Portable 3G/4G Router Offers IPhone Hotspot With No Monthly Fees

Built-in iPhone hotspots? Bah! Who needs one? Not with AXIM Communications’ handy little MR-102N 3G/4G Travel Mobile Router in your pocket.

This little portable gadget works with iPhones and select Android devices to turn a 3G or 4G data connection into an 802.11n Wifi hotspot.

Typically smartphone hotspots are a colossal battery drain to the handset, but the MR-102N comes with its own 1700 mAh battery that even charges your phone while connected. As for cellular connections, the networks it supports are diverse — including HSDPA, HSUPA, EV-DO, UMTS, and GPRS. That means you’re not stuck using only one type of network; you’ll be able to continue using this even if you change carriers.

Best part? It’s compatible with almost every iPhone — the 3G, 3GS and the 4!

BoyGenius Report took this for a spin recently with an iPhone 3GS and got up to 4-5 Mbps speeds! That’s just on a 3G smartphone. Since the router also supports 4G, the theoretical maximum speed is actually as much as 42 Mbps — a limit that no current 3G device can even come close to smoking.

It’s $129 total, including shipping. That’s on par with about 6 months worth of AT&T iPhone tethering or Verizon’s iPhone hotspot plan. And if you don’t fancy carrying around an extra device, these are still options worth considering.

But if this feature’s a dealbreaker for you in deciding between the carriers, consider this: Both cost $20/month in addition to a data plan, but Verizon gives you another 2GB more for the money, and you’ll be able to connect up to 5 devices. AT&T’s laptop tethering is only for 1 laptop or netbook at a time and it shares the iPhone’s 2GB data cap.

If you’re not willing to go with one of these options (and don’t want to jailbreak your phone to get MyWi), then the MR-201N looks like a solid option. For more info, hit up Axim online or to order, click here.