The best wired and portable LTE routers you can buy in South Africa

While fibre connectivity is arguably the most cost-effective way to access the Internet in South Africa, it is not yet available to everyone in the country.

Those without fixed broadband coverage, or who require a mobile connection, may choose LTE as an alternative.

Long-Term Evolution (LTE), commonly called 4G, is a global wireless communication standard first-defined in 2008.

South Africa’s mobile network operators — Vodacom, MTN, Telkom, and Rain — offer uncapped fixed-LTE services.

Several Internet service providers also sell uncapped LTE products that run on one of these companies’ networks.

Rain offers uncapped LTE packages starting from R250 per month, though this cheap option is for a 19-hour off-peak package accessible between 23:00 and 18:00 the next day.

While its products aren’t subject to a usage-linked fair usage policy (FUP) that throttles the connection after reaching a specified amount of data usage, Rain has other restrictions.

Rain’s top-end LTE offering is R479 per month and limits streaming quality to 360p resolution.

Telkom’s, MTN’s, and Vodacom’s uncapped fixed-LTE packages are subject to FUPs with data thresholds, with connections throttled after customers consume a specified amount of data.

To use these fixed-LTE packages, you need a router.

MyBroadband found and compared several wired and portable LTE routers you can buy in South Africa.

We differentiated between portable and fixed routers as they have different applications.

For example, South Africans working from home and living in areas without broadband infrastructure can purchase a fixed router as they don’t have to move around.

Most fixed routers also include LAN connectivity, which lets you network several devices with Ethernet cables.

On the other hand, those who wish to travel with LTE connectivity can use routers that run off a battery.

Ten of the best wired and portable LTE routers in South Africa are listed below with their specifications.

Portable routers

Huawei R219H mobile Wi-Fi router — R599

Vodafone R217 mobile Wi-Fi router — R628

Huawei E5576 LTE mobile Wi-Fi router — R849

ZTE MF920VS LTE mobile Wi-Fi router — R1,029

TP-Link TL-M7650 mobile Wi-Fi router — R3,273

Fixed routers

Huawei B311B-853 CAT 4 LTE Wi-Fi router — R1,195

Ultra Link 4G LTE CPE Wireless Router — R1,299

TP-Link TL-MR6400 Archer mobile Wi-Fi router — R1,299

TP-Link MR200 wireless dual-band LTE router — R1,499

Alcatel LinkHub LTE Cat7 Dual-Band Home Station Router — R1,699

Now read: Uncapped mobile broadband in South Africa — why networks throttle your connection