wifi Hotspot (Portable)

Looking for recommendations for a small portable WIFI / Wired Hotspot box thing that I can use when travelling, sort of thing that will allow it to be connected to Hotel WIFI or phone hotspot and then create a Wired / WIFI network so I can connect Laptop etc to it. Had hell of a trouble with the last hotel I was in as my FIRESTICK wouldn't accept the SignIn Page of the Hotel( but my laptop would) .

Battery may be better, but USB powered would be fine.

Works with PLCs too. Never without it on-site.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/TP-Link-Po...keywords=tp+link+travel&qid=1624438608&sr=8-3

Plug it in if in a hotel room or use one of these when on-site:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Adapter-Co...ld=1&keywords=24v+to+5v&qid=1624438665&sr=8-2

I think the majority of people here will advise on the little TPLink unit.

TPLink vote from me.

I really like my HooToo... does A LOT. (It is not as dedicated to Ipad/Iphone as it leads you to believe, works with my Android also...if you are wondering about that part of it).
Yes I also use as a WiFi connection to PLC also.
https://www.amazon.com/HooToo-Wireless-10400mAh-External-Performance/dp/B074LHG47K

In addition to the TPLink shared above, I've also heard people say they've had good results with this:


https://www.amazon.com/GL-iNET-GL-M...a-403a-923c-8152c45485fe&tag=ospwareableus-20


I haven't personally used it, but I have heard it's decent for the price. I've been meaning to get one for a while now. You can look up similar products by searching for "travel router."


EDIT: I worked on a project recently that had a wifi router inside the panel that allowed me to connect wirelessly and it was really convenient.

mylespetro said:

In addition to the TPLink shared above, I've also heard people say they've had good results with this:


https://www.amazon.com/GL-iNET-GL-M...a-403a-923c-8152c45485fe&tag=ospwareableus-20


I haven't personally used it, but I have heard it's decent for the price. I've been meaning to get one for a while now. You can look up similar products by searching for "travel router."


EDIT: I worked on a project recently that had a wifi router inside the panel that allowed me to connect wirelessly and it was really convenient.

Click to expand...

Travel router plus! See my HooToo link..

NetNathan said:

I really like my HooToo... does A LOT. (It is not as dedicated to Ipad/Iphone as it leads you to believe, works with my Android also...if you are wondering about that part of it).
Yes I also use as a WiFi connection to PLC also.
https://www.amazon.com/HooToo-Wireless-10400mAh-External-Performance/dp/B074LHG47K

Click to expand...

I remember you post this a while back, unfortunately, they have been unavailable for a long time.

We have several of those GL.iNET ones, they are excellent. I like that they are USB powered, they are fairly low current, so you can power them off of a PanelView Plus USB port, for example.

dmroeder said:

We have several of those GL.iNET ones, they are excellent. I like that they are USB powered, they are fairly low current, so you can power them off of a PanelView Plus USB port, for example.

Click to expand...

That's neat, never thought of doing it that way. Not every panel has a receptacle in it so I wasn't sure the best way to go about using one in those situations. Obviously not every panel has a HMI either, but it's still an option when there is one.

Anyone have experience setting up one of these GL.iNet routers?
So far, I have configured the WAN port for Static IP on the same subnet as the PLC, 192.168.2.xxx. I have RSLinx configured as Ethernet Devices, with the IP of the PLC. This seems to work but perhaps there is a better way?

JakeW said:

Anyone have experience setting up one of these GL.iNet routers?
So far, I have configured the WAN port for Static IP on the same subnet as the PLC, 192.168.2.xxx. I have RSLinx configured as Ethernet Devices, with the IP of the PLC. This seems to work but perhaps there is a better way?

Click to expand...

That sounds like how mine is, though I think I use the LAN port not the WAN port. Is there something about that setup that you don't like?

I have mine set up in 'Router Mode'.
I am not able to get mine to connect on the LAN side.
The only disadvantage I see is having to set the IP to the same subnet each time, and change my RSLinx adapter. Although I'm not sure how to get around that.

JakeW said:

I have mine set up in 'Router Mode'.
I am not able to get mine to connect on the LAN side.
The only disadvantage I see is having to set the IP to the same subnet each time, and change my RSLinx adapter. Although I'm not sure how to get around that.

Click to expand...

Mine is in Router mode too. You can change it so that the WAN port is just another LAN port. Under More Settings, LAN IP, you assign 192.168.2.x, then start IP and End IP addresses. I assume this is the same as yours.

i used a Verizon hotspot from the company.
worked great, even in the middle of nowhere.
rarely could not get connected.
i do not know the cost & fees.
james

I use one of these and swear by it. Battery lasts anywhere from 1-3 days depending on how heavily you're using it (it's very smart about switching to low power mode when nobody's using it). USB-C charging, physical ethernet port, and takes a SIM card so you can have internet everywhere.

It just gets thrown in my laptop bag every morning when I'm onsite so that no matter what I'm doing or where I am, I have an internet connection. I can also configure it to let me wirelessly commission equipment by putting it on the same subnet as the PLC's I'm working with, and plugging in the ethernet.

I believe that it can also act as a WAP for a plugged-in ethernet internet connection - will use the ethernet internet if it's available and switch to 4G if not - but I've never specifically used it for that.

On the expensive side, for sure, but time is money and having one of these in my bag at all times has probably saved me hundreds of hours.