5 Best 4g lte wifi routers in 2021: Pros & Cons

This article will consider a fairly detailed overview of products on the market for providing 3G / 4G 4g lte wifi router to the private sector – summer cottages, country houses, cottages. The article has been updated for 2021.

Types of Internet signal 4g lte wifi router:

1. Antenna with built-in 4G modem

In 2011-2012, when the development of 3G wireless Internet began, antennas with a built-in modem appeared on the market. Now the price is approximately few dollars together with a modem. 

Pros:

1. there are no losses on the coaxial cable, which affect the speed of the Internet
2. flexible cable
3. the price is quite low
4. Fast internet if the antenna is of good quality

Cons:

1.  If the router is on the second floor or attic, then this only evokes certain emotions
2. Just because of this problem, the next generation of antennas with a built-in modem and 4g lte wifi router appeared
3. The seller can slip an old 3G modem. The older the model, the slower the internet will work. When buying, this point is highly recommended to check.

2. Antenna with a built-in router and modem:

Pros:

1. The cable from the antenna can be up to 80 meters long! 
2. This is very convenient in some cases! Power and signal are supplied over the same cable.
3. Connectors at the ends of the RG-45 cable.
4.  As a rule, many have a crimping tool. 
5. That is, you do not need to ream the wall or window frame with large drill diameters to fit the size of the connector

Cons:

Many sellers claim that everything is sealed and the 4g lte wifi router heats itself. And it really works in winter. BUT the worst thing is a cold start, this is when electricity is cut off in winter at -20 C, the router cools down, and then power is supplied and a breakdown occurs. 

Regarding the upper temperature bar of +40 C – in the summer in the sun in an enclosed space with a router that heats up from work, the temperature reaches more than 60 C. Both photographs are exactly the already inoperative antennas, which we eventually replaced.

4. Antenna connected to the router / modem

It is also a fairly popular option when the router and modem are indoors, and the4g lte wifi router is placed outside.  Pros:

1. Maximum reliability. Only a passive antenna is used outdoors, which will not be affected by various weather conditions.
2. Fast internet with correct installation. The result of testing just such a kit in this article will be shown below.

Cons:

1. The cable length is limited. Recommended up to 12 meters if the cable is 8D-FB. If the cable is thinner, the speed loss will be more noticeable. 
2. With each additional meter, the speed drops slightly.
3. Inconvenience of installation. In ready-made cable assemblies, the connector is N-type and its diameter is 20 mm, which makes it difficult to lay the cable inside the room. 
4. The solution is to make 1 connector yourself using a special tool or a soldering iron.
5.  Also, connectors are of a smaller diameter, but they are usually used only for a thinner cable.
6. Using a thick cable. 8D-FB cable has a cross-section of 11.1 mm and you cannot hide such a cable in a skirting board.

5. Antenna with built-in 3G / 4G (LTE) router of factory design

4G LTE outdoor router with built-in 4g lte wifi router, the price is approximately 9-12 thousand.

Pros:

1. Cable length up to 80 meters! Signal and power are supplied over the same cable using POE technology.
2. Flexible cable.
3. Maximum internet speed. Supports MIMO technology. 
4. No other set will give you a higher speed.
5. The antenna supports absolutely all frequencies from 700 to 2700 MHz and all 2G, 3G and 4G standards.
6. Stability of work at any temperature from -30 to +50 degrees. 

 Cons:

1. 1. It is inconvenient to change the SIM card. As a matter of fact, it is not a fact that you will need to do this ever.
   1. 2. Not revealed yet 🙂 Perhaps the price will not seem the cheapest.

4G router – everything is possible with it

It does not have a battery, but it will provide you with the Internet wherever there is electricity. That is, practically everywhere. The principle of operation is the same: insert the SIM card into the router – and you are online.

The main advantage of a 4g lte wifi router is its portability. You go out of town in the summer, to your dacha, take a router with you – and that’s it: no worries, additional contracts and cables.

4g lte wifi router

Weight in this case does not matter, because a 4G router is usually not carried with you. But for long departures from home and moving to a new place, it is perfect. Its maximum internet speed is the same as that of a pocket router – up to 300-600 Mbps. But at the same time, there is one pleasant difference: through a 4G router, many more devices can be connected to the Internet at the same time.

If possible, switch your router to the 5 GHz frequency band. It will give you much higher speeds than the typical 2.4GHz (this range is often congested in apartment buildings). Switching to 5 GHz allows you to sharply, up to 10 times, increase the speed of the Internet. For the author of this article, it jumped from 18 to 180 Mbps!

Cable router – a classic of the genre

Such 4g lte wifi router have probably been gathering dust in the basements of half of Estonia’s residents for a long time, so we will not discuss this, perhaps not flexible, option associated with laying an Internet cable into a house, apartment or office. In the old days, a cable router worked in tandem with a modem.

To put it simply, the modem was responsible for the delivery of the Internet, and the router was responsible for its further distribution. Modern routers already operate on a two-in-one basis.