MiFi 500 LTE by Novatel Wireless (Sprint)

Pros Removable battery. Solid Wi-Fi range. Supports Sprint's new tri-band LTE network.

Cons Very basic on-device display. No external antenna port. No global roaming support. Bottom Line The Sprint MiFi 500 is a solid workhorse wireless hotspot for Sprint's new tri-band LTE network.

By Sascha Segan

Need a solid, workhorse hotspot to use on Sprint's network? The Novatel MiFi 500 LTE (free with contract) is a reliable choice, besting its main competitor the Netgear Zing on our tests of speed and range. The Zing beats it out for an Editor's Choice based on its flexibility (especially with its optional desktop cradle), but the MiFi 500 is the one to go to if you need to blanket a larger area with Sprint Wi-Fi.

Physical Features and Management
The MiFi 500 LTE is a nondescript little brick, when compared to the zingy Zing. It's a plastic puck, 3.8 by 2.4 by .7" (HWD) and 3.35 ounces, made of shiny black plastic on top and soft-touch gray plastic around the sides. The back is removable, so you can replace the 1800mAh battery; I haven't found replacement batteries on the market yet, but I'm sure they're coming. The MiFi lacks an external antenna port.

There's a big gray power button on the top face, as well as a few physical navigation buttons. Hit the power button and the dim little OLED screen lights up with signal strength and battery indicators. By flipping through onscreen menus, you can find the Wi-Fi network name and password, check which devices are connected to the hotspot, check signal strength in dBm, and activate WPS setup.

You get many more management options on the simple, clear Web-based management portal. There, you can monitor your data usage, and set up your 2.4GHz-only 802.11 b/g/n network using VPN passthrough, DMZ, port filtering, and port forwarding.

The MiFi supports up to 10 Wi-Fi devices and can connect to an eleventh as a USB modem; plugging it into a Mac or PC it works right away, without installing any drivers. With an extra driver, it gives your PC GPS support.

The MiFi 500, unlike the Zing, is not world-capable. It only works on Sprint's 3G EVDO and tri-band LTE networks. Also note that Sprint's "unlimited" sales pitch doesn't apply to hotspots; all hotspot plans are capped, costing $34.99 for 3GB, $49.99 for 6GB or $79.99 for 12GB.

Performance
Testing Sprint's new LTE network in New York City is an exercise in frustration. It's spotty and inconsistent, strongest in remote parts of the Bronx and Brooklyn. I had to use the Sensorly mapping app to find individual towers that Sprint had activated in Manhattan and Queens, and even then, the network showed a weird behavior with upload tests truncating early.

The reason to buy the new MiFi and Zing is that they support Sprint's new tri-band approach to LTE. Sprint has been taking its existing 1900MHz LTE network and supplementing it with 800MHz, which does much better at penetrating buildings, and 2600MHz, which should provide scorching speed in urban areas. Unfortunately, Sprint's buildout there is even less developed than their 1900MHz buildout, and we haven't had a chance to test the mixed coverage.

But you get what you get, and you try not to get upset. We tested LTE with the MiFi and Zing in five locations. In three of them, the MiFi was considerably faster. In one, the Zing prevailed, and in the last one, the MiFi dropped to 3G while the Zing pulled out decent LTE speeds.

Indoors, the MiFi showed much better range than the Zing. While the Zing's speeds started to drop off after about 50 feet, the MiFi held on well to about 100 feet.

The Zing also showed slightly longer battery life than the MiFi—although remember, the MiFi's battery life really wins because the battery is replaceable. I got 7 hours, 40 minutes with the MiFi compared to 7 hours, 55 minutes with the Zing.

Conclusions
If you're looking for a Sprint hotspot and need long WiFi range without a cradle, the MiFi 500 is your pick. The Netgear Zing is more manageable and flexible, it roams worldwide, and it supports external antennas, so it's a better choice for most people.

If you have a Sierra Wireless Tri-Fi, I'd say hold onto it for now. Sprint just hasn't built out enough of its tri-band LTE network for the advantages to kick in quite yet. I'd peg early 2014 for when these hotspots will start opening up speed and coverage advantages over the Tri-Fi.

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Amped Wireless High Power 600mW Compact Wi-Fi Range Extender (REC10)

Amped Wireless is not as well known a wireless device manufacturer as D-Link or Netgear, but the company continues to put out some impressive consumer networking hardware. Not everything we test from Amped Wireless is a hit, but we are increasingly seeing excellent offerings, such as this Amped Wireless High Power 600mW Compact Wi-Fi Range Extender (REC10).

The wireless signal booster did not extend a signal quite as far in testing as our current Editors' Choice, D-Link's Wireless Range Extender DAP-1320. However, the REC10 did a good job extending a Wi-Fi network and is one of the most feature-rich range extender/signal boosters we've tested. These advanced capabilities go beyond what your typical wireless extender offers, making this signal booster more intriguing for power users.

Specs
The REC10 is a single-band extender (it only extends the 2.4 GHz band, as do most extenders, since the 2.4 band is capable of longer range), and it supports up to a theoretical 300 Mbps transmit/receive rate. This compact extender plugs right into an electrical outlet. It's got that same kind of plug-in design as D-Link's DAP-1320. The REC10 is a bit flatter than the DAP-1320 and sits more flush against a wall or outlet plate because it's thinner, measuring 2.75 by 4 by 1 inches (HWD).

The device has dual 600mW amplifiers to help boost a Wi-Fi signal. There is also a detachable high-gain 2dBi antenna which screws to the top. Inside is yet another high-gain antenna. The vendor's specifications state that the REC10 can cover up to 6500 square feet.

One hardware feature the REC10 has that D-Link's extender lacks is an Ethernet port. This can be  also add bridging functionality to the extender, for attaching a device like a server or a printer. That port alone may be enough to make you choose the REC10 over the DAP-1320. My only issue is that it's only Fast Ethernet with 10/100 speeds and not Gigabit Ethernet, which is the standard these days.

At the bottom of the REC10 are WPS and reset button. The device supports Windows wireless printing, HP AirPlay, and Apple AirPrint Home Sharing so it can be used in mixed Apple and Windows networks. 

Setup
The REC10 ships with a setup guide and a CD that contains a user manual and an installation video. Amped Wireless does a good job with all the products I've tested in providing clear and detailed setup instructions.

The setup guide first recommends placing the extender midway between your router and the area your wireless clients starts to lose connectivity. Once you plug the device into an outlet, the Amped Wireless logo on the front glows white.

After it's plugged in, you simply connect to the default, unsecured SSID the extender is already configured with, "Amped_REC10." Then, fire up a browser to setup.ampedwireless.com to configure the extender. Again, Amped Wireless does a fine job with consistency in setup across its product line. The setup process is essentially the same no matter which product you install: a booster, router, bridge … and so on.  The documentation does caution you to use Chrome, Safari, or IE (8 and later) for the browser-based setup and not Firefox.

I tested the REC10's ability to extend a Western Digital My Net 900 router's wireless network. It's important that these extenders work with third-party networking equipment; otherwise they are not of much value. Few consumers have only one vendor's networking equipment deployed throughout their home networks. The REC10 worked well with the Western Digital router.

The browser-based setup opens to the Dashboard. This is a central console where you can configure the extender and view status information. To extend a wireless network, click the Scan button.  A list of all wireless networks in range appears within the Dashboard. These networks are displayed by SSID, channel, 802.11x level, security and encryption type, and signal strength.

You then select the network you want to extend by clicking a radio button next to each network listed. This starts a wizard that walks a user through extending a network. You're then prompted to click Next. If your network has a security passphrase, you have to enter it on this screen. Click Next again and the following screen allows you to clone settings from your wireless network, such as SSID and security, with a button click.  You can keep a separate SSID and security set just for the extender. Most users will want to clone. When you clone, the SSID for the extender is given the same SSID as the network you are connecting it to, except "RE" is appended at the end of the extender's SSID.

The last step, as in most of the Amped Wireless devices I test, is to apply settings which took 149 seconds in my testing. Amped Wireless devices tend to have long settings change and reboot times. Comparable devices can often apply the same changes in under 60 seconds, so the REC10's reboot is a bit lengthy.

After the network is extended, the client used for setup is disconnected from the wireless network. I like that the software has an on-screen message indicating the connection drop and also the fact that there is a  drop-down menu within the interface that shows you how to reconnect based on your device's operating system.

Features
I mentioned earlier, the REC10 has one of, if not the most, extensive feature sets of any wireless extender we've tested in the lab. It's on par feature-wise with an access point. These features allow introduction of more advanced capabilities into a wireless network—even if the network has a lower-end router which does not have the same capabilities.

Among the REC10's capabilities are a number of "Smart Features"—as they are described in the interface. Smart Features include Access Schedule: You can set when the extender's Wi-Fi is enabled or disabled by day and time. Remember, this will only set a schedule for wireless clients connected to the extender's SSID, even if settings were cloned from the router.  User access control based on MAC address is another feature.

You can also adjust the output power to limit wireless coverage. You would want to do this if you are trying to limit how far geographically your SSID can be viewed by others. It's also a good way to save on power usage if you are covering a smaller space. By default, the output is set to 100 percent and most users would be advised to leave the default.

Guest networking, WPS, WPA, and WPA2 are all supported. The interface allows for performing device management too, such as reviewing device status and network statistics (for example, amount of packets sent and received), setting up system logging, upgrading firmware, and backing up and restoring the REC10's settings.

Amped Wireless always offers a sharp, consistent, well-designed, easy-to-navigate interface across its product line. As with other devices I've tested from this Amped Wireless, there is plenty of help within the interface. A tab in the upper-right corner provides contextual help and tips as you move through different settings in the interface.

Performance
The REC10 provided decent coverage in our very heavy-interference testing environment. It's not the best we've seen as far as covering at long distance. That distinction goes to D-Link's DAP-1320 and the BearExtender PC Long Range 802.11n USB WiFi Booster both of which managed to register throughput at distances of over 100 feet away from a router using the Ixia IxChariot utility's throughput test.

Even at 100 feet, however, though Ixia could not pick up a signal from the extender, I was still able to browse the Web—albeit rather slowly, from a client connected at 100 feet. It wasn't until I was 150 feet way that my connection to the extended network dropped.

I test these extenders not only at distance from the router, but through glass doors and a couple of sheet-rocked walls. It's a demanding test, and the REC10 did well overall.
Click the image for performance comparisons to other range extenders.

 Very Good Extender with Extensive Features
The Amped REC10 is a very good Wi-Fi extender. What pushes it to excellence is its easy setup, Ethernet port (although Gigabit would be preferable over Fast Ethernet), and advanced features. It's a four out of five star earner among range extenders. If you are looking for a range extender that also has advanced features plus an Ethernet port, the REC10 is a good bet. If you are just looking for an extender that's dead-simple to set up and that can cover quite a large area, check out our Editors' Choice, the D-Link DAP-1320.

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Casio G'zOne Commando 4G LTE (Verizon Wireless)

Pros Rugged build. Excellent call quality. Cool travel apps and features.

Cons Dated software. Poor video camera. Mid-range specs and display. Bottom Line The Casio G'zOne Commando 4G LTE is a super-tough smartphone for Verizon Wireless spelunkers, but of less interest for everyone else.

By Alex Colon

Do you enjoy long walks on the beach, poolside afternoons with a glass of sun tea, and moonlit strolls through the woods? That's great, but none of those are particularly good places to bring your phone. Think about it—one slip into the sand, one dip into the water, or one flip onto a star-kissed pebble, and it might be time to replace your precious device. And the risk is even greater if you work in a physical environment or like to spend your free time hiking and biking. But you won't need to worry as much if you carry the $99.99 Casio G'zOne Commando 4G LTE. The Commando 4G LTE is a super-tough smartphone, built for Verizon users more likely to go spelunking than to Sandals. It does what it sets out to do rather well, though it very clearly isn't for everybody.

Design and Call Quality
Let's get this out of the way: The Commando 4G LTE has a design you will either love or hate. I fall into the latter category, and I suspect many other people will as well—unless you like your smartphone to look like construction gear, that is. The phone is encased in a thick rubberized shell, with an angular chin, metallic red accents, and lots of exposed, stylized screws. It's like the phone equivalent of an auto parts store. To each their own.

Rugged phones often get the hyper-masculine treatment, which I suspect limits their appeal considerably. I'm pretty sure there's a way for manufacturers to design these phones more elegantly, and we've seen some sleek water-resistant phones lately, like the Samsung Galaxy S 4 Active and the Sony Xperia Z, but you're still stuck with designs like this if you want to go the full monty. So first make sure the Commando looks appealing to you before you continue reading.

Of course, all that rubber would be put to waste if it didn't serve up some serious protection. Thankfully, the Commando meets military standards for 810G certification. That means it can withstand drops, dust, shock, and water. I submerged it in a pitcher of water, and dropped it on the floor of the PCMag Labs a number of times, all without the phone getting scratched or waterlogged. For the water-resistance to work, you need to make sure all of the exterior ports are covered, and the back panel is securely locked in place; once it's unlocked, the phone's battery is locked in a second time for additional security. So you can take comfort in knowing this phone is built to handle a day at the beach or at a construction site in equal measure.

The phone measures 5.11 by 2.68 by 0.54 inches (HWD) and weighs 6.17 ounces. It's pretty bulky, but it's a good size for one-handed use. There's a Power button on the top edge of the phone, along with a covered headphone jack. A covered power port sits on the right, with Volume buttons and a programmable Tactile key on the left. If you need to use the phone while wearing gloves, a Glove Mode app makes it easy to read text messages and notifications, check voicemail, make calls, and take pictures while wearing gloves up to 0.07 inches thick.

The 4-inch, 800-by-480-pixel TFT LCD is serviceable. It looks reasonably sharp and bright, but it's got nothing on most new phones screens, which, at this price, are often larger and feature a higher resolution. The on-screen keyboard is a little small, but I had no trouble typing on it.

The Commando supports Verizon 4G LTE as well as dual-band EV-DO Rev. A. It also supports quad-band GSM and HSPA/UMTS so you can use it in over 205 countries across the world. It can be used as a mobile hotspot to provide a connection to up to 10 devices with the proper service plan, and it supports 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi. LTE data speeds were fine where I tested the phone in Manhattan, but nothing to write home about.

Voice quality, on the other hand, is quite good. Incoming calls sound full and clear, though voices can distort a little at top volume. Calls made with the phone sound extremely rich and natural, with excellent background noise cancellation—great if you're using this phone on a noisy worksite. The speakerphone was clear and loud enough to hear outside, even on a busy stretch of city street. Calls sounded good through a Jawbone Era Bluetooth headset, and the Nuance-powered voice dialing app worked well. Battery life was average at 9 hours and 5 minutes of talk time.

(Next page: Hardware, Android, Apps, Multimedia, and Conclusions)

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Casio G'zOne Commando 4G LTE (Verizon Wireless)

Pros Rugged build. Excellent call quality. Cool travel apps and features.

Cons Dated software. Poor video camera. Mid-range specs and display. Bottom Line The Casio G'zOne Commando 4G LTE is a super-tough smartphone for Verizon Wireless spelunkers, but of less interest for everyone else.

By Alex Colon

Do you enjoy long walks on the beach, poolside afternoons with a glass of sun tea, and moonlit strolls through the woods? That's great, but none of those are particularly good places to bring your phone. Think about it—one slip into the sand, one dip into the water, or one flip onto a star-kissed pebble, and it might be time to replace your precious device. And the risk is even greater if you work in a physical environment or like to spend your free time hiking and biking. But you won't need to worry as much if you carry the $99.99 Casio G'zOne Commando 4G LTE. The Commando 4G LTE is a super-tough smartphone, built for Verizon users more likely to go spelunking than to Sandals. It does what it sets out to do rather well, though it very clearly isn't for everybody.

Design and Call Quality
Let's get this out of the way: The Commando 4G LTE has a design you will either love or hate. I fall into the latter category, and I suspect many other people will as well—unless you like your smartphone to look like construction gear, that is. The phone is encased in a thick rubberized shell, with an angular chin, metallic red accents, and lots of exposed, stylized screws. It's like the phone equivalent of an auto parts store. To each their own.

Rugged phones often get the hyper-masculine treatment, which I suspect limits their appeal considerably. I'm pretty sure there's a way for manufacturers to design these phones more elegantly, and we've seen some sleek water-resistant phones lately, like the Samsung Galaxy S 4 Active and the Sony Xperia Z, but you're still stuck with designs like this if you want to go the full monty. So first make sure the Commando looks appealing to you before you continue reading.

Of course, all that rubber would be put to waste if it didn't serve up some serious protection. Thankfully, the Commando meets military standards for 810G certification. That means it can withstand drops, dust, shock, and water. I submerged it in a pitcher of water, and dropped it on the floor of the PCMag Labs a number of times, all without the phone getting scratched or waterlogged. For the water-resistance to work, you need to make sure all of the exterior ports are covered, and the back panel is securely locked in place; once it's unlocked, the phone's battery is locked in a second time for additional security. So you can take comfort in knowing this phone is built to handle a day at the beach or at a construction site in equal measure.

The phone measures 5.11 by 2.68 by 0.54 inches (HWD) and weighs 6.17 ounces. It's pretty bulky, but it's a good size for one-handed use. There's a Power button on the top edge of the phone, along with a covered headphone jack. A covered power port sits on the right, with Volume buttons and a programmable Tactile key on the left. If you need to use the phone while wearing gloves, a Glove Mode app makes it easy to read text messages and notifications, check voicemail, make calls, and take pictures while wearing gloves up to 0.07 inches thick.

The 4-inch, 800-by-480-pixel TFT LCD is serviceable. It looks reasonably sharp and bright, but it's got nothing on most new phones screens, which, at this price, are often larger and feature a higher resolution. The on-screen keyboard is a little small, but I had no trouble typing on it.

The Commando supports Verizon 4G LTE as well as dual-band EV-DO Rev. A. It also supports quad-band GSM and HSPA/UMTS so you can use it in over 205 countries across the world. It can be used as a mobile hotspot to provide a connection to up to 10 devices with the proper service plan, and it supports 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi. LTE data speeds were fine where I tested the phone in Manhattan, but nothing to write home about.

Voice quality, on the other hand, is quite good. Incoming calls sound full and clear, though voices can distort a little at top volume. Calls made with the phone sound extremely rich and natural, with excellent background noise cancellation—great if you're using this phone on a noisy worksite. The speakerphone was clear and loud enough to hear outside, even on a busy stretch of city street. Calls sounded good through a Jawbone Era Bluetooth headset, and the Nuance-powered voice dialing app worked well. Battery life was average at 9 hours and 5 minutes of talk time.

(Next page: Hardware, Android, Apps, Multimedia, and Conclusions)

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Penclic Mini Keyboard K2 (Wireless)

Pros Stylish, slim design. Great battery life.

Cons Stubborn plug cover. Awkward charging cable. Ergonomic design is questionable. Bottom Line The Penclic Mini Keyboard K2 (Wireless) is slim and stylish, but this low-profile keyboard falls flat.

By Brian Westover

Penclic's distinctive designs blend ergonomics with style, producing comfortable peripherals with clean designs. The latest device from the Swedish company is the Penclic Mini Keyboard K2 (Wireless), a super-slim wireless keyboard that promises to look good while reducing your risk of repetitive stress injury. While it delivers in the looks department, the flat design may or may not do much to prevent wrist aggravation, and there are a couple details that are aggravating all on their own.

Design
The K2 (Wireless) features a flat, low-profile design, similar to that seen on the Evoluent Essentials Full Featured Compact Keyboard (EKB) and the Logitech Wireless Keyboard K360. Along the top of the keyboard is a thick section that houses the battery compartment and wireless components, but the most part the slim keyboard measures 0.2 by 11.25 by 6.25 inches (HWD), and weighs a scant 0.8-ounce.

The chiclet keyboard uses scissor switches, which don't have the same springy feel of mechanical keys, but are better than silicone dome switches alone. The compact keyboard has 78 keys, with the standard QWERTY keys and F1-12 with a few additional functions: Mute, Volume Up/Down, Pause/Break, Scroll Lock, Num Lock, Print Screen, Insert, Page Up/Down, Home and End. To add a confusing note to the extra functions, the Mute button says "Silence!" instead of Mute or a recognizable symbol.

The keys themselves are a bit odd as well—the Enter key is distinguished with a bright red keycap, but no extra function, while the right Alt key is labelled "Alt Grr," also with no apparent difference in function.

Features
The Mini Keyboard K2 is wireless, connecting via 2.4GHz wireless connection through a nano USB dongle. It's small enough to plug into a laptop USB port and simply leave it, which is nice. The wireless connection gives you a 15-foot range, letting you position the keyboard however you please. And, whether you're a PC user, a Mac lover, or a Linux Penguin, the Mini Keyboard K2 should still give you the same functions as any other USB keyboard, though it may not support all special Mac functions.

The keyboard powers off of two rechargeable AAA batteries (included), which in turn charge off of a USB cable. Penclic claims that for daily use, the batteries should last roughly two months between charges. The K2 Keyboard comes with a USB to Mini USB cable complete with recoil device, making it compact and travel friendly. The one problem with this charging setup is the connection on the back of the keyboard. The port is protected by a small red silicone cover, which stubbornly refuses to open—I actually considered prying it open with tweezers. Once you gain access to the mini USB port, you'll find that the plug doesn't fully insert into the port. It still works just fine, but it's not hard to imagine a customer accidentally breaking their new keyboard by trying to force a plug that seems stuck.

Whether or not accidental damage of that sort is covered, Penclic covers the Mini Keyboard K2 with a two-year warranty.

Performance
Once it's charged and connected, the Mini Keyboard K2 is fairly straightforward to use, with average typing functionality. The scissor switch keys have fairly shallow motion, much like that seen on most current laptops.

The keyboard offers an adequate typing experience, but the ergonomic benefits aren't entirely clear. The flat design has been used before, but most ergonomic designs opt for adding more curvature—like that seen on the Microsoft Sculpt Mobile Keyboard—to put the wrist into a more neutral position. This sort of flat design, however, is about the same as typing directly on the surface of the table. After using it for a few days, I actually felt more carpal-tunnel wrist soreness than I do with a regular mechanical keyboard; your ergonomic experience may vary.

Conclusion
The Penclic Mini keyboard K2 (Wireless) is a flat and stylish wireless keyboard. It has its share of issues, like confusing labels, a stubborn plug cover, and questionable ergonomics. Once you look past these potential problems, however, the Penclic Mini keyboard K2 (Wireless) is a decent keyboard, with a great look and a compact design. It doesn't quite top the equally slim (and much less expensive) Logitech Wireless Keyboard K360, nor does it offer better ergonomics than the Microsoft Sculpt Mobile Keyboard, making it hard to recommend.

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