r201
Latest
Vodafone R201 mobile WiFi hotspot review
Mobile broadband has come a long way since the early (and expensive) attempts at integrating 3G modules into laptops; today, cubicle dwellers are liberated by cheaper mobile data, along with the abundance of 3G dongles and the emerging mobile WiFi (ergo "MiFi") hotspot devices. It's no secret that Huawei's been flirting with both Three and Vodafone for some time, but it was only recently that the manufacturer also made a MiFi -- the R201 -- for Vodafone (the carrier's lesser-known MiFI 2352 in Spain is from Novatel). The question is: does this new HSPA MiFi have enough meat to steal the limelight from Three? Read on to find out.%Gallery-100673%
Vodafone launches R201 mobile WiFi hotspot in the UK, Three shrugs
Vodafone's no stranger to the mobile broadband scene, but until now, British road warriors have had to rely on Three for a mobile WiFi hotspot solution. Enter the R201 modem -- just as we heard in our exclusive leak last month, said device from Huawei can host a party of up to five WiFi devices, and it'll do HSDPA 7.2 Mbps plus HSUPA 5.76 Mbps for up to four hours on a single charge. Sadly, there's no pay-and-go option just yet, so buyers will have to live under Vodafone's roof for 18 months with a choice of three room sizes: £15 ($23.51), £20 ($31.34) or £25 ($39.18) for 3GB, 4GB and 5GB (with free device) of monthly bandwidth, respectively. It sure is a fair bit of investment here, so before you hit the buy button, be sure to keep an eye out for our forthcoming review later this week.
Vodafone's R201 mobile router has OLED display, microSD sharing
Novatel's MiFi line has set a standard for the way mobile 3G routers are expected to look and work, but let's be honest -- there's always room for improvement. We've been tipped today with word of Vodafone's R201 model sourced from Huawei, a device we've previously seen in the FCC with support for full HSPA. It'll handle up to five users at once -- pretty standard for these kinds of devices -- and feature an Overdrive-like OLED display up top and charging / tethering via micro-USB. That's not the neat part, though: it's said that the R201 will be the first mobile router to feature a microSD slot that can be shared among connected devices, effectively turning the whole setup into a micro-NAS. What say you, Novatel -- time for a MiFi 2? [Thanks, anonymous tipster]
