Spint MiFi 4082 Review – An in depth look.

Review of the Sprint 4082 4G/3G Mobile Hotspot from Novatel Wireless.

 

WiFi Speed & Radius:
4G Speed:
Data Plan - Cost & Terms:
Features:
Design & Engineering:
Battery Life:
Overall Rating:

 

URGENT NOTE TO READERS OF MOBILEHOTSPOT.COM: On November 1, 2011 Sprint abruptly ended all "unlimited data" for every existing and new customer of Sprint Mobile Hotspots and Data Modems. This fact, combined with the "unexplained" large scale DECLINE in Sprint 3G service quality which correlated with the sudden influx of new Apple iPhone 4S subscribers, mobilehotspot.com editors CANNOT RECOMMEND the purchase of Sprint Mobile Hotspots. 

 

Sprint and it’s manufacturer partner, Novatel Wireless, are pioneers easy to use, high speed mobile broadband  - together, they introduced the wildly successful MiFi 2200 3G Mobile Hotspot to the market back in 2009. This time, they have leveraged their success and experience to deliver the next generation MiFi, a high performance 4G mobile hotspot.

The Original MiFi 2200 is a near legend in modern mobile technology. Having introduced the benefits of 3G mobile  broadband in an one-all-one tiny package to over one million users worldwide, the original MiFi revolutionized the concept of effortless mobile connectivity, when and (more importantly) where you wanted it – not just for yourself, but up to 4 other friends or family members at the same time.  With such high standards to live up to, we wondered if the new MiFi 4082 would raise the high water mark with its new features and 4G speeds. Would it be deemed a respectable successor to the MiFi 2200?  Read MobileHotspot.com’s review for a comprehensive and unbiased look of the 2200’s new sibling, the Novatel 4082 4G mobile hotspot from Sprint – where we look to answer that question

 

Appearance and Engineering

The MiFi 3G/4G 4082 has a look that mixes bit of retro-tech and high-tech – it’s definitely both attractive and cool looking - something you would be proud to show off. The device measures in at 3.5” x 2.4 x 0.5” The front face panel is made from a black grained plastic composite which is wrapped in a polished gray trim. The Sprint, MiFi, and Novatel logos are evident, as well is the large power button and the 1.4” x .4” e-Ink system display. The E ink display is backlit and can be read perfectly in direct sunlight, as well as darkened rooms, something that is not always possible with LCD or LED displays. The device weighs a bit over 3 ounces and has a “weighty”, really solid and “dense” feel, not the lightweight “hollow” feel of some other 3G mobile hotspots.

Getting the MiFi 4082 up and running

There is almost no setup required get the MiFi 4082 working out of the box .The 4082 comes from the factory with a preconfigured network SSID (network name) that is printed on the label from the factory, affixed to the inside battery compartment. All that's needed is to press the power on button, wait a few seconds, enter the network password on the connected device and within a few seconds you're good to go - ready to surf the web at 4G speeds.

Like most other mobile hotspots, the 4082 supports up to five connected clients, (five separate users and/or devices). The total “ready-to-use” time, which consists of the few seconds the device needs to establish a 3G or 4G signal, as well as the time required for the 4082 to establish Wi-Fi conductivity to the connected clients was approximately 18 to 20 seconds. At a 20 second connect time, the 4082 was about 50% faster than the Samsung SCH-LC11 4G mobile hotspot on Verizon 4G LTE to get to the “ready-to-use” point.

Administration and Configuration

The MiFi 4082 is entirely administered through a web browser, which is served up by the hotspot directly. All settings are managed from the browser based utility, including power management, idle time power-down settings, affinity for 3G versus 4G networks, security & encryption settings, and information on GPS the receiver.

Billed as the “Intelligent Hotspot” by Novatel, it’s easy to see why: The 4082 hotspot actually has a miniature server built in which runs a special version of Linux called “MiFi-OS’. The hotspot’s operating system manages the device, security, traffic and can even run apps. This also leaves a lot of opportunity for future development and new enhancements that can be delivered with firmware updates.

Any owner of the MiFi 4082 will soon realize that the web-based configuration manager for the 4082 will quickly become a familiar bookmarked favorite on their browser. The web interface allows the router’s device settings to be customized, and network security and encryption keys setup. The SSID can also be changed or managed from this configuration portal.

On the side of the 4082 hotspot is the connectivity status indicator, which glows green when connected to 3G, and blue when connected to Sprint 4G. The indicator will turn red when there is some sort of device problem or a signal is not able to be established.

Data Usage and Limits

With so many different vendors and mobile carriers offering mobile hotspots nowadays, Sprint needed to come up with a way to differentiate the 4082 from other 4G mobile hotspots with 4G data service. The clear and overwhelming advantage that the Sprint MiFi 4082 offers is that it is the only mobile hotspot to offer true unlimited and unmetered downloads and uploads over a 4G network.

It should also be made clear that this hotspot, while it is fully compatible with the Sprint 3G network, the unlimited data usage option does not apply when operating on Sprint’s 3G (older and slower) networks. While 4G is unlimited for every plan option for the MiFo4082, Sprint customers must choose among various monthly allowances that will give them a certain number of gigabytes of data usage, over 3G networks. The monthly allowance for Sprint 3G is presently up to 5GB.

Upfront and Long Term Costs

The list price of the MiFi 4082, when signing up for data service with Sprint is around $80, a little less than the list price of the Samsung SCH-LC11 for Verizon’s $100. The MiFi 4082 can actually be had for free with 2 year service plan though a number of retailers. If you are looking to buy the 4082 with “no-contract”, expect to pay between $200 and $300 for a brand new device. We have seen some pre-owned and even purportedly new MiFi 4082’s on EBay for less than $200 (no contract needed)

MiFi 4082 Features

One area where the MiFi 4082 really excels is support for built in features. The 4082 has the most features included in any 4G mobile hotspot we tested to date, and far exceeds the sparse features of the Samsung SCH-LC11 4G hotspot.

The MiFi 4082 really shines and significantly rises above the competition when it comes to some truly useful build-in features – we’re not talking about feature that are for the benefit of the Sprint’s Marketing department, but features that make-or-break the overall usability of the device.

One of the really cool features we used to always use on the MiFi 2200 3G hotspot a few years ago was the integrated Micro-SD memory card, which would allow the workgroup of connected users to share a common repository files. The memory card could act as a miniature file server, something especially useful for business trips and on-site presentations. Since the 4082 supports some very robust workgroup-client networking features, we're really pleased to see Novatel continued the tradition of the on board memory slot for its new 4G mobile hotspot.

The on board Micro-SD memory card slot allows the 4082 to act as a shared document file server for the group of connected users, as well as emulating most of the functionality you would expect from an external hard drive, but with all the convenience of wireless access, no cables, and no extra equipment buy. The Micro-SD slot (you must supply your own memory card) supports up to 32 GB. Everyone is used to massive amounts of permanent storage nowadays( 500 GB, 1 TB, etc.), but he potential to add 32 GB of onboard storage should be more than plenty for most users and small workgroups when it comes to storing and sharing essential documents and files.

To enable the micro-SD storage feature, you must first navigate to the device’s web based configuration manager, which can be accessed at 192.168.1.1 once enabled; the memory card storage will act just like an NAS server. You can also set up the ability to restrict access to the file share with read and write passwords. We tried this MiFi memory slot utilizing a generic, unbranded 8GB Micro-SD card. We were really pleased at how easy it was to set up and use, and very impressed with the speed at which files can be read and updated from the Wi-Fi connection.

We really appreciated the external antenna jack, which would allow the attachment of an external high-gain directional or Omni-directional antenna. The ability to add external antennas really put the MiFi 4082 on-par with some of the more professional business orientated mobile routers, and opens the door to techies and power-users who have full intents on squeezing every last ounce of utility (some may say “hack” ) from this little device. Note: The MiFi does not come with an external antenna, just the ability to connect one.

The front panel features the backlit status display panel, which uses an “e-Ink” type of technology, similar to the Amazon Kindle and other e-Readers. The display reports essential information such as signal strength, configuration information and network connectivity status.

We can't express how “essential” the display panel really is - especially when some of our other favorite 4G hotspots like the Samsung SCH-LC11 has seemed to totally forgotten to include one. Novatel’s decision to use E-ink technology instead of LCD or LED was a good one - the display is clearly visible in pretty much every environment and situation. A quick glance at the panel save a lot of time versus having to navigate to the web control panel, just to get some basic device information.

USB Tethering

One feature that we were really happy to see on the MiFi 4082 is the ability to use USB tethering. Tethering allowance the mobile hotspot to act as a 4G/3G data modem that communicates over the USB cable in a manner that is similar to the familiar CAT-5 Ethernet cable you might already be using.

The nice thing about the setup of the tethering feature is that when the USB cable is plugged in for the first time, device drivers will be loaded onto the connected computer automatically. These files are stored on the mobile hotspot itself, and will basically auto configure as a plug-and-play device.

In essence, the tethered hotspot acts just like an Ethernet adapter, enabling access to the Local Area Network and opening up file sharing printer sharing to the group through the MiFi 4082.  It was really surprising to see the 4082 being able to work as both a data modem and wireless router simultaneously when the tethered computer is on the same network as the wireless clients. Additionally, the tethered cable hookup more or less enables one extra device  that can be hooked up to the hotspot in addition to the five wireless clients the hotspot can natively support – so in this scenario, you can enable  a total of six connected devices. This feature is unique to the 4082, and so far not seen on other 4G mobile hotspots.

Network Security

Like every other mobile hotspot on the market the MiFi 4082 features both WPA/WPA2 and WEP wireless encryption. The hotspot also enables MAC filtering, which is probably the most stringent security method the hotspot owner could deploy, since only uniquely specific devices can access the hotspot. Being no two pieces of equipment in the world share the same MAC address, it would be very difficult for an unwanted outsider to thwart the MAC filtering security active on the mobile hotspot. MAC filtering is also a great option for legacy devices that might have configuration difficulties such as older PDAs and the VOIP phones, since they may not have the provision to enter an encryption key or password and may not support the newer WPA and WPA2 family of security protocols.

4G vs. 3G on the MiFi 4082

The MiFi 4G/3G mobile hotspot works equally well on both 4G and 3G Sprint networks, with the obvious difference being the 4G’s significant speed boost. The MiFi will seek out Sprint 4G signals where available, and will revert to 3G when 4G is not available or 4G signal strength is insufficient.

With the large number of people attracted to Sprint's hotspot and its unlimited data plan, it is critical that you realize that only 4G is unlimited. Depending on the data plan you select, subscribers are given a specific 3G data allowance per month, typically 5 GB.

Overages are assessed at five cents per megabyte when you exceed the monthly billing cycle allowance over Sprint 3G networks. There are no overage charges associated with 4G use. If you're located in a metro area that has fairly dense 4G coverage from Sprint cell towers this should not be a big concern to you. But obviously, if you are located in an area with sporadic Sprint 4G data coverage, or 4G is simply unavailable, you really need to carefully evaluate if the benefit of unlimited 4G outweigh any 4G connectivity issues . If you’re likely to spend more than 25% of your time with the MiFi 4082 in area with “less than ideal” Sprint 4G availability, you should come up with a strategy that will best maintain your monthly allowance limits.

can download a 5MB App or song in less than 20 seconds.

With both testing the device and during “regular everyday use”, we observed the consistency of download speeds was excellent with Sprint 4G service. Whether in a moving car or a congested bus stop waiting room, which seemed to have everyone on their cell phones or tablets all at once, we never noticed any huge drop-off in performance that was typically seen in some other carriers. By way of comparison, in the exact same spots, our AT&T iPhone4 network usability became practically unusable when in these cluster of large number of connected users in the immediate 100 foot or so radius.

WiFi Performance Testing

Again, testing was done with an HP EliteBook laptop, utilizing wireless N connectivity. In outdoor testing, we were able to get a maximum of 42 feet before the Wi-Fi signal was not detectable. The Wi-Fi signal dropped to about 80% strength at about 30 feet, which was what we were expecting. For indoor testing, we located the MiFi 4082 approximately 30 feet from the base testing laptop. With the signal traveling through approximately 8 interior residential walls, we were able to see signal strength of about 50% to 60%.

In general, the MiFi 4082 "underachieved versus it's peers" with the signal radius and strength of the Wi-Fi radio. To be fair to the Novatel, the spec's of the MiFi 4082 are only listed as "30 to 40 feet", so technically the 4082 is on mark for it's own gauge. It's just surprising that the 4082 "fraternal twin", the MiFi 4510L for Verizon LTE has a radius of about 100 feet. Again, this is probably nitpicking in the Sprint hotspot, because in real-life perhaps 90% of more of the time, you'll be connecting to a hotspot that is just a few feet away.

Embedded Apps and Software

Novatel should receive recognition for its concept of embedding a few useful web applets within the devices configuration manager. Verizon started with the same "blank state" with their MiFi 4510L, but choose to pretty much "gut" the enhanced functionality of the internal MiFi operating system from Novatel. The on board apps utilize the built-in GPS receiver, and include a location based search utility that uses Google maps and Google Places. The map app lets you type in what you're looking for, for example, "gas station", and nearby gas stations would appear in the familiar Google Local listings.

There's also a weather forecast app that obtains the current location from GPS, and reports back the local forecast. While these features in today's smart phone world are pretty old-school, nevertheless they are a thoughtful addition that can certainly benefit users, especially those without a mobile phone with GPS and location-based apps.

A Closer Look at the MiFi 4082’s Battery

The MiFi 4082’s battery life performed well above average, as compared to other 4G mobile hotspots we have tested. We tested the 4082 with the LAPTOP battery test in WiFi-Web Surfing mode.  With the 4082 hotspot in 4G mode the entire time, the longest total battery duration we measured was 4 hours and 8 minutes. The worst battery performance we were able to muster was 2 hours and 52 min. This unusually low duration occurred only once In doing some research, we discovered that it coincided with a problem where the battery would become extremely hot. We’re not entirely sure if an actual correlation exists, but it occurred when the device was previously in the 3G mode for a about an hour, then locked onto 4G before the battery testing was to begin. Novatel wireless has made firmware updates available to apparently rectify the battery heat issue. Overall, even with the small heat glitch, were loved the battery life on the 4082. It’s the longest running battery on any 4G mobile hotspot we tested to date.

Conclusions and Final Thoughts

The Novatel MiFi 4082 3G/4G Mobile Hotspot, though a laggard when it comes to “top-tier” 4G download speeds, nonetheless makes a an extremely compelling choice for users who are looking for a mobile hotspot simply does what a mobile hotspot is supposed to do: allow five people or devices to wirelessly share a single 4G data connection – the MiFi 4082 is such a device,

Without complicated configurations or the need to carry around cables and accessories, the MiFi 4082 is a leading pick for business people who need nationwide 4G coverage and consistent, reasonably fast broadband speeds.

URGENT NOTE TO READERS OF MOBILEHOTSPOT.COM: On November 1, 2011 Sprint abruptly ended all "unlimited data" for every existing and new customer of Sprint Mobile Hotspots and Data Modems. This fact, coupled with the explained large scale DECLINE in Sprint 3G service quality which correlated with the sudden influx of new Apple iPhone 4S subscribers, mobilehotpot.com editors CANNOT RECOMMEND the purchase of Sprint Mobile Hotspots.

 

Sprint’s unlimited 4G data service is a godsend for families with kids and teenagers who can tend to run up massive amounts of monthly downloads. Given the fact of how easy it is to stream HD video like Netflix, or download entire albums from iTunes – even leave Pandora on streaming music all day in high quality and you can easily blow through 500 megabytes! – that’s why unlimited 4G is so attractive. As a matter of fact, for the first time, we can actually recommend the MiFi 4082 as a viable replacement for residential wired broadband – this it quite literally a Game-Changer, several years in the waiting.

As long as you realize the MiFi 4082 will be within the boundaries of the 4G signal, it's a huge burden to be lifted when you don't have to worry about exceeding your monthly data usage limit. (Something that's all too easy to exceed with the Verizon 4G LTE hotspot and it's extremely limited monthly allowance)

The best way to assess the overall value and unique benefits of this Sprint 4G mobile hotspot is to balance the “trade-off” of having unlimited data with that of a slower than average 4G download and upload experience.

When comparing the Sprint 4082 Mobile Hotspot to its current competitors, perhaps think of it like this analogy:

To help illustrate the analogy of "feature vs. benefit vs. cost", let’s use the example of a rental car. Let’s also say there are only 2 choices - which one do you pick?

For the Verizon Samsung SCH-LC11 4G LTE Mobile hotspot, let’s make that analogy as:

“Ford Mustang Racing Edition, super-fast – the world’s fastest rental car! 0 to 60 in 3.9  seconds and top speed of 240 MPH !  Fun, Fun, Fun!!

 Features: no radio, no power windows, no A/C….does not even have a gas gauge on the dashboard (hey, you can always peek inside the gas tank to check the gas level..)

 Monthly Driving Allowance: 500 miles, $100 for every 100 miles over 500 miles.

 

For the Sprint Novatel MiFi 4082 4G Mobile Hotspot, let’s go with this analogy… 

Three year old Honda Accord, not too fast, not too slow… 0 to 60 in 16.5 seconds however…Top Speed 65 MPH... Practical, Practical, Practical!!

 Features:  Fully Loaded!! Unlike our competitor, we do have a gas gauge on the dashboard!

 

 Monthly Driving Allowance: UNLIMITED on the Highways and Freeways, 500 Miles per month allowed on backstreets

 

Although the above analogy might be seen as kind of silly, there is strangely a parallel truth to it. Which car is best to rent? Whatever makes more sense for each individual of course! There is no right or wrong answer.

Final recap of Advantage and Disadvantages of the MiFi 4082 Mobile Hotspot.

Main Advantages:

• The only 4G/3G mobile hotspot that allows true unlimited, uncapped, and unmetered uploads and downloads over Sprint 4G.
• Excellent battery life, exceeding 4 hours, even when in 4G mode.
• Build in External Antenna port enables add-on high-gain antenna for increased 3G or 4G signal reception.
• Integrated wireless N  Wi-Fi for maximum transfer speed and signal penetration
• Built in Micro-SD memory card slot; enables up to 32 GB of onboard shared storage for connected clients.
• Built-in GPS receiver that can be utilized by web apps and UBS tethered computers.
• Extremely easy setup and device usage; requires little or no technical knowledge.
• Ability to operate in USB-Tethered mode, which increases speed and frees up one addition client to be connected to the mobile hotspot.

Main Disadvantages:

• Sprint’s Wi-MAX 4G wireless protocol is typically the slowest 4G protocol when compared to 4G from AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile.
• Some reported glitches with battery overheating causing lower than expected battery life
• Can be sluggish when switching between 4G and 3G mode automatically, having a tendency to not reacquire the 4G signal as fast as hoped for.