Normally, I would have expected to be able to connect the DWR-2101 to a regular broadband router with an Ethernet cable and turn the device into a WAN or in Bridge mode. The Ethernet port only works as a LAN for connecting a computer or other network device to gain access to the DWR-2101’s 5G signal. There’s one anomaly with the DWR-2101 that I don’t quite understand. along for a picnic and still give fast browsing speeds. Thanks to its unlocked 5G reception, the DWR-2101 can follow you out into the garden or even tag. It should cover a small home but larger areas could need a mesh network added.

The signal from the built-in Wi-Fi is strong and fast. The web interface offers a full set of configuration settings, just as you’d find on any regular broadband router used with a fixed broadband service.

There’no smartphone all for configuring the DWR-2101 but power users can dig deeper into the router’s settings by pinging the built-in web interface with a regular web browser. Wi-Fi settings are available via onscreen menus, but they are fairly rudimentary. Wi-Fi 6 also brings the latest WPA3 encryption for increased security. The DWR-2101 also uses the latest Wi-Fi 6 (AX1800) standard using 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands (574 + 1200). I was reviewing a Netgear Nighthawk M5 router at the time and that was able to pick up 5G signals better and I hit a peak download of around 90mbps.

That’s not too bad but I’m sure this little router can do far better as the 5G network rolls out. The signal strength shown was steady and the ping test returned a value of 29ms and a jitter figure of 13ms. In my tests, I was able to get download speeds of up to 33Mbps and upload speeds of just under 4Mbps which is by no means the sort of speed you could normally expect from 5G. Unfortunately, as we are currently in lockdown, I wasn’t able to travel somewhere else that had better 5G reception. The area where I live is on the fringe of a 5G coverage and signals were a little patchy. That’s a neat bit of design, especially for users who may be juggling more than one SIM in multiple locations. The slot is easy to get at and the SIM can be fitted without having to remove the battery. The back of the case slips off easily to reveal a small slot for a regular nano-SIM. replacement for a fixed-line broadband connection. As well as being handy for travel, the D-Link DWR-2101 5G router can be used in the home as a.

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