Netgear Unite Pro 4G LTE Mobile WiFi Hotspot - GSM Unlocked

I ordered this for my bride (Meeting Planner), so she can work remotely in 4/5 star hotels (breakout and conference rooms), where WiFi is not as "guaranteed" or as "reliable" as hotels claim. I got the more expensive "unlocked" version, so she can pop in a foreign SIM card and use it "across the pond", Asia or Middle East. It takes the middle-of-the-road size SIM, not the full or micro size SIM.I added this to my Consumer Cellular account (sharing data for an extra $10/month), by ordering a spare CC 3-in-1 SIM online (free with USPS Priority postage 2 day delivery), and using the 192.168.1.1 default address to configure the APN (CCDATA in my case), as well as the hotspot names and passwords. Default user was "admin" and default password was "attadmin", which was quickly changed. There were no manuals, but it did have a quick reference card. Who needs manuals anyway? This links with 4G/LTE and HPSA networks (including T-mobile bands), so you are in a better position to handle variable cellular carriers, services and networks.I wish it had built in AC-class Wifi instead of N-class, but it delivers 300mps, which is stable and acceptable. There is supposed to be a 2016 firmware available thru a AT&T FOTA update, but it hasn't updated itself yet. I don't know if it really needs the update, as it's working perfectly with the 2014 firmware.I've now ordered another for my bride's business partner; who uses her laptop while waiting for her kids at school or at school sporting events.I've also ordered a 35db external Cellular/WiFi antenna (6ft cable) for both units, just-in-case cell signal is low in a building, or if they need to place the hotspot near an exterior wall/window, and use their laptops in another room. These babies even work flawlessly in airports, where you usually pay $20 for substandard (at best) WiFi, or risk using an "open" free WiFi service. Got a dozen road warriors with laptops and tablets complaining about WiFi? Turn this loose and shut them up!The Netgear battery is HUGE, but I wouldn't suggest charging a cell phone off the hotspot, even though they say you can. I would suggest turning off the main screen displaying the hotspot name and password!What more can I say as an endorsement? I like it so much, I ordered another! Maybe I'd order a second battery in a year, and get a + style multi-band combo antenna (AMAKE version). Because the AC-USB adapter is deep, these hotspots need a flexible or larger case than the hardshell ones suggested on Amazon. Pick up a case at a local retailer; once you know everything fits safely.I do suggest setting up your new laptop or tablet network connections as "metered" connections, and limit background processes (Outlook, Dropbox, updates, facebook, twitter, syncing, etc) to keep data usage down a bit.There is a G class (2.5ghz) secondary band available as well, so you can even link up to devices farther away, or connect to older B/G Wifi printers, etc. Anyone still using tablets with older G-class Wifi? This has you covered.You could spend the $40 or $80 for the same device (locked?) under a contract (AT&T, T-mobile or US Cellular), but I decided to bite a bigger upfront cost and adjust my monthly data charge up or down as the need arises (which Consumer Cellular allows). I pay $20 per month more for the 2 devices, and anywhere from $0 to $30 extra depending on the data used that month (up to a max of 4gig). That's a max of $50 total for TWO cellular WiFi hotspots!!!This beats anything the networks are doling out with strings attached or with haphazard "pay as you go" plans. 5G and AC versions will roll out but that will take a couple years. Enjoy!

It works flawlessly with Straight Talk SIM . But it does not work with my at&t SIM. I was unable to figure out how to make at&t card works. I tried resetting the device, reboot and tried to register at&t SIM. This device does not want to recognize my old at&t SIM that I have been using for my iphone. The main reason I bought this device is to use it with at&t carrier since I like their wide range of area coverage. I would have given a 4 star rating otherwise. Battery save mode is good feature that makes longer hours use. Now I end up using this device with Straight Talk SIM card I bought from Walmart ($45 10gb taxt and data) I found no issues setting up its SIM. Please give me advice if anyone know how to make att card works with it.

Este aparato me ayudó a estar conectado desde cualquier área, es súper potente y como de llevar.

I'm very impressed with this device (non AT&T market-speak model is called the Netgear AirCard 781S). Bandwidth on AT&T's network is truly insane. I have seen a 50ms ping, a 25+ Mbps downstream and 7-8 Mbps upstream connection (via ookla speedtest). This is on par (or beats) most personal home Internet connections. Enormous battery, lasts days of use. Has a powerful radio and a good set of features. You can crank up the WiFi transmission power and protocol (5GHz, to avoid interference with bluetooth and cordless phones) and the encryption (WPA2 personal). It supports up to 15 concurrent client connections and has two Wifi radios (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz). You can turn either one, or both, on. You also have the option of setting one of these to be a guest access point for people you don't want to isolate on their own network (neat trick for a little device). Doing so precludes you from using that radio on the same network as the other radio's network though (i.e. each radio can belong to only one subnet).I was surprised to see was that it tells me my usage, allocation, and days left in my monthly plan right on the front of the touchscreen. I was quite pleased with that. The demo pictures seen in the image photos are actually real. You really do get a green usage meter so you know how much you have left in your plan and how many days you have to make it last for. That's awesome!The other really nice thing is that this device has, not just one, but two antenna ports for getting a stronger signal in poor coverage areas. These would be compatible with the omnidirectional or yagi antennas. I haven't tested it with either of these yet, but it's very nice to have this option as I haven't seen antenna connectors on most hotspots.Performance/security tuning notes. I've noticed that it seems to go to wifi standby mode often even when a device is connected (but not actively using bandwidth). That's a little annoying, so I turned off that feature that was enabled by default. Unless you're going to plug it in to USB constantly, it's not meant to be running 24/7. It also seems to perform better with just the primary radio running, so if you can get away with it, just crank the primary radio to 5GHz and turn off the secondary radio. If you want the most reliable performance, plug in the USB cable and use it as a USB network device (works transparently with mac/linux). It doesn't have WPA2 enabled by default, but tweak it so that it is.AT&T might be a price gouger compared to more affordable service providers (e.g. check out Ting if you want to really save money). However, I needed the fastest wireless I could get and Sprint (which is what Ting runs on) only offered 3G in the specific site that I needed coverage. Alas, I had to fork over far too much to AT&T for this thing's service, but at least it works. Of note, I don't do contracts, so I paid full price for this and it was relatively straightforward to get AT&T to give me a plan for it.

Everything worked great and just like brand new as promised.

I purchased this item because in general Netgear is an excellent brand. I've owned Netgear devices before and they are very good. For some reason this device has something wrong with it since it boots up on its own several times, this means I will loose connection over and over.I tried resetting the device to factory settings, that didn't work. I tried updating the software, that didn't work. I got the impression this item was refurbished and not new because of the packaging. It look very odd. Any way, when I decided to place a Claim, the 30 day period had expired and now I am stuck with a useless piece of junk.