As Have an ipad have no need of a iphone, though ocasional connection through a mobile for internet could be handy.
So what it the lowest price Mobile that I could connect to.

I would probably buy payg/sim free then maybe get a contract probably on vodafone.

A cheap android phone should let you create a wifi hotspot that your iPad could use just make sure your phone tarrif allows tethering......

Have just been looking at the Samsung Galaxy ace and was advised on vodafone chat that it would be able to do the job.

you can get a mifi router pretty cheap.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Zoom-3G-Wire...3137632&sr=8-2

Thanks but as I need a new phone anyway, the one I am looking up is coming in at £135 so seems a better deal.

For the hundred quid mark the big three are going to be the ACE, the San Francisco or a Wildfire (S). There are plenty of other options but they are not going to vary hugely.

I have been looking to tether my iPhone to my iPad but have not found any way to do so using "pay as you you go". Every mobile operator tells me that I would have to have a monthly contract to tether, so I am now looking at a Mobile Broadband WiFi Router like the ones from 3, T-mobile and Vodafone. Cost looks to be around £10-20 per month!

I see the Samsung galazy ace and HTC wildfire S are both going for same price, has anyone any experiance connecting an Ipad to either of them ?

I like my ZTE Blade (Orange San Francisco). It cost me about £89 and can easily be unlocked for free, rooted and the ROM replaced by CyanogenMod which will give you an up-to-date version of Android.

With the savings you could also pick up a Fon Simpl router. Connect it to your broadband connection and you'll be able to use every other Fon hotspot for free. BT is a Fon partner so you'll have access to over 2 million hotspots in the UK and a couple more million around the world.

I've used my HTC Wildfire as a WiFi hotspot on both my laptop and Android tablet - I see no reason why it shouldn't work with an iPad.

I've found a 3 MiFi modem to be much better - I use one of these with a preloaded 1GB data sim which cost under £5 each.

quite like the sound of the 3 MiFi modem as see you can get 3 GB data sim on amazon for under £11, just have to see how cheap can get a MiFI for .

I'm finding mine doubly useful as my BT Infinity service has gone down for the second time in 3 weeks.

I have Mifi but my 3G dongles all work in the tablet.

the iPad does not have a USB port so it will either need to a 3G iPad (which I presume its not else the OP would not be asking) or use a hotspot.