3G/HSPA Routers

bijou

Hi

My trusty old E270 is starting to throw out a good bit of heat now so I think it's time to change.

Has anybody tried or has any thoughts on the Huawei E355 currently on o2's website??

Cheers

lighthouse

I have read through all the posts in this thread. Just wondering what people think of the TP-Link TL-MR3420. It's in DID for €46. I have the E122 on Three.

NATLOR

I use the 3220 model with vodafone, works a treat in my apartment.Got it on Amazon for around 30 euro [they have the 3420 for 40].you can check the TP link website for dongle compatibility,the set up is very easy, would recommend their products.much better then the vodafone router, had constant trouble with that.

eirator

lighthouse wrote: »

I have read through all the posts in this thread. Just wondering what people think of the TP-Link TL-MR3420. It's in DID for €46. I have the E122 on Three.

Set up a few of them and they are a decent modem. Just be aware that the E353 HiLink version (that 3 supply) doesn't work with this or any other 3G router for that matter. I guess Matt Bauer in the post above is refering to one of the other E353 variations. Can't remember all the dongles that I've set up on that series of 3G router but all the others have worked straight off.

Apogee

Anyone have experience of the Dovado Doma?
http://www.dovado.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=95&Itemid=39

'Smart USB port' feature looks interesting as I'm getting tired of power cycling a Vodafone Echolife router.

lighthouse

Got the TP link 3420 router in D.I.D this morning. I bought the 32" Samsung smart TV for €560. Router was €46 and he threw in an extra CAT cable valued at €6; €580 in total. Router is up and running. So far so good.:D

eirator

lighthouse wrote: »

Got the TP link 3420 router in D.I.D this morning. I bought the 32" Samsung smart TV for €560. Router was €46 and he threw in an extra CAT cable valued at €6; €580 in total. Router is up and running. So far so good.:D

Just a quick point not to get hung up about but what did you set the APN as on the router?

You can check by going to whatismyip.com and checking what your internet IP address is, if its a 92.251.255.xxx address then you might want to change the APN anything else and its on the right APN.

Edit> Question was because some of the 3G routers set up the wrong APN by default, the WRONG APN is 3ireland.ie because its the APN for 3s phones the CORRECT APN for broadband is 3internet the difference to the user is the phone APN goes through a proxy server which has a limited range of IP address in the range I posted above.

lighthouse

Hi my IP addresse starts with 178.xxx.xxx.xxx
I entered isp.3ireland.ie as the APN which I had seen in another post.
The phone number is *99#
I presume from your post my IP is OK?

eirator

lighthouse wrote: »

Hi my IP addresse starts with 178.xxx.xxx.xxx
I entered isp.3ireland.ie as the APN which I had seen in another post.
The phone number is *99#
I presume from your post my IP is OK?

Strange as the APN should be 3internet and your IP address is one you'd get from using that APN.

afaik isp.3ireland.ie is not a valid APN but I think APN's are read from right to left so the isp bit is irrelevant and even if you get the APN wrong 3 still normally works.

Thats why I said don't get hung up on it its working and thats the main thing - don't let me confuse things:o

cuculainn

sorry for jumping on thread, but just wanted to get peoples opinion (eirator) on this piece of kit.

Wouldn't be paying that price but it seems to tick all the boxes for what I need. I also never heard of the company before


Thanks for your help

lighthouse

cuculainn wrote: »

sorry for jumping on thread, but just wanted to get peoples opinion (eirator) on this piece of kit.

Wouldn't be paying that price but it seems to tick all the boxes for what I need. I also never heard of the company before


Thanks for your help

Don't know anything about the aerial but I just started using that router with the E122 modem. No problems so far anyway.

cuculainn

lighthouse wrote: »

Don't know anything about the aerial but I just started using that router with the E122 modem. No problems so far anyway.

Notice you are round Galway. What provider do you use and what sort of speed you getting?

lighthouse

I'm with Three. My speeds are faster than with the modem on it's own plugged into the laptop. I'm experiminting at the moment using the 2 APNs to see which is fastest.

eirator

@ cuculainn I use something very similar but in a different way :rolleyes:

I have the router externally located in a waterproof case and the USB dongle on a 4m USB extension cable all located for the best (12% :eek:) signal I can get from 3. I then use a similar looking WiFi antenna on the WiFi side of the 3G router to get a signal back up at the house some 300m from were the router is currently located.

I've looked at a few similar 3G antennas and price has put me off everytime. The main thing to think about for these installations with a 3G antenna is to use high quality cable kept as short as possible and good quality connectors. The shoe lace thick cables that you get on many 3G antenna an as extension cables loose more signal than you gain from a good antenna.

Edit> to keep the antenna cable short it can be worth mounting the router in a waterproof box next to the antenna and if you can't get mains power to the antenna location then PoE is one way of doing it.

Keep looking around and you'll find a lot more similar bits of kit at similar prices. Some good info and ideas in this recent thread Remote 3G Installation

@lighthouse as the limiting factor is normally the speed between you and the local mast so there shouldn't be much differnce in the APNs. The difference is in the NAT they offer for gaming, 3internet should give you an internet routable IP address with the least NAT limitations and is the one that is set up by default on 3 dongles, MiFi and Routers.

cuculainn

eirator wrote: »

@ cuculainn I use something very similar but in a different way :rolleyes:

I have the router externally located in a waterproof case and the USB dongle on a 4m USB extension cable all located for the best (12% :eek:) signal I can get from 3. I then use a similar looking WiFi antenna on the WiFi side of the 3G router to get a signal back up at the house some 300m from were the router is currently located.

I've looked at a few similar 3G antennas and price has put me off everytime. The main thing to think about for these installations with a 3G antenna is to use high quality cable kept as short as possible and good quality connectors. The shoe lace thick cables that you get on many 3G antenna an as extension cables loose more signal than you gain from a good antenna.

Edit> to keep the antenna cable short it can be worth mounting the router in a waterproof box next to the antenna and if you can't get mains power to the antenna location then PoE is one way of doing it.

Keep looking around and you'll find a lot more similar bits of kit at similar prices. Some good info and ideas in this recent thread Remote 3G Installation

Hi Eirator,

Thanks for the reply. What I plan on doing is to mount the 3g antenna on a shed pointing to where I get the strongest signal, then have the router and modem on the inside of the shed. I can keep the cable between the antenna and router short (1-2 meters)

Then use Cat5 from the router into the house where I would have another switch/router to send around house.

My concern with the antenna above is that it has a 10 metre cable which seems long, and if I cut it short it might not be possible to make a good connection.

I assume you think 10 metres is too long/

Thanks for alll your help

eirator

cuculainn wrote: »

Hi Eirator,

Thanks for the reply. What I plan on doing is to mount the 3g antenna on a shed pointing to where I get the strongest signal, then have the router and modem on the inside of the shed. I can keep the cable between the antenna and router short (1-2 meters)

Then use Cat5 from the router into the house where I would have another switch/router to send around house.

My concern with the antenna above is that it has a 10 metre cable which seems long, and if I cut it short it might not be possible to make a good connection.

I assume you think 10 metres is too long/

Thanks for alll your help

I'm certainly not convinced 10m is a good idea unless absolutely necessary. Cutting the cable and putting on a new connector is almost impossible unless you have the right crimping tools, but sometimes you can make any adjustment if the cable is soldered into the antenna and of course if you can open it up easily. You could look for an antenna that has a connector mounted directly on it so you buy your own cable.

In your location I'd say get a router and a suitable dongle that takes an antenna and try the whole thing out with the dongle on the side of the shed in a plastic bag on a USB extension cable. If thats not great then move onto an antenna. I did a quick look on ebay and came up with this cheapy http://cgi.ebay.ie/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=230845887385 note the short cable and I'd try one like that with the router inside the shed, a 4m USB extension cable, a water proof cheap "Hansel" type box for the dongle mounted on the back of or near the antenna. btw I'm not saying that link is for a great antenna just an example and from checking the listing I don't think you get any mounting hardware.

Batesy

Hi,

I'm looking in to purchasing a 3g router and am looking for some advise from people who know what they're talking about. I've narrowed it down to 2 routers but the difference in cost is quite big.

The TP-Link mobile Broadband TL-MR3420 @ €40

or

Dovado 4GR @ €147

I've read good things about Dovado but what I want to know is it really worth the extra coinage for that particular router?

I'd be using a huawei e3131 on o2

-=al=-

not worth the extra imo tp link one will do a fine job

you can run a simple command to ping a site on your comp to keep the connection always on never ued the dovado but dont see it worth the extra myself!

eirator

Batesy wrote: »

Hi,

I'm looking in to purchasing a 3g router and am looking for some advise from people who know what they're talking about. I've narrowed it down to 2 routers but the difference in cost is quite big.

The TP-Link mobile Broadband TL-MR3420 @ €40

or

Dovado 4GR @ €147

I've read good things about Dovado but what I want to know is it really worth the extra coinage for that particular router?

I'd be using a huawei e3131 on o2

I'd also not be spending any extra on the Dovado 4GR nothing wrong with TP-Link stuff, btw try Amazon.co.uk it might even be cheaper with free delivery.

Let us know how you get on with that dongle as I haven't used many of the newer ones yet.

Only advantage I can think of with the Dovado is I think it has a feature where you can power cycle the dongle plugged into it which is a big plus on remote installs where you can't easily get to the power but if its on a desk on windowsill near by thats no big deal.

Amalgam

eirator wrote: »

Only advantage I can think of with the Dovado is I think it has a feature where you can power cycle the dongle plugged into it which is a big plus on remote installs where you can't easily get to the power but if its on a desk on windowsill near by thats no big deal.

Caution: Only the Dovado Tiny can do a proper power cycle, *not the 4GR*, or rather, a power cycle of the modem, without switching the router on and off again. The Dovado 4GR needs to be switched off and on again physically (which, I guess, is why they provide an on/off switch box on the power supply cable) .. and even then, you may have issues where you have to plug\unplug\replug the modem from the router. Annoying.

A quick YouTube link to clarify.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8-1Ka5Fam4

Just to add, there's nothing wrong with the TP-Link products, what you're paying for with the Dovado, is second to none ongoing emerging 3G Modem firmware support. The 4GR and newer support more or less *everything* out there. LTE 4G etc..

Batesy

Thanks for the advice lads. I've gone ahead and ordered the Tp-link for €39 on Amazon and the e3131 from o2.

I'll post my findings at the end of the week hopefully.

Batesy

Right, so the Huawei E3131 dongle arrived this morning from o2 and the TP-Link MR3420 arrived from Amazon too.

I was worried about the E3131 compatibility with the Tp-link router as it hasn't been verified to work on their website but I can confirm it does work.

Got it set up fairly hassle free.

The signal strenght being picked up from the dongle is a bit dissapointing at 41% but the speedtest isn't bad.




I've noticed an improvement on Xbox live too compared to the Hotshot. I've switched to an ethernet connection rather than the wireless and the router seemed to automatically detect the xbox and open the correct ports for open NAT on xbox live. Yesterday I had a restrictive NAT from the Hotshot and today I have an Open nat from the Tp-link.

I've tested out the new Sky On Demand feature too via another of the ethernet ports and it's working fine too.

All in all I'm happy enough so far.

homingbird

Hi i am looking for help setting up this router i bought TP-Link tl-mr3420 for my sister who is with 3mobile. The dongle she has is the E353 & the router does not recognize it nor does it give me the opition of selecting 3ireland as my internet provider. The Huawei E353 is in their list of dongles under a different make. I also updated the firmware v1.2 to mr3420v1_en_3_12_21_up(120508) but it still does not give me the choice to select 3ireland as my internet provider.
any help would be wellcome !!!!!
Thanks.

eirator

Stop wasting your time with that dongle the HiLink version of E353 3 IRL supply doesn't work with that or any router for that matter.Check first if the dongle is recognised if it isn't then give up.No need to select any country just put the APN 3internet and Dial String *99# in manually.

homingbird

Ok thanks were can i get a unlocked dongle that works with 3ireland on this router.

eirator

homingbird wrote: »

Ok thanks were can i get a unlocked dongle that works with 3ireland on this router.

Almost any dongle should work, for example afaik Vodafone don't lock their dongles but they do lock the software on them but when you use a dongle in a router you aren't using any of the software so any Vodafone dongle with a 3 SIM in that router should work. I'm sure someone can find one that won't.If you need to unlock a dongle google is your friend, no way would I ever pay to unlock a dongle.With the E353 what did it say about the dongle on the routers home page? If you scroll down a bit it says 3G USB Modem: and someting about the modems status, like its name if its recognised, unplugged if there is no modem present and iirc unknown modem for the E353. If it recognises it then your in with a chance otherwise no way.

eclectichoney

Batesy wrote: »

Right, so the Huawei E3131 dongle arrived this morning from o2 and the TP-Link MR3420 arrived from Amazon too.

I was worried about the E3131 compatibility with the Tp-link router as it hasn't been verified to work on their website but I can confirm it does work.

Got it set up fairly hassle free.

The signal strenght being picked up from the dongle is a bit dissapointing at 41% but the speedtest isn't bad.




I've noticed an improvement on Xbox live too compared to the Hotshot. I've switched to an ethernet connection rather than the wireless and the router seemed to automatically detect the xbox and open the correct ports for open NAT on xbox live. Yesterday I had a restrictive NAT from the Hotshot and today I have an Open nat from the Tp-link.

I've tested out the new Sky On Demand feature too via another of the ethernet ports and it's working fine too.

All in all I'm happy enough so far.

Thanks a mill for the info Batesy - I use the same o2 dongle and am just about to order the TP link.

I am a total newbie with this, so is it just plug and play? Or do I need any other info from o2 to set it up?

Thanks a mill

-=al=-

Plug in and play, you probably have to tick a few settings on the router page (192.168.1.1) and make the 3g as the default connection and change the few APN for the network

eclectichoney

-=al=- wrote: »

Plug in and play, you probably have to tick a few settings on the router page (192.168.1.1) and make the 3g as the default connection and change the few APN for the network

Thanks What's the APN? Sorry for the stupid question

-=al=-

Just the place the dongle connects to to get the internets



Something like that would be the settings to edit... if you go to tools and settings on the dongle software itself on your comp the settings should all be in there but they're easy to get from whatever network you're on