Recommend me a sim card wireless router/modem please?

[veeg33]

Will be moving to new house soon and it won't have fibre optic broadband yet for god knows how long. I'm planning to buy a data only sim 32GB (EE) on 30days contract and a sim card wireless router/modem.

 

I've checked that my new house has good 4G coverage on EE but I don't fancy one the EE Osprey WIFI devise as review for them is pretty poor unless your are directly next to it.

 

Budget is around £100 or less for a wireless router/modem that I can put this sim card in and also in future, i can use to boost wifi signal in my new house (once I have fibre optic broadband). Is there even such a device out there?

 

Thanks guys

[Ekona]

Does the EE one have an Ethernet socket too? If so then just grab a regular router and plug that into it, then use that instead. Benefit means you can also use this when you eventually get proper BB installed too

 

Is adsl not available?

[Stutopia]

I got one of these for working on the move and also it works in foreign places too, so good for local SIM on holibobs if you need to dodge roaming charges.

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00B5SZHFE/ref=pe_385721_37038051_TE_dp_1

 

It's fairly decent and was easy to setup, used it on three and EE.

[veeg33]

Does the EE one have an Ethernet socket too? If so then just grab a regular router and plug that into it, then use that instead. Benefit means you can also use this when you eventually get proper BB installed too

 

Is adsl not available?

Not sure if the EE has an Ethernet socket, will check on that.

 

ADSL should be available I think but don't want to get tied in for 12 months as I really wanted fibre. It's new build and we are the first to move into the development, I'm assuming I won't get connected for first few months =(

[veeg33]

I got one of these for working on the move and also it works in foreign places too, so good for local SIM on holibobs if you need to dodge roaming charges.

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00B5SZHFE/ref=pe_385721_37038051_TE_dp_1

 

It's fairly decent and was easy to setup, used it on three and EE.

Is this strong enough for 2-storey house?

Edited August 1, 2016 by veeg33

[Stutopia]

I got one of these for working on the move and also it works in foreign places too, so good for local SIM on holibobs if you need to dodge roaming charges.

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00B5SZHFE/ref=pe_385721_37038051_TE_dp_1

 

It's fairly decent and was easy to setup, used it on three and EE.

Is this strong enough for 2-story house?

 

Honestly don't know, I'm never more than 10 feet from it. I'll do some testing tonight

[veeg33]

I got one of these for working on the move and also it works in foreign places too, so good for local SIM on holibobs if you need to dodge roaming charges.

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00B5SZHFE/ref=pe_385721_37038051_TE_dp_1

 

It's fairly decent and was easy to setup, used it on three and EE.

Is this strong enough for 2-story house?

 

Honestly don't know, I'm never more than 10 feet from it. I'll do some testing tonight

Thanks Stu. I suppose I can carry it around with me in the house if needed

[Juggalo]

Anything Draytek that takes a 4G dongle, and you can't go wrong. For £100 you'll likely need to buy a second hand Draytek. They're very good, so not exactly cheap.

 

I run an entire chemical plant server room down in London off a EE 4G Sim connected to a Hauwei dongle, plugged into a Draytek 2860.

44MB download. No complaints since I installed it.

Edited August 1, 2016 by Juggalo

[veeg33]

Anything Draytek that takes a 4G dongle, and you can't go wrong. For £100 you'll likely need to buy a second hand Draytek. They're very good, so not exactly cheap.

 

I run an entire chemical plant server room down in London off a EE 4G Sim connected to a Hauwei dongle, plugged into a Draytek 2860.

44MB download. No complaints since I installed it.

Are they easy to setup? Just plug it in and off you go?

[rabbitstew]

Maybe a little more hassle, but what I do when im on holiday is just set my phone to be wifi hot spot - so it shares its 4G with whoever I let connect it. On my phone it just involves clicking on a button and thats it. It was a god send on my last holiday where the holiday cottage in Cornwell had no internet signal, but fortunately I managed to get 3G on my mobile.

 

You can actually download an app which lets you set rules, so for example, it automatically switches the wifi sharing on based on conditions - so for example if its automatically connected to your cars bluetooth, or if you have arrived at home (gps location), or even switched on by time.

[veeg33]

Maybe a little more hassle, but what I do when im on holiday is just set my phone to be wifi hot spot - so it shares its 4G with whoever I let connect it. On my phone it just involves clicking on a button and thats it. It was a god send on my last holiday where the holiday cottage in Cornwell had no internet signal, but fortunately I managed to get 3G on my mobile.

 

You can actually download an app which lets you set rules, so for example, it automatically switches the wifi sharing on based on conditions - so for example if its automatically connected to your cars bluetooth, or if you have arrived at home (gps location), or even switched on by time.

Sounds like I might get a cheap 4G smart phone and turn it into a Hotspot. Signal won't be great for a 2-storey house.

[Juggalo]

Anything Draytek that takes a 4G dongle, and you can't go wrong. For £100 you'll likely need to buy a second hand Draytek. They're very good, so not exactly cheap.

 

I run an entire chemical plant server room down in London off a EE 4G Sim connected to a Hauwei dongle, plugged into a Draytek 2860.

44MB download. No complaints since I installed it.

Are they easy to setup? Just plug it in and off you go?

 

Yeah, very.

Put your SIM in the dongle. USB to the Draytek. Dial into the Draytek, and tell the WAN to use USB

That's pretty much it.

[veeg33]

Anything Draytek that takes a 4G dongle, and you can't go wrong. For £100 you'll likely need to buy a second hand Draytek. They're very good, so not exactly cheap.

 

I run an entire chemical plant server room down in London off a EE 4G Sim connected to a Hauwei dongle, plugged into a Draytek 2860.

44MB download. No complaints since I installed it.

Are they easy to setup? Just plug it in and off you go?

 

Yeah, very.

Put your SIM in the dongle. USB to the Draytek. Dial into the Draytek, and tell the WAN to use USB

That's pretty much it.

Cheers mate. Just been to Ebay to search for it, brand new for £160 ish, seems a good buy as this can be used in future to boost my fibre optic wireless signal too. Will consider this.

[Juggalo]

Aye. You can't go wrong with a Draytek. Good kit

[Ekona]

Just get ADSL from whoever you're going to get fibre from. Sign up, then when fibre is available just upgrade

 

I did this with BT when I moved into my new place, got 16 days worth of ADSL before they activated my fibre connection.

[Stutopia]

I got one of these for working on the move and also it works in foreign places too, so good for local SIM on holibobs if you need to dodge roaming charges.

 

https://www.amazon.c...7038051_TE_dp_1

 

It's fairly decent and was easy to setup, used it on three and EE.

Is this strong enough for 2-story house?

 

Honestly don't know, I'm never more than 10 feet from it. I'll do some testing tonight

Thanks Stu. I suppose I can carry it around with me in the house if needed

 

I just had a wander round "testing", I get to about 30 feet before it drops off to 1 bar of 3 (used my phone, so not very scientific), that's through proper walls (bricks not board) and upstairs/downstairs. As you said, and as I do, it goes with me when I use it, so range isn't a concern.

 

To be honest though, if you don't need it to be genuinely mobile, I'd do what Dan or Juggalo says.

 

Buying a router is always a win, so long as you can set it up as either wifi range extender when you get one free with your fibre or as a switch. I've got one I use as a switch in another room and now have a wired connection far from my router for hooking up all the entertainment shizzle for TV, Sky and PlayStation.

 

You can't trust WiFi for non-mobile applications, it's just too invisible

[veeg33]

I got one of these for working on the move and also it works in foreign places too, so good for local SIM on holibobs if you need to dodge roaming charges.

 

https://www.amazon.c...7038051_TE_dp_1

 

It's fairly decent and was easy to setup, used it on three and EE.

Is this strong enough for 2-story house?

 

Honestly don't know, I'm never more than 10 feet from it. I'll do some testing tonight

Thanks Stu. I suppose I can carry it around with me in the house if needed

 

I just had a wander round "testing", I get to about 30 feet before it drops off to 1 bar of 3 (used my phone, so not very scientific), that's through proper walls (bricks not board) and upstairs/downstairs. As you said, and as I do, it goes with me when I use it, so range isn't a concern.

 

To be honest though, if you don't need it to be genuinely mobile, I'd do what Dan or Juggalo says.

 

Buying a router is always a win, so long as you can set it up as either wifi range extender when you get one free with your fibre or as a switch. I've got one I use as a switch in another room and now have a wired connection far from my router for hooking up all the entertainment shizzle for TV, Sky and PlayStation.

 

You can't trust WiFi for non-mobile applications, it's just too invisible

Thanks Stu! I'll most likely going to get Draytek or something similar that can take a sim card/dongle and in future used as a range extender.