I recently bought a Cradlepoint CTR500 Personal Wi-Fi Hotspot for use with my new Sprint Compass 597 EV-DO modem. It’s a small, portable router that can be used with EV-DO and other cellular broadband devices (both USB and ExpressCard) to easily setup a secure, mobile wi-fi network. In addition to using it for a portable wi-fi, I’ve also set it with my local network via ethernet to use as a backup connection when my ISP is down. I must say that this is a really awesome little device.
Here’s the CTR500 using a Verizon v740 ExpressCard.
For more info, check out EVDOinfo.com’s review of the Cradlepoint CTR500.
See Previously:
- Sierra Wireless Compass 597 EV-DO USB Modem on Sprint
- Kyocera KR1 Mobile EV-DO Router
photo by Scott Beale
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- Verizon’s Novatel V640 EV-DO ExpressCard
- Mobilize 09, The Future of The Mobile Web
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
That is a nice looking device does it handle multiple connections to it well. ie; if your ISP is down and your desktop and a couple of laptops are connected at the same time?
the CTR500 has a cool failover feature that not only will work from cable/dsl to EVDO, but also from EVDO to EVDO or EVDO to HSDPA.
check out this cool video demo of the CTR500 failover feature, between a verizon expresscard and a sprint compass 597: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9Zv-94ydC8
Most people already have the necessary hardware to create a mobile hotspot.
- 3g Phone with USB DUN or Bluetooth DUN or PAN
- Laptop with Wifi
When I went to Disneyland and didn’t want to pay for wifi at the hotel, I just tethered my 3g phone to my laptop and shared that connection over wifi to my familly, so they could play their PSP’s.
I go camping a lot and occasionally my friends and I will sit around at the campsite with our laptops. The cradlepoint would be a great way for us all to use a single EVDO connection for all of our laptops. Currently one of us would use the EVDO connection with a single laptop and share it over Wifi but I think this would be a more elegant solution.
I bought one of these buggers because it was Squid Approved and could not be happier. ESSENTIAL nerd gear.