Mobile broadband routers

Posted on 11 Feb 2009 at 15:38

In addition to the now obligatory USB modems, the 3G networks have started distributing their own Wi-Fi routers.

These devices are ideal for businesses that need to give a small team internet access on the road, or for use as a safety net for small offices if the regular ADSL connection fails.

Both 3 and T-Mobile have recently started selling very different looking routers, although they both use the same Huawei D100 modem.

The compact (112 x 91 x 27mm), box-shaped 3 router slips easily into a laptop bag. The hinged modem slot allows you to raise the dongle like an aerial for maximum reception, and then neatly stows within the modem during transit. The T-Mobile Share Dock, on the other hand, opts for a disc-like design that's almost exactly the circumference of a CD.

These 802.11bg devices don't take advantage of the latest draft-n standard, but at the speeds the mobile broadband connection is going to deliver that's hardly necessary. In fact, T-Mobile's router was marginally faster over Wi-Fi than plugging its E170 modem straight into a PC (2.1Mbits/sec compared to 2Mbits/sec).

Used in conjunction with 3's E160G modem we achieved an average actual throughput of 1.7Mbits/sec using its router's Wi-Fi connection, compared with the 2.3Mbits/sec we achieved with the modem plugged straight into the laptop. However, we had severe problems with 3's supposedly superior E169G dongle, which dawdled along at near dial-up speeds when plugged into the router.

Despite their diminutive size and lack of external aerials, both deliver decent wireless range - we maintained a strong connection from 75ft away across an office, and even from adjacent rooms. But both struggled moving in between floors and, despite offering UPnP support, both had difficulty delivering a decent stream to an internet radio.

Yet both these routers are capable of bringing basic broadband to areas of the home and office that can't get a signal from an ADSL/cable router.

Author: Barry Collins