Aluratek 3G Portable Wireless USB Cellular Router

by Aluratek

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 2.8 inches ; 1.1 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B002FJZHWU
• Item model number: CDM530AM
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,861 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: June 30, 2009

Product Description

Are you still using “dial up” for an internet connection? Do you live in an area where Hi-Speed Cable or DSL are not an option? Would you like to create your own Wifi Hotspot anywhere? Aluratek introduces its new 3G/4G Cellular Modem Routers to allow you to get Hi-Speed internet Access anywhere you get a cellular signal. Simply insert your cellular 3G/4G modem air card into the router and you are all set. This is a perfect solution for setting up mobile work stations, providing internet access for cross country trips in a car/van/RV, First Responders creating an instant network, Conventions and tradeshows or traveling in groups and sharing a hotel floor and having internet access, boaters, and many others.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Quick, easy and totally cool, July 7, 2010

By 

David J. Elfering (Omaha, NE USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Aluratek 3G Portable Wireless USB Cellular Router (Personal Computers)

Being an "IT" guy I see gadgets and new stuff all the time. Frankly a lot of it is junk or simply an infatuation with the latest thing. This however turns out to be a useful tool if you need portable, high speed connectivity and happen to have a USB 3G card. I needed something for mobile connectivity in to work. Within 15 minutes of getting the Aluratek I had exactly that, and it worked perfectly with my client based VPN. Even when in a moving vehicle!

There aren't a lot of frills, its pretty much a simple firewall with the ability to utilize 3G cards for Internet access. One really nice feature with this cellular router versus another brand I also considered is the addition of a battery, as it opens a lot of possibilities and flexibility.

The price is right and since its a simple device that didn't require hours of tinkering or fussing.

2010-10-05 Follow up: Turns out that after figuring out how to update the device firmware, it also tethers very nicely with my Blackberry Curve 8530 simply by plugging it into the USB slot with the Blackberry cable. In fact the access was consistent faster via my Sprint USB stick (both are via Sprint). The firmware was not hard to find if you Google the Zalip CDM530AM.

There are times when the unit may not be quite as strong on signal strength as I would like, it must default to 25% wifi signal when running off of battery and resetting it higher requires a router reboot. In spite of that I kept the rating at five stars due to ease of use and overall reliability. The unit fits into a small pocket of a computer bag and is easy to carry with you. The battery lasts at least several hours and that's sufficient for most purposes, and not much worse than my Blackberry 8530 when using it via bluetooth tethering.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Works Excellent!!!!, June 21, 2010

By 

JOSE IDROBO "JL" (Cali, Colombia) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Aluratek 3G Portable Wireless USB Cellular Router (Personal Computers)

Works excellent. Just connect and follow instructions. Now I can use my iphone, ipad & my laptop sharing the same 3G internet connection.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good, but not great - NOT UPGRADABLE, September 28, 2010

By 

Eddie "gadget buyer" (Zion Crossroads, va, United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Aluratek 3G Portable Wireless USB Cellular Router (Personal Computers)

I bought one of these and I have used it for about three weeks.

A few observations:

It is pretty easy to configure. One thing - make sure it supports your particular 3g device because it is not upgradable. In that I mean, you can't upgrade the firmware for future sticks.

It is a little flacky. It may go for several minutes, and then you have to press the reset button on the side to make it work again.

I have no idea where central "support" is on this rig. On some websites is is listed as zaplink - and that is what is on my box. On Amazon it is Aluratek. If you go to Aluratek website, and click support - a webpage pops up and says "coming".

If you have the money, save up and get the cradlepoint sh300. It is a much better rig, albeit, more expensive. I bought this one as I was in a hurry, and Tiger Direct, who has the sh300 said there was a 4 week wait. Funny, although Amazon said this was in stock, it was about 2 weeks before they shipped it out.

So in summary, it is good, works ok, has pretty good battery life, but nothing great. The bad is that it is not upgradable, there is no support, is it a zaplink or is it an Aluratek? Who knows.