Alcatel LinkZone 4G 150 Mbps Wi-Fi Hotspot Router – Black

Product Information

O2 specifically is a good choice for mobile broadband because it has around 99% UK population coverage with 4G, along with a rapidly growing 5G network. You also have the option to build a custom plan, with exactly the right balance of data, price, and duration. What devices are available on O2 mobile broadband? O2 Mobile Broadband devices At the time of writing there aren’t a huge number of 5G mobile Wi-Fi dongles available, but there are a few, and these are better than the 4G options as they support higher data speeds. EE 5G WiFi In any case, with one of these mobile Wi-Fi dongles you’ll be able to connect any device that supports Wi-Fi to the internet wherever you are, as long as there’s a mobile signal (which there is in the vast majority of the UK and most other countries), so they’re extremely useful gadgets to have.

To use a dongle you’ll also need to insert a SIM card loaded up with a data allowance. If you buy a dongle from a mobile network, then this will typically come bundled with it. Plus, even if public Wi-Fi is available, this isn’t an ideal option. You’ll often have to register, which can be a hassle and mean sharing details you might rather not. Sometimes there are costs involved, often the speeds are slow, and public Wi-Fi is also far less secure than mobile broadband. Yes, Three, Vodafone and O2 all offer one-month mobile broadband plans with unlimited data at the time of writing. You can see just these by changing the data dropdown above to ‘unlimited’. Frequently asked questions What is mobile broadband? Finally, there’s the Alcatel Dongle 4G. This is a bit different because rather than being battery powered, you plug it into a laptop and it’s powered by that. It also doesn’t beam out a Wi-Fi network – it just brings Wi-Fi to the device it’s plugged into. This is a great compact solution if you just want to get a single laptop online, but it’s less versatile than the other options. O2 mobile coverage

Yes, it’s possible to get a dongle on a plan with unlimited data. You can also choose to get a lower data limit though and thereby pay less per month. It’s worth figuring out how much data you need. Is a dongle easy to set up?

The coverage still isn’t perfect. The leading operator (EE) has made decent inroads and currently provides over 92% of the UK population with 4G, but that still leaves a number of areas which won’t get a 4G signal. While O2 is currently hovering around 70%, Vodafone’s last update put it at 68% and Three’s coverage is at around 63%. It’s battery powered, so it doesn’t need plugging in itself, and its 2,150mAh battery offers 8 hours of active usage time, so it can see you through a full work day. If you’re not using it then you’ll get up to 300 hours of standby time. However, you can only leverage those speeds if you have a 5G mobile broadband device and are in an area with 5G mobile broadband. What’s so good about mobile broadband?

FAQs

These clever devices take a single mobile broadband connection and broadcast it over a personal WiFi network meaning you can connect up to 10 WiFI-enabled devices at once.All of the Mobile WiFi devices below also enable you to connect to your PC or laptop using a USB cable. Note that while we've analyzed and rated the technical performance of each hotspot, we haven't touched upon the running costs, which will vary according to your provider. As with smartphone SIM cards, you'll need a data contract and pay for the service, either a monthly rolling contract or a pay-as-you-go SIM, which can be a more affordable choice if you only need to use these devices sporadically.

Mobile broadband enables you to stay connected to the internet at home, on the move and even in your car and better still you don't need a landline or even a contract to get switched on. All you need is a mobile broadband dongle or Mobile WiFi device and away you go! So as long as you remember to charge it, the only barrier to a fast internet connection (with speeds of up to 300Mbps supported) is whether you have mobile signal, as this needs a 4G or 3G signal to work. Fortunately, the vast majority of the UK (and most other countries) has widespread 4G and 3G coverage. A mobile Wi-Fi router is much more versatile in that it supports numerous simultaneous connections wirelessly, and doesn’t need plugging into anything. However, these devices are typically larger, often more expensive, and they’re battery powered, so will eventually need charging. Frequently Asked Questions Do I need to plug a dongle in? These rolling contracts can be changed or cancelled at essentially any time, so they’re seriously flexible. Plus, a number of different networks offer them, complete with different mobile broadband devices and allowances. Which networks offer one-month mobile broadband plans? Its top such device is the Netgear Nighthawk M6, which is the only one of these to support 5G. As such, you’ll get far higher speeds with the Netgear Nighthawk M6 than with the other O2 mobile broadband devices.Browsing on mobile broadband is now faster than ever thanks to a new breed of 4G mobile broadband dongles that take full advantage of the new faster 4G networks offered by UK operators. In many cases it can offer faster speeds than a fixed line broadband connection and also reach areas that fixed line broadband cannot. Mobile broadband helps you get your various gadgets online anywhere – all that’s needed is a mobile signal for your mobile broadband device to connect to. These devices are either battery powered or plug directly into the gadget they’re bringing internet to, so there’s no need for mains power.