This is a review of the latest Mi-Fi, aka mobile Wi-Fi, from 3. It’s an Huawei E568 device. If you’ve not heard of Huawei before, don’t worry, they’re a significant brand in this space. In fact, my 3G dongle I have from work is branded in the colours of a mobile network but my laptop recognises it as a Huawei.
Mi-Fi reviewing can be a challenge. So; here’s the summary:
-
- It works
- It’s surprisingly fast
It took me seconds to set up from the box. It was a case of slipping in the 3 SIM card, popping in the battery, testing to see whether there was any juice – no, so I plugged in the charger, pressed the power again and was in action. Easy. It’s also worth noting that this is not one of those mobile devices you need to be a master-thief in order to get into. The back does not fall away with alarming ease but it’s simple enough to flip open and get to the battery.
The device comes with security in mind. Okay; there is a default password on the web interface that’s easy to guess but you need to be in the network to access that in the first place. The device itself has a small screen which is used to show you, on request, the SSID (in case there are more than one modems around) and passkey. Given the number of smashed iPhone screens I’ve seen this week – I would suspect the wise owner writes the details down.
The device is about the size I expected. That’s to say this is pocket sized but not tiny. I wouldn’t begrudge the weight of it in my laptop bag but it couldn’t go in the same pocket as my phone.
There’s a handy cradle for desk use too. Actually, I’m not sure how handy the cradle is – I can’t imagine many people would want to carry the cradle around and I doubt they’d need mobile wi-fi while they’re at home. I found the cradle was prone to falling backwards too as I tested it on typical hotel surfaces (ie, the side of the bed). I found the modem didn’t quite slot into the cradle nicely either; it was as if the USB connector wasn’t quite the right shape.
The two main surprises with the modem are two good ones; speed and range.
It’s pretty easy to test the range of a Mi-Fi device; fling it in the corner and run away until your mobile phone looses signal. I had to leave the flat and start stalking down the apartment stairs – don’t worry, the neighbours are used to such antics by now. I don’t think you really need that an impressive range with a mi-fi option but should you want to have a group of friends around with PSPs then you can certainly all lounge around the room and hook onto a single modem.
The speed was pretty good too. This will please 3 – although, yeah, the challenge with mobile connections is that they’re situational. I get good 3 reception here in Edinburgh. I’m certain if I had tried to use it on the speedy train up north to Dundee that I’d encounter black spots and frustration. I took advance of the YouTube Speed Test to probe the 3 Wi-Fi and found the video would play easily and happily in the default 360p range. Yes, bumping up to 720p HD killed it dead. It’s not a thorough test until you find a way to kill it dead.
A risk with a speedy mobile access internet devices, especially if you have visiting friends with PSPs, is that you might start to gobble through data. This might be expensive. Let’s not talk about the cost of data in the UK or roaming charges. Instead, let’s focus on the web interface that 3 provides to be as transparent on the data as possible. You can see your (estimated) usage and you can see which devices have connected to your modem.
The 3 Mobile Wi-Fi is a clear choice for business travellers; people who need to stay online even if they end up in a backwards hotel (or a modern one that charges £15 per night for the internet). I’d also suggest that the device might well suit mobile gamers who want to cut or share costs; rather than have lots of devices access the net at once the single 3 modem can be used and the devices access it. My Android is able to act as a hotspot – but most smartphones come hobbled and it is hard to imagine that changing in the near future.
In summary; if you know you need fast internet access and need it on the move then a device like 3’s Mi-Fi is a must – and this particular device is a very strong contendor.
Disclaimer: The mobile wi-fi unit tested for this review was provided by 3 and returned afterwards. No money exchanged hands and there was no expectation of a positive review. No robots were harmed for this blog post.
