I finally finished my evaluation of the Pepwave Surf OTG. This is a cellular router that also has WiFi as WAN. Or, as I typically think of these Pepwave devices - this is a wifi capture device that ALSO now has cellular modem capabilities.
You can find the review on my website here. Just scroll down slightly to the Resource listing and you will see the link to the download at the end of the Resources listing.
This is a nice device that I have been using continually for the past two weeks. During that time I have not encountered a single issue with it. Check it out if you are in the market for a capture device and also use an aircard. It won;t pull wifi from as far as a WIFIRanger Boost Mobile, but it will outperform other capture solutions.
Loki said
01:57 PM Jan 4, 2012
Now, would you recommend the Pepwave you just tested or the WiFi Ranger Pro with the WFR Boost, if you want the best of both worlds, WiFi capture and 3G/4G cellular?
Loki said
03:48 PM Jan 4, 2012
Well Jack, I should have read your report before I posted my previous question. The report states very clearly that the combination of the Ranger Pro with the WFR Boost and an outside antenna is unbeatable, which is not surprising because comparing an indoor device with something that has an outdoor antenna is like comparing apples and pears. Is there any other aspect I should consider before purchasing the Ranger equipment (besides the price)? I assume the cellular signal processing is pretty comparable between the two devices, correct?
Jack Mayer said
11:50 AM Jan 5, 2012
With both the Pepwave and WFR you need to verify that the cellular equipment you want to use is supported. Neither device supports everything....but that would be true for any cellular router.
The WFR with Boost is more complex to set up, but it performs better. Everything is a tradeoff. In my experience you will have to "fiddle with" the WFR more, over time, than the Pepwave. But for maximum performance you can't beat the WFR with Mobile Boost.
Nothing will beat haveing a powerful CPE on the roof. For example, we are currently in the SKP park in Summerdale. While there is (paid) Tengo service in the park that is easily picked up, I prefer to use my aircard or free wifi. I searched for open wifi in the area with just my laptop and saw nothing. With the Pepwave I also saw nothing. I then used a CPE with a directional antenna to search and found 4 open connections at houses near the campground. One tested very fast, but appears to be almost 1/2 a mile away. That is an example - I do not use connections of this sort except in emergencies, but having the ability to connect to them is sometimes important. Personally, I don't believe in "using" private bandwidth without permission....businesses, yes, but not private.
-- Edited by Jack Mayer on Thursday 5th of January 2012 11:58:15 AM
I finally finished my evaluation of the Pepwave Surf OTG. This is a cellular router that also has WiFi as WAN. Or, as I typically think of these Pepwave devices - this is a wifi capture device that ALSO now has cellular modem capabilities.
You can find the review on my website here. Just scroll down slightly to the Resource listing and you will see the link to the download at the end of the Resources listing.
This is a nice device that I have been using continually for the past two weeks. During that time I have not encountered a single issue with it. Check it out if you are in the market for a capture device and also use an aircard. It won;t pull wifi from as far as a WIFIRanger Boost Mobile, but it will outperform other capture solutions.
With both the Pepwave and WFR you need to verify that the cellular equipment you want to use is supported. Neither device supports everything....but that would be true for any cellular router.
The WFR with Boost is more complex to set up, but it performs better. Everything is a tradeoff. In my experience you will have to "fiddle with" the WFR more, over time, than the Pepwave. But for maximum performance you can't beat the WFR with Mobile Boost.
Nothing will beat haveing a powerful CPE on the roof. For example, we are currently in the SKP park in Summerdale. While there is (paid) Tengo service in the park that is easily picked up, I prefer to use my aircard or free wifi. I searched for open wifi in the area with just my laptop and saw nothing. With the Pepwave I also saw nothing. I then used a CPE with a directional antenna to search and found 4 open connections at houses near the campground. One tested very fast, but appears to be almost 1/2 a mile away. That is an example - I do not use connections of this sort except in emergencies, but having the ability to connect to them is sometimes important. Personally, I don't believe in "using" private bandwidth without permission....businesses, yes, but not private.
-- Edited by Jack Mayer on Thursday 5th of January 2012 11:58:15 AM