Review:TP-Link MR3420 3G Wireless N Router & Cell C HSPA
Hi,
Just thought I'd post my experience with the TP-Link MR3420 3G Wireless N Router and its use with the E1820 dongle that comes with the Cell C 60 GB (5GB per month) bundle.
Took this decision realising I needed someway to share my internet connection between my living room (xbox 360) and my PC (bedroom) because a really long lan cable was just not gonna cut it. And this after explaining my needs to a incredible connection salesperson who clearly thought I was insane or form the planet Pluto considering I wanted a 30 metre cord which for some reason is a strange request from someone in the consumer space.
I purchased my router from bidorbuy.co.za via uniterm direct
http://www.bidorbuy.co.za/item/2797...N_3G_Router_for_use_with_3G_4G_USB_Modem.html after shopping around for a cheap router this seemed like the cheapest but I wasn't sure about performance. Having put aside my initial reservations I decided to take the plunge an ordered my router last week.
Cost R499 and with delivery of R70 it was still cheaper than most other 3G wireless routers. Service from the selling party was amazing. The guy responded within 5 min via e-mail after the order was placed and looking at Uniterm's comments section on bidorbuy you can see these guys are one of the best and highly rated seller's on the website with no negative reviews and over 100 positive reviews. The guy promised to have it delivered within 3 days because I set up delivery at my parents place as I was busy at work. They delivered in 2 days. Enough said.
The actual router is pretty neat and fits in nicely on any computer desk disappearing into the backgroud. Initial setup requires a PC but when I entered my router settings it seems the guys at Uniterm had preconfigured it and all I had to do was add a password the wireless connection to improve security so that any enterprising neighbour didn't start leeching my precious bandwidth.
Pros:
1. Quick setup with very easy to understand instructions that are clear and concise.
2. I ran mine overnight and be barely got hot.
3. From the time of unboxing had it setup in under 5 min and this considering I was changing the actual router settings via web interface which is generally a pain with lotsa of acronyms and weird words like PPPoE etc
4. Price.
5. Its also a wireless router.
6. Once connected maintains the connection. (While using it I did not experience the strange Network suddenly disconecting problem that many of us have been experiencing intermittently)
Cons:
1. Takes close to 1-2 min to actually connect to the Cell C HSPA network. Using the colours on the speedstick it first connects to EDGE and than trys HSPDA and finally tries HSPA and connects seemlessly.
2. Unable to check data balance with speedstick in router.
In conclusion this is a very reasonable priced router and though not neccassarily competing in the same price braket it certainly provides the features that many would be looking for in such a device at a very reasonable price.
Update: Connecting an Xbox 360 produces a strange problem. When first connected the xbox 360 will say unable to connect even though the router shows HSPA+ (Cyan) but if you try to reconnect to Xbox Live after 1-2 min (without restarting the 360 or the router) than it quickly connects to LIVE.
I assume that its the DHCP service and that enabling a static IP may solve this "lag" problem but I don't really want to change the settings in anyway because it works very well.
Another Pro: the E1820 has a hbit of getting very hot to touch when running and I noticed that this was not a problem when connected to the router.
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