TP-Link M7300 4G LTE-Advanced Mobile Wi-Fi Router Review

Introduction & Closer Look

Working on the go, streaming on the go and generally doing everything on the go seems to be the ‘in’ thing. We are living in a world that cannot sit still anymore and with that, comes a product perfect for those who demand the fastest 4G LTE speeds, but without spending the earth trying to achieve it. I am of course talking about the TP-Link M7300 4G Mobile Wi-Fi router!

So why would you even need the M7300 and what situations is it designed for? Well, I’m assuming you will have an internet connection via your phone of some kind, but what about your tablet or laptop? Sure you can tether your connection, but with the M7300, you can use it to connect to both or all 3 devices simultaneously!

Taking a look inside the small, but well-presented packaging/box of the TP-Link M7300 Mobile Wi-Fi router, I was greeted with a small parcel of presents. These included a quick start guide, a warranty information leaflet, a USB charging cable which is also used to connect directly to a PC or laptop for a direct wired connection to the router and a charging plug…for when the battery is low and you need a quick and efficient power source.

Here we have the TP-Link M7300 in all its glory and the biggest selling point other than the convenience of such a device is the size! It measures in at a svelte 102.6x63x16mm in diameter and with an all-white finish, it looks very smart indeed. The front panel features a simple on/off switch as well as a USB port to connect it to your device or charger.

On the top panel, there is a LED notification bar which when powered on, displays different logos depending on what the device is actually doing. The icons signify whether or not the device is connected to a mobile 4G LTE network, whether or not it’s connected to a device wirelessly and of course, and a battery level indicator.

Taking the M7300 Mobile router apart, all you simply need to do is gently remove the removable cover (obviously) and you are greeted with the innards. We have a removable 3.7v 2000mAh battery as well as 2 slots inside the M7300 itself; one for a sim card for the mobile data connection and the other for an SD card. The SD card allows you to have up to 32GB of storage which is perfect for sharing photos and documents among colleagues and friends…you obviously have to be connected to the network to access them.

TP-Link M7300 Specifications

Testing & Performance

To test the TP-Link M7300’s performance, I got my hands on a 4G sim from EE loaded with 32GB of data and tested performance directly from my Samsung Galaxy Note 4 mobile phone and while using the M7300’s Wi-Fi signal. During the testing, both the phone and M7300 were in the exact same place and virtually next to each other. Speedtest was then run using the same server location and the results were as follows:

As you can see from the graphs above, the TP-Link M7300 actually performed better than having the EE sim directly inserted into the Note 4; absolutely brilliant in my opinion. Not only does this show this particular mobile Wi-Fi router to be useful in different scenarios, but it also backs it up with credible performance figures. You can actually get better performance via Wi-Fi with your 4G sim than inside the phone; of course, this only compares the M7300 to my Samsung Galaxy Note 4 which is a little thin in terms of testing practices, but the results do speak for themselves.

Conclusion

All in all, I believe the TP-Link M7300 4G LTE Mobile Wi-Fi router to be a fantastic and versatile little device. Not only does it enable users to have capable download and upload speeds of up to 150Mbs/50Mbs (respectively), but it allows for up to 11 devices in total to be connected at one given time; 10 via wireless and 1 connected via USB. Of course, if you have 10-11 devices connected, it’s going to be a drain on data, but those wishing to have so many connections should and mostly will have that covered.

One nifty feature is the ability to insert up to a 32GB SD card in which allows for document sharing. This includes videos, images, word documents, spreadsheets, music and anything else media wise. Imagine you’re in a business meeting and you need to share your document across a board room; you could set this up and allow people to download at will; might not be the most economic option, but it is a sure fire way that works if you’re in a tight squeeze and the capability allows for this.

If you’re worried about data usage, you can simply download the mobile app or use a web browser which gives usage data as well as connection data and status on the current Wi-Fi statistics. Perfect if you’re unsure about how much data you have used, or if you’re worried you’re about to go over your data allowance…some of the prices providers charge for 100mb of data is astronomical so please check to make sure before you start up a mobile hotspot allowing friends to connect to it. If you’re unsure of where the connection details are, you can find them on the rear of the removable panel; where you install your sim/SD card. Battery power is very good and if you’re not using it plugged in via a USB cable, you’re looking at around 7 hours which isn’t bad by any stretch of the imagination!

Overall, the TP-Link M7300 is a very tasty product and I personally have used this within my new office for the last 3 weeks and I have been nothing short of impressed. The only caveat is the price as mobile Wi-Fi routers are seemingly becoming a popular entity in their own right…this means increased competition of course. You can currently pick up the TP-Link M7300 4G LTE Mobile Router for around £59.99 on Amazon (CLICK HERE) which is a good price in my opinion and me myself, I believe it to be personally worth it; especially for the performance increase it has given my network when using 4G. It’s a gold standard product and more than deserves our gold award today!

Big thanks to TP-Link for sending the M7300 4G LTE-Advanced Mobile Wi-Fi Router in for review.