You tap the toggle, your laptop or tablet hunts for the network, and nothing connects. A OnePlus Open that refuses to share its 5G data is frustrating, especially when you are away from Wi-Fi and counting on the foldable to keep everything online. The good news is that this phone has a full set of tethering tools built into OxygenOS, so most hotspot failures come down to a setting, a band mismatch, or a temporary glitch rather than broken hardware.
Work through the fixes below in order. The early ones are quick taps that solve the majority of cases, and the later ones such as a reboot, an update, and finally a reset are saved for when the simple checks come up empty. Each step uses the exact paths from the OnePlus Open manual, so you are never guessing where a menu lives.
Make sure mobile data is live and tethering is allowed
A hotspot shares your cellular connection, so mobile data has to be switched on before anything can broadcast. If the OnePlus Open is sitting in Aeroplane (airplane) mode, every phone and network connection is disabled, and the hotspot cannot do its job.
It is also worth confirming your plan actually permits tethering. According to the official Android guidance, "Some mobile carriers limit or charge extra for tethering. We recommend checking with your carrier." If your data works for browsing on the phone but no second device can get online through the hotspot, a carrier restriction is a likely culprit.
Flip the Personal hotspot off and back on
A clean toggle clears a surprising number of stuck connections. Go to Settings > Connection & sharing > Personal hotspot and turn "Personal hotspot" off, wait a moment, then turn it on again. This is the official path for enabling and managing the feature on the OnePlus Open, so it is the right place to start whenever the network misbehaves.
Reconnect your other device promptly once the hotspot is back on. The phone conserves power with a built-in timer the manual describes as "Automatically turn off personal hotspot: Automatically turn off this hotspot when no devices are connected for 10 minutes." If you leave it idle, it switches itself off, so simply re-enable it the next time you need it rather than assuming it is broken.
Double-check the hotspot name and password
A mistyped password is the single most common reason a device will not join. Open Personal hotspot > Hotspot settings to view or change the credentials; the manual describes this as "Hotspot settings: Set personal hotspot name and password."
Re-enter the exact password on the connecting device, watching for capitalisation and easily confused characters such as a zero versus the letter O. If the same network refuses every attempt, change the password to something short and simple, save it, and try connecting again.
Make the hotspot easy for other devices to find
When a device cannot see your network at all, two settings under Personal hotspot are the usual cause. The first is the band the hotspot broadcasts on. The manual notes: "Use Wi-Fi 6: The Wi-Fi 6 protocol provides a faster connection. Hotspot using Wi-Fi 6 may not be found in some old device models." If an older laptop, an out-of-date phone, or a smart-home gadget cannot see or join your network, switch this option off so the hotspot drops to a more widely compatible mode.
The second is whether the network is hidden. The manual explains the option this way: "Hide hotspot: You can hide this hotspot so it can only be connected to manually." Turn "Hide hotspot" off so the OnePlus Open broadcasts its name openly, and your other device can pick it from the standard Wi-Fi list instead of needing a manual entry.
Switch off Data saving
Data saving can quietly shut tethering down without any obvious warning. The OnePlus manual states that when this feature is on while you are using a mobile network, "Personal hotspot and tethering will also be turned off."
Head to Settings > Mobile network > Data saving and turn it off, then enable the hotspot again and test it. If the hotspot starts working only after this change, Data saving was holding it back.
Check Connection management for blocks and caps
The OnePlus Open lets you control who connects and how much they use, and those controls can lock out a device you actually want online. Under Personal hotspot, the manual notes: "Connection management: Blocklist, device connection limit and data usage limit can be set."
Open Connection management and confirm the device you are trying to connect is not on the blocklist. While you are there, check that you have not reached the device connection limit and that a data-usage limit has not paused the hotspot.
Share your data over Bluetooth or USB instead
If Wi-Fi sharing simply will not cooperate, the OnePlus Open offers two other ways to get a device online. For Bluetooth, go to Settings > Connection & sharing > Personal hotspot and turn on "Bluetooth tethering," then pair the two devices.
For a wired link, connect a USB cable first, then turn on "USB tethering" in the same menu. The switch stays greyed out until a USB connection is established, so plug in before you expect the option to respond. These alternatives are useful both as a workaround and as a quick test of whether the problem is specific to Wi-Fi.
Restart the foldable, or force a reboot
Most temporary network glitches clear with a simple restart. The power button sits on the right side of the phone, and the official method is: "When powered on, press power button and volume up button simultaneously, and then tap Restart to reboot the device."
If the OnePlus Open is frozen and ignoring the normal restart, use the official force-reboot sequence for this model, which relies on Power plus Volume Up rather than Power alone: "When powered on, long press the power button and volume up button for 10 seconds, the phone will shut down, and then press the power button to turn on the device again."
Install the latest OxygenOS update
A pending software update can resolve connectivity bugs that no setting will fix on its own. Follow the official path: "Enter Settings > About device > Software update, then the system starts to check for updates."
If an update is available, follow the on-screen instructions to download and install it, then test the hotspot again once the phone restarts. Keeping OxygenOS current also reduces the chance of the same fault returning later.
Reset the phone, then reach OnePlus support
If nothing above restores the hotspot, a factory reset is the last self-service option. Before you start, back up everything, because the manual is clear: "Restoring factory settings will wipe all app data, contacts, text messages, and so on. Backup important data before a factory reset." You can use the Clone Phone app or a Google account backup beforehand.
- 1.Go to Settings > Additional settings > Back up and reset > Reset phone.
- 2.Tap Reset phone.
- 3.Enter your passcode to confirm and let the phone reset.
Should the hotspot still fail after a reset, the cause may be carrier provisioning or hardware. At that point, contact OnePlus through the official support site for further help or service.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does my OnePlus Open hotspot keep turning itself off?
This is a built-in power-saving behaviour, not a fault. The manual states the phone will "Automatically turn off this hotspot when no devices are connected for 10 minutes," so connect your second device promptly, or simply re-enable the hotspot when you need it again.
Does running a hotspot use my normal mobile data allowance?
Yes. The hotspot shares your cellular data, so anything your connected devices download counts against your plan. The official Android guidance also warns that "Some mobile carriers limit or charge extra for tethering," so check with your carrier if it behaves unexpectedly.
Why is the USB tethering switch greyed out?
The "USB tethering" option only becomes available once a cable connection is established. Connect a USB cable between the OnePlus Open and the other device first, then go to Settings > Connection & sharing > Personal hotspot and the switch will respond.
Will a factory reset fix the hotspot for sure?
A reset is a last resort that can clear stubborn software problems, but it also wipes your data, so back up with Clone Phone or a Google account first. If the hotspot still does not work afterward, the cause is more likely carrier provisioning or hardware, and OnePlus support is the next step.