Kitz Forum

Broadband Related => Mobile broadband => Topic started by: LeeH on August 18, 2022, 09:18:39 AM

Title: I need a 4G router with bridge/modem mode.
Post by: LeeH on August 18, 2022, 09:18:39 AM

Hi All,

Can anybody help me with this?  :)

Thanks,

Lee

Title: Re: I need a 4G router with bridge/modem mode.
Post by: meritez on August 18, 2022, 10:58:26 AM

Hi LeeH,

Welcome to kitz forum, the cheapest cat12 router is the ZTE MF286d but cex are out of stock online, usually £45.

Which mobile network are you aiming to use?

Title: Re: I need a 4G router with bridge/modem mode.
Post by: LeeH on August 18, 2022, 12:39:43 PM

Hi meritez,

Vodafone I think, maybe 3 Depends on the speed deals at the time.  EE has a fair usage cap so it wont be them.

Thais cheap, I don't mind spending a little more if necessary.

Basically, I would like to keep my Synology RT2600  mesh set up and move away from the terrible FTTC connection here.  Maybe keep it as a fail over.

Thanks!

Title: Re: I need a 4G router with bridge/modem mode.
Post by: LeeH on August 18, 2022, 12:51:12 PM

I see these are locked but can be unlocked.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/MF286D-600mbps-External-Antennas-Renewed/dp/B09HHJHFL2

[Moderator edited to simplify the above link.]

Title: Re: I need a 4G router with bridge/modem mode.
Post by: meritez on August 18, 2022, 12:54:11 PM

Quote from: LeeH on August 18, 2022, 12:51:12 PM

I see these are locked but can be unlocked.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/MF286D-600mbps-External-Antennas-Renewed/dp/B09HHJHFL2

[Moderator edited to simplify the above link.]

Yes there's a review there of someone using it on Lebara a Vodafone MVNO with no issues and seeing 250Mbps speeds.

Title: Re: I need a 4G router with bridge/modem mode.
Post by: LeeH on August 18, 2022, 02:06:56 PM

Many thanks.

I've just noticed the deal 12/m deal too. Will go with that at that price.

Title: Re: I need a 4G router with bridge/modem mode.
Post by: meritez on August 18, 2022, 04:10:12 PM

Surface Elevation Tool to help you decide if you need an external antenna:
https://www.solwise.co.uk/wireless-elevationtool.html

Title: Re: I need a 4G router with bridge/modem mode.
Post by: LeeH on August 18, 2022, 08:56:24 PM

Is this correct?

I have assumed the mast is 30m....I will drive out tomorrow and take a look.

My line of site is blocked my the house next door, I have a bungalow.  This is the only blockage.

Is directional pointless in this case?

Title: Re: I need a 4G router with bridge/modem mode.
Post by: LeeH on August 18, 2022, 09:02:11 PM

(https://i.ibb.co/cgNQhnh/1.png) (https://ibb.co/cgNQhnh)

Title: Re: I need a 4G router with bridge/modem mode.
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on August 18, 2022, 09:29:45 PM

Quote from: LeeH on August 18, 2022, 12:39:43 PM

Basically, I would like to keep my Synology RT2600  mesh set up and move away from the terrible FTTC connection here.  Maybe keep it as a fail over.

Yeah I'd definitely recommend a failover, or only use mobile for bulk downloads.   I tried using Three 5G as my main connection and mostly its was fine, but every so often there will be bad days where everything goes horribly wrong and latency jumps to 2000ms with pages failing to load.  Seen the same on Vodafone 4G though less often.

Title: Re: I need a 4G router with bridge/modem mode.
Post by: LeeH on August 20, 2022, 12:58:32 PM

I imagined that this would be the case.   With the Scancom 12/month deal and my £21/month FTTC with Onestream, I hopefully will get the speed I crave plus some redundancy for the wife who works from home.

Thanks.

Title: Re: I need a 4G router with bridge/modem mode.
Post by: meritez on August 20, 2022, 07:10:47 PM

Has the SIM card or the router arrived yet?

Title: Re: I need a 4G router with bridge/modem mode.
Post by: LeeH on August 21, 2022, 08:33:43 AM

Sim is here  Tuesday, still exploring router options.   Looking at 5G options on CEX, makes sense to be future proof.   

Title: Re: I need a 4G router with bridge/modem mode.
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on August 21, 2022, 11:33:35 PM

Indeed, I did find I got better 4G performance on the CPE Pro 2 because it also has newer 4G radios.  You need to especially look out for Carrier Aggregation (https://www.3gpp.org/technologies/keywords-acronyms/101-carrier-aggregation-explained).