MR5200

First, I have another hotspot already. Well it's a Tplink travel router with a Huawei 4G USB Stick plugged into its USB port. It's worked fine for years but recently I've relocated from CA to TX and I'll be working from my RV for about 60 days. My Huawei 4G stick was barely getting LTE speeds so I looked for another solution. I purchased this router, in hopes that I could get speeds good enough to work without any issues. This mobile hotspot really came through with unbelievable speeds and very stable to boot. I also ordered the AT&T 5G nano sim here on Amazon. Search "AT&T 5G TRIPLECUT SIM". Although activating the SIM was an absolute nightmare (AT&T activation process gets ZERO stars), this hotspot was a breeze to setup. I really appreciated being able to pop in the battery, turn it on and configure the entire router from the touchscreen ON THE unit itself. I completed the finer points of setup using a web browser. I did absolutely nothing to configure the AT&T 5G. After activating the SIM, the router connecting to 5G automatically and all of my devices get stable and fast internet. I've got a laptop, 3 tablets, 2 phones, a Google Chromecast and a couple of other random devices all connected to this router via WiFi. Streaming HD (and probably 4k) YouTube is no problem. Spotify and other streaming services are strong on all the devices as well. So what's the final conclusion? It's pricey but if you need fast stable 5G for your WiFi devices, you won't find a better device.

This device simply works great for what I need it for. I got the AT&T $55/month pre-paid for 100GB and literally put in the SIM, selected the correct APN (its basically the address the data gets routed through) and was off to the races! I got true 5G when I was in major cities - blazing fast!! But outside of that it was mainly 4G speed. Was still fast enough for me to get data on my phone (I live overseas so use this while in the States to do VOIP calling and surfing. Cheaper than getting whole family a calling plan). It was fast enough for my kids to surf while we drove cross country as well. They do Roblox and YouTube mainly. The unit I kept plugged in mostly while driving, so had no issues with discharging. When I carried it for use while walking and inside a house, the battery lasted 24-36 hours with moderate use. I recommend this for anyone who wants an easy to use 5G capable hotspot. I did not get a free product or rebate for giving my review. It is purely of my own opinion.

Yes, it's true, this unit will work on the Verizon network. However, entering the IMEI number into Verizon's site will show that this unit is not compatible. **Workaround** Since I already had a Verizon MiFi Jetpack, I took that active SIM card and put it into the Netgear unit. Initially, I tried using my SIM from an iPad. It DID work, but I got alerts from Verizon that the SIM had been moved. Once I used my hotspot SIM, those alerts stopped. My primary reason for buying this unit was the ability to integrate it into my existing home network via the ethernet port. I use this hotspot as a bonded signal with my Suddenlink cable internet. My speeds went from 25Mb/s down - 1.5Mb/s up to 110Mb/s down - 12 Mb/s up once I added in the M5. Set-up is not simple (especially how I have it set up), but it is not horrible. I wish Verizon would get their act together and make this easier to use on their network. If you don't already have a Verizon hotspot with an active SIM, you may need to purchase a hotspot first, then swap the SIM card. If you don't mind the alerts and just need occasional service, using an active SIM card from another device will work. My other suggestion would be to make sure you have the very best cell signal possible. In general, the more bars, the faster your service. I actually installed an Affanni cell signal booster (search Amazon) and placed the indoor relay antenna very close to the M5. I have 5 bars most of the time, and the unit has proven to be pretty reliable.

I saw a lot of reviews on Amazon with the MIR 5100 and MIR 5200 stated they are not working with Verizon. I recently purchased a used MIR 5200 on Amazon - the device came looks brand new and I plugged in the sim card from my iPad with Verizon - after a few setting changes. It works like a charm. I did not benchmark the speed since I was able to stream HD movies with it on my MacBook seamlessly without any problem. I'm very happy with my Nighthawk MIR 5200 except for the price. It just doesn't justify the price.

When I decided to buy this item I was over the moon excited, despite its high price tag. I thought long and hard about it, then I decided and made the the purchase. The day before it arrived, I went to T-mobile and added a new 5G data line (100Gb) for this device, which cost me $35 for the new line activation fee. I could not have been more excited at that point, all was left was just for it to be delivered. Well! When I received it and popped the T-mobile SIM card in and no network was showing up, I thought to myself, must be a T-mobile error during activation of the SIM card. Called T-mobile and spoke with their technical support and they told me the device was locked to AT&T, then I told the lady that that was not possible, it’s a unlocked device, she assured me it was locked to AT&T. She told the best thing to do is call AT&T and ask them to unlock it, so I called AT&T and the representative assured that, since the device was never activated with them, there would be no way to unlock it. They suggested I call Netgear, so I did, they were of little help, but after hours of been on the phone with T-mobile & AT&T, then several days of speaking with Netgear, Netgear finally admitted that some of the devices are truly unlocked and others are not and they are going to escalate the issue the relevant department in the company. This matter was reported to Amazon customer service by me, however the misinformation that it work with t-mobile is a half truth, as some of the devices are unlocked and will work, while others come lock to AT&T and will not work, so good luck finding one that work. Please see the screenshots in this review showing the device is lock to AT&T.

Unboxed, plugged in an old 4GLTE sim, plugged in phone charger with USB C connection, and did the quick setup on screen. Ran a speed test on Verizon mifi, 23 down, 5 up, ran a speed test on at&t Nighthawk M1, 27 down, 8 up. I run speed tests at odd times and find they are much faster at night when the general population is in bed, fast asleep. Then I took the sim from the old M1, trimmed it down, as the M5 takes a micro size (1 step down in size), and ran a speed test (all within 30 minutes, mid day on a Saturday. Out of the chute ... 117 down, 29 up. 3 more tests and found the speeds to be consistent. Then I plugged in my Netgear mimo antenna. Speeds increased to 176 down and 33 up. All tests run using the same server for consistency. My next step is to go to at&t and get a new sim card, and hook up with the 5G 100 Mb plan to see if there is significant difference between sim cards. The 4GLTE I am using is a very old IPad unlimited sim card. To put this in perspective, over 10 years on the road and have never seen speeds in the 170Gb range anyplace in CONUS. 15 to 20 Mb down is a pretty good average across the US. As far as prices, they are all over the place right now, ranging from one used at $599, $699 from Netgear, up to over $1,000 from a variety of sellers. This was an Amazon purchase, vender Netgear store.

I have owed 3 of these. 1 Broke and 1 lost, now my third is also good speed and usually works, but can be glitchy. It resets often, and the battery life is rough enough that I need 2 batteries. Charge time is slow. Speed is pretty good. Fine for email and browsing but not great for Zoom, Teams, or Google Video. It breaks up on video about 50% of the time, but you can work around it. Unit reset today for no reason. Frustrating. AT&T is part of the problem. They sell these, but only LOOSELY support them. They can sell you and activate a SIM, but they typically have no technical knowledge of the unit at all. I CAN NOT LIVE WITHOUT THIS WHEN TRAVELING. But I really hope they make a better unit. Disconnects too often for no reason. This is a true 3 star review. I would buy it again, but I really hope it gets better tech. These kinds of bugs NEVER happen on Apple products. If Apple products are Grade A, this unit is a Grade C-.

I was out of town recently and I had a situation with a high-speed internet at the hotel not working properly or giving me the speeds that I needed to be at to liveStream on yt. this was very frustrating because stream once a week, I had just bought this MiFi a few days before this, it was very easy to set up! I didn't know if i would have enough power to live stream a show, but i ended up connecting to my streamyard account and I was able to livestream for close to two hours in 1080p! there might have been one or two spots during stream where it got grainy, But other than that it looks really good I was pleasantly surprised! even though it's pricy if you're on the go alot and need to be able to stream this device works Perfectly! i'm with MetroPCS I got the iPad data plan, and I'm paying thirty bucks a month fiy!