I don't know the answer to the question, but my guess is that it will be just as locked down as its predecessors, because the manufacturer sells through ISPs, not directly through the retail trade.
Regarding the aerial, it will have some kind of aerial inside the box, quite probably one that's printed on the circuit board. This can work very well - for example, the 2-wire 2700HG-V has no external aerial, but had very good wireless performance.