Mobile Router Shenanigans
Recently, I had to get a mobile router because of my current living situation, and this is my entire experience!
When I was initially researching the world of mobile routers, I discovered that 5G routers are almost nonexistent or ridiculously expensive. For example, the D-Link DWR-2101 is over €400 in my home country, Croatia.
While doing some research for this blog post, I also stumbled upon routers like the TP-Link 8550 that have excellent specifications (5G, big battery, USB-C) but have yet to be released.
And when they are eventually released, I bet you they are going to cost hundreds of euros. For me, it's not at all worth to spend that amount of money on a mobile router because:
- it's a mobile router, for God's sake!
- the router will cost more than the mobile provider's plan
That's why I ended up going for a cheaper but still capable router, the TP-Link M7000. It's a 4G router, like most on the market, but it's very small and portable.
The SIM card slot is neatly hidden by a back plate and it already came with an adapter in the box which was useful. All in all, it is a great little router, but there are a few issues. It has a micro-USB port which is a pain nowadays in the world of USB-C and USB-A, and the battery life isn't all that great.
For the service provider, I ended up going for Tomato, a prepaid option. It works by you choosing a plan of a certain number of units which you can spend on either Internet, SMS, or phone minutes.
This is ideal for me because I can spend all my units on the Internet (units are equal to GB in Internet terms). The current plan I have gives me 21 000 units aka 21GB monthly which is currently more than enough for me.
I've noticed internet speeds being very low, but it has been enough for me for now. I will look into other providers later on if I see that Tomato is lacking.
And that would be it for today! Thanks for reading and I hope you got some useful information about mobile routers :)
Until next time! 🖋️
Day 39 of #100DaysToOffload
