issue.
I took the iPad mini 4 along with the iPhone 8 and the iPad 9.7 to the Genius Bar at the Apple store in Franklin TN and demonstrated the problem. The technician restored the iPad mini 4 to factory settings. The results were the same. Next, the technician replaced the iPad mini 4 with a new unit. She removed the T-Mobile SIM card from the old device and installed in the new iPad. We tested the unit and had the results as before.
Her next suggestion was to take the new iPad mini 4 to T-Mobile and have the SIM card replaced. I followed the advice and have a new SIM card, however nothing has changed for the iPad mini 4. It is still does not provide a usable hotspot.
How can this problem be corrected? Or is it that iPads are not good to use as hotspots?