How to Update Huawei E398 Firmware

Just like mobile phone, if a 4G modem is used for long time, there will be some errors such sudden connection terminated, no signal, don’t read SIM card, no response when plug in etc.. During this time, it’s necessary to update the firmware of the 4G modem and let it work well. This process is like the re-install the operation system in PC. After update, the 4G modem will connect smoothly, and quickly. In some case, the connection speed may increase obviously with same SIM card.  

 

Huawei E398 is one of the best 4G USB modem that was used by thousands of customers over the world. Some users may want to update the firmware of their E398 but can’t find the driver or don’t know the user guide to update. Today, we will give the guide how to update the firmware of Huawei E398, hope it would help our customer to have better surfing experience on 4G networks:

1.  Plug the Huawei E398 to your PC

2. Install the old driver that is already with the E398

3. Download the update driver for E398 here: http://speedy.sh/jGaVd/E398-Update-11.335.31.00.000.B757.rar

4. Run the driver and follow the steps to update the firmware

5. On the third step, there is flash code required to proceed. On the website http://www.modemunlock.com/huawei.php  you can enter the IMEI number of your E398 and let it calculate, you will get the flash code 6. Enter the flash code to process the update. After finished, your E398 is with new firmware now  

 

What we have to mention is that on the step 5, you will also get the unlock code of your Huawei E398, if you want to unlock your E398, you can do it after firmware update. The website calculate your E398 unlock code, you note it and plug a SIM card that is different from the locked network, it will require unlock code to let them work together, now you can enter the noted unlocked code and get unlocked Huawei E398.   But if your E398 is already unlocked, it’s unnecessary to do the unlocking again. Any questions, welcome to leave your message on the blog.

ZTE Flare 4G LTE Cat6 Mobile Hotspot

The Chinese manufacturer "ZTE" has already announced a new hotspot router to the Mobile World Congress 2014 that will support LTE-Advanced with up to 300 Mbit/s for the first time. The new hotspot is named ZTE Flare. The device is equipped with the latest wireless technology. Here are the key data details.  

 

ZTE Flare Features and Characteristics
Manufacturer	ZTE
LTE Category	LTE Category 6 (Cat6)
Chipset	Qualcomm Gobi ™ 9x30 with RF360
Download Rate	300Mbit/s
Upload Rate	50Mbit/s
Supported network	CDMA/TD-LTE/FDD-LTE/WCDMA/GSM
Supported LTE Bands	Still unknown
Backward compatible with	unknown yet
Support LTE-Advanced	Yes
WLAN	802.11ac/a/b/g/n, 2.4GHz/5GHz
WiFi chipset	Qualcomm VIVE QCA6174
MIMO Support	MIMO 2 x 2
Connector for external antenna	Yes, 2 TS-9 antenna sockets (Buy ZTE Flare Antenna)
USB Standard	USB 2.0
Memory Card expansion	MicroSD up to 32GB
Battery	2300mAh
Other functions	SMS, IPv6, IPv4
Compatible operation system	Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 +8, Mac OS (10.4 or higher)
Release	Summer or fall 2014

 

From 2014 autumn, many European network providers are trying to launch the next generation LTE (So called LTE-Advanced). Based on new technology, the current data rates of up to 300Mbit/s could be achieved. However, in order to use the “LTE 2.0”, customers require new hardware so that the devices could support LTE Category 6. Both ZTE and its rival Huawei are also preparing the new models. Then ZTE announced its first Cat6 device for the second half of the year, named “Flare”.

 

Portable Router ZTE Flare is called WiFi hotspot router, but it’s designed for mobile use and allows multiple users to share the wireless network through it. More powerful than Huawei E5786 LTE Cat6 mobile hotspot, ZTE Flare could support maximum up to 32 users to access internet. Based on the LTE Category6,  the peak speed of 300Mbps will provide good surf experience for the users.  

 

ZTE Flare is the world’s first device that uses Gobi chipset from Qualcomm, more specifically; it’s the “Gobi 9x30”. It’s made in ultra-thin 20nm process and consumes less energy than conventional radio chips. It’s said the new chipset will save almost up to 15 percent power. Per the LTE-A support and carrier aggregation, the qualcomm chipst can combine two RF bands of different spectral ranges, so that the LTE providers can operate up to 40MHz total bandwidth for data transmission. According to 3GPP standard, tapes 5, 10, 15 or 20 MHz are combines. In this way, data rates can reach up to 300mbps. The Gobi dominates beyond FDD and TDD modulation. The former is common in Europe and North America, the later specially in the Asian region.  

 

Of course, according to the latest AC standard, ZTE flare can supports up to 540Mbps based on installed VIVE 502.11ac WiFi chip from Qualcomm. The WiFi chipset is compatible with previous 802.a/b/g/n and can be operated at 2.4GHz or 5GHz. As mentioned before, the flare hotspot allows end users of up to 32 devices. There are two additional ports for connecting external antennas (TS-9 socket).  

 

Like other mobile hotspot router, there is a LCD screen on the front and users can see many important connection information, such as surf duration, radio standard or consumed volume. Many people want to know which one is better between ZTE Flare and Huawei E5786, we will give full explanation after we get the samples of them.            

Difference between ZTE MF831 and MF823

ZTE MF831 is the new 4G LTE Wireless modem which supports TDD & FDD networks. It’s a LTE Category 4 Internet USB Stick, which support peak download speed up to 150Mbps on FDD network and upload speed to 50Mbps. Since we had introduced the predecessor ZTE MF823 USB Stick, what’s the difference between the two sticks? Today, we will have a look at the difference between them.

 

 

 

Model	ZTE MF831	ZTE MF823
Form Type	4G Datacard	4G Datacard
Brand	ZTE	ZTE
Category	LTE Cat4	LTE Cat3
Network Technology	4G TD-LTE/FDD-LTE/UMTS/DC-HSPA+/EGPRS/GSM	4G FDD-LTE/UMTS/DC-HSPA+/EGPRS/GSM
Frequency Bands	LTE-FDD 800(B20)/900(B8)/1800(B3)/2600(B7)/2100MHz LTE TDD 2600(B38) OR 2300M(B40)	LTE-FDD: 800/900/1800/2600MHz
	UMTS 900/2100MHz	UMTS 900/2100MHz
	GPRS/GSM/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900MHz	GPRS/GSM/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900MHz
Data Rates	LTE Peak Download Speed to 150Mbps LTE Upload Speed to 50Mbps	LTE Peak Download Speed to 100Mbps LTE Upload Speed to 50Mbps
	DC-HSPA+ DL Speed to 42Mbps, UL Speed to 11Mbps	DC-HSPA+ DL Speed to 42Mbps, UL Speed to 5.76Mbps
MIMO	Yes	Yes
Interface	USB	USB
Antenna	Built-in Antenna	Built-in Antenna, Two external Antenna Connectors
Storage SD card	MicroSD card expandable to 32GB	MicroSD card expandable to 32GB
SMS	?	YES
Supported OS	Win7, Windows XP, Vista, Win8, Mac OS	Win8，Win7，Vista，Windows XP，Mac OS
Online Upgrade	Yes	Yes
Dimension	90×28.4×13mm	90×28.4×13mm

 

From the blank, we can see ZTE MF831 and MF823 are in the same dimension. ZTE MF831 is the upgraded version of ZTE MF823. MF831 is LTE Category 4 Stick which supports peak download speed to 150mbps, and it’s first ZTE LTE Cat4 Stick. With the support TDD network, ZTE MF831 could work well with more network providers. It supports more LTE Bands than MF823, and data rate speed is almost 1.5 times than MF823.  

 

They are both compatible with 3G UMTS 900/2100MHz networks; with DC-HSPA+ technology, they could reach peak download speed to 42mbps. When LTE networks are not available, they would automatically switch to UMTS network to get the reliable network with fastest speed. But ZTE MF831 support upload speed to 11Mbps while MF823 supports 5.76Mbps.  

 

However, it seems there is no external antenna connector in MF831, while MF823 has two external antenna connectors which will be more useful for MIMO connection. They both support microSD storage card expandable to 32GB. And they can both works with the latest operation system: Win7, Windows XP, Vista, Win8, Mac OS etc..  

 

So ZTE MF831 is better with upgraded function, but if you want the 4G datacard with antenna connector, MF823 seems to be the right model.    

Huawei Honor 6 LTE Cat6 Smartphone Test

Following the release of Octa-core Hisilicon Kirin 920 chipset, Huawei Honor then debut the world’s first new Category 6 4G LTE Smartphone based on this platform. The model number is Huawei Honor 6. The main core A15 and A7 will help this new phone improve the performance obviously. As the successor of the 4G technology, Huawei Honor 6 brings the new LTE Cat6 Standard, the theoretical downstream speed could reach up to 300Mbps, and the total configuration of honor 6 is better than any models ever. So what’s the real performance of this new phone and what it means to Huawei, let’s have a test of the new smartphone.

 

 

Octa-core up to 300Mbps Peak Speed  

 

Huawei Honor 6 has a 5 inch screen and is based on the Hisilicon Kirin 920 processor; the CPU of Honor 6 has two parts in the form of big.LITTLE, one is qual-core A12 and the other is qual-core A7. The GPU has 3GB RAM based on ARM Mali-T628 qual-core.

 

 

Like other mobile phones, Huawei Honor 6 has two cameras, rear camera is 13 mega pixels with Huawei own smart engine, and front camera is 5 mega pixels. With the support of Huawei 4G modem, Honor 6 could reach peak download speed up to 300mbps theoretically, which is the double speed of LTE Cat4 downstream, and 14 times of 3G HSPA+ link speed.

 

 

Main Specifications of Huawei Honor 6

 

Huawei Honor 6
Screen Resolution	1920 x 1080 pixels
4G Network	TD-LTE，FDD-LTE
3G Network	China Unicom Version: 3G（WCDMA）, 2G（GSM）China Mobile Version: 3G TD-SCDMA, 2G
Supported Frequency	2G：GSM 850/900/1800/1900 3G：WCDMA 850/900/1700/1900/2100MHz3G:  TD-SCDMA 1900/2100MHz
Operation System	Android OS 4.4
CPU	Hisilicon Kirin 920
RAM	3GB
ROM	16GB/32GB
Camera	Rear 13 Mega Pixels/ Front 500 Mega Pixels

   

 

7.5 mm Thickness and 5 inch 1080 Screen  

 

Huawei Honor 6 has a 5 inch screen from JDI, from the configuration; we can see honor 6 is the flagship of honor series smartphones, so the resolution reaches 1080p. The whole screen occupies the 75.7% space of the front body with 2.86 mm super narrow side. The screen is protected by the Gorilla Glass3 from Corning.

 

 

The inserted button follow the tradition of Huawei Honor series style, which can save the body size and increase the screen occupy rate to some extent.  

 

3D flare texture and Diamond composite texture  

 

The back of Honor 6 adopts the design of 3D flare texture and Diamond composite texture. The whole back of honor 6 is with good touch feel like glass, just like the Huawei Ascend P7. The main camera on the back is 13 mega pixels with two LED flash, which seems not to improve double color temperature and just for flash lightness.  There is also loudspeaker and logo on the back, the position is very similar to Ascend P7.  

 

The three quarter of honor 6 is covered by metal in silver color and many buttons are listed in the metal side. On the top side, there is infrared transmitter, which is used for remote control of home electronics and reduces the noise from microphone. On the right side in middle, there are two Micro-SIM card slots and one SD card slot. User need open the tip and plug Sim card and then use the phone.

 

 

 

Considering the power consumption of Qual-core A15, Huawei Honor 6 has inserted battery of 3100mAh, which is under the back cover. The dimension of 139.6 x 69.7 x 7.5 mm is good for user to take in one hand.  

 

Dynamic screen lock and Emotiion UI 2.3 Honor 6 combines the Android 4.4 and Emotion UI 2.3 operation system, which makes the Honor brand younger and simple design is more popular in young users.

 

 

Honor 6 adopt the dynamic lock screen, which will update the status from blog, news on the screen without unlock the screen. User could customize the information they are interested in and get update freely. In addition, the lock screen has a shortcut menu like iOS 7, which help use to easily open the calculator, calendar, and flashlight etc..  

 

H

onor 6 also provides own mobile phone manager and power saving management, the former is for the apps with large power consumption, files clearance and Harassment interception; the latter is to save power with multiple solution. The basic logic is to adjust the CPU or close the GPS and network connection etc..

 

 

With the infrared remote controller, Huawei Honor 6 can control Huawei wireless routers and air conditioner or TV in other brands, the supported equipments are the common well-known.   Hisilicon Kirin 920 Video and Game Compatibility Test Huawei Hisilicon has always the compatibility problem for long time based on Vivante GC CPU. Now the Kirin 920 has improved the performance and with Qual-core Mali-T628 GPU, the compatibility problem will disappear then. Now we will take tests on the Video and Game compatibility. In the Video, only RMVB can’t be supported well and no voice comes out on MKV, other 1080p video can play smoothly without delay.

 

 

In the game test, we run the game “Need for Speed 17”, “Asphalt 8”, “Modern warfare 4” and they all works smoothly. The GPU will not be a problem for Huawei Honor 6.

 

Big.LITTLE Structure and Kirin 920   As the typical models of processor made-by-China, Huawei Hisilicon Kirin 920 is the new star with Octa-core. Kirin 920 is produced based on 28 nm technology and octa-core big.LITTLE structure, including Qual-core Cortex-A15 and Qual-core Cortex-A7. The main frequency of A15 could reach 2GHz. The two cores could work simultaneously and GPU is Mali-T628MP4.   Kirin 920 has inserted co-processor named i3, so it can run in low power consumption. And ISP is also made by Huawei, which can reduce the noise and supports video decode 4K H.265, but 4K is not supported.

 

 

In the telecommunication, Kirin 920 dominates the Huawei LTE Advanced module, supporting LTE Cat6 standard, and supporting TD-LTE/LTE FDD/TS-SCDMA/WCDMA/GSM five network modes. And it also support SGLTE/CSFB and VoLTE 4G voice call etc.   Below are the test screen shot for Kirin 920:   CPU-Z:

 

 

 

AnTuTu Test:

 

 

3D Mark Test:

 

 

Vellamo Test:

 

 

Kirin 920 Octa-core working:

 

   

 

From the debut of Honor 6, the key point is on the Kirin 920 platform. And from the test, we can see Kirin 920 is much better then predecessor K3V2 not only on the performance but also the functions. So we can conclude Huawei Honor 6 is on the top series smartphones with improved performance and compatibility ability.  

Vodafone R210 Mini LTE Router

The Mini LTE Hotspot Vodafone R210 Mobile Wi-Fi Router can be seen everywhere stationary or mobile use. You can use the R210 Mini hotspot at home as a DSL alternative for multiple devices. The R210 Mobile Wi-Fi LTE Router has integrated a powerful battery. So you can use the R210 Mini mobile hotspot on the road to access internet through smartphone, laptop or tablet via WLAN. The R210 Pocket router is ideal for business trips or holidays.

 

Vodafone R210 MiFi Specifications:  

 

* No SIM lock or Netlock (Unlocked)

* Manufacturer: Huawei (identical for the Huawei E589u-12)

* Supported network standards:

- 4G: LTE800, LTE1800, LTE2600 to up to 100 Mbit/s

- 3G: UMTS Broadband, with DC-HSPA+ 900/2100 MHz up to 43.2 Mbit/s

- 2G: GSM: Quadband 850/900/1800/1900 MHz, EDGE support

* Download speed: up to 100 Mbit/s

* Upload speed: up to 50 Mbit/s

* Wi-Fi b/g/n up to 30 Mbit/s with encryption: WEP, WPA, WPA2

* Button for WPS encryption on the mini router

* WLAN supports up to 5 mobile devices

* TFT screen display for the battery charge status, the reception strength and connection technology.

* Antenna connector for external antenna TS-9 (Buy Vodafone R210 Antenna)

* Micro USB connection - only usable as a power supply

* Micro-SD memory card slot: The internal memory is expandable with an SD memory card to 32GB.

* App for iPhone or Android for operating the Vodafone R210 Mobile available

* Battery: 3300mAh permanently installed for up to 4 hours continuous operation

* Housing: Plastic

* Dimensions: H 113 x W 62 x D 13.5 mm

* Weight: 140 grams

* Color: black  

 

The Configuration of Vodafone R210 Mobile WiFi Hotspot is very simple.  

 

Step 1:  Plug the SIM card to R210 and then turn on the mini router. The MiFi Router can operate with SIM cards of all LTE providers in Europe. Usually, the R210 Router would automatically read the operators’ information and get connected with wireless network. After LTE connection is made, user can log in the web management page to setup the WiFi key, SSID and other parameters if necessary. For all other simcards from LTE provider, you just need log in the Web page to create a new connection profile with the APN of the existing LTE provider.  

Step 2: Computer, laptop or smartphone can connect to the R210 Mobile via WLAN. Wi-Fi password is on the back of the mini router.  

Step 3: Visit website 192.168.1.1 and you can manage the settings of Vodafone R210. Vodafone Mobile Wifi could be monitored in iPhone, iPad or Android by the "Vodafone Mobile Wifi Monitor". It’s a useful APP with the obtained information on battery status, power and signal strength and consumed data volume.  

 

Conclusion:

The R210 Mobile is easy to use with the APP Vodafone Mobile Wifi monitor. The battery has enough power sufficient to normal daily use. Up to 4 hours working time is enough for outdoor use. The R210 MiFi supports web standards EDGE, UMTS, HSPA+ and LTE. The mini router automatically logs itself always in the fastest network available. With changing in 2G, 3G and 4G reception, we were able to test extensively at a car on the A8 motorway, we have found no problems and no download aborts. The little mini Hotspot is absolutely practical especially on vacation. You can then save expensive fees for the use of WLAN in the hotel. The Vodafone Mini Router R210 is highly recommended. Through WiFi, the maximum connection speed is limited to the LTE network to 30 Mbit/s which is also confirmed in our speed test. This is sufficient for most LTE users.

How to unlock Netgear 341u Aircard

Netgear Aircard 341u is a latest new 4G USB Modem; it follows its predecessors Sierra Aircard 320u and 330u in appearance. But after Netgear acquired the Sierra Wireless Aircards, Netgear didn’t change the body design, the good news is that there is improvement on the application. There is LED screen which will help user read more information about the connection status about the Aircard, which is much more user-friendly than Aircard 330u and 320u.  

 

However, since Netgear 341u is presented to public by US operator Sprint, the Aircard 341u is locked to its network and can’t use other providers’ SIM cards or roam over the world. So if you want to use the Netgear Aircard 341u with other SIM cards, or take the Aircard 341u with you to overseas, it’s necessary to unlock the 341u. But many people don’t know how to unlock it. Today we will give instruction about how to unlock Netgear Aircard 341u, below is the unlocking guide:

1. Download the unlock tool here: https://www.dc-unlocker.com/downloads/get/HtYMTyib and install it to your PC
2. Plug the Aircard 341u to your PC and install the driver.
3. After driver installation, run the DC-unlocker
4. Login the tool at the right side(if you don’t have account, you need register a new account)

 

 

 

5. In the Dc-unlocker window, Select manufacturer in step 1, Select model in step 2 and press detect in step 3 (check below image for reference)  

 

 

 

6. After the DC-unlocker detect the full information about the Aircard 341u, press the unlocking at the right side.

 

 

 

7. After get the unlock code, you can unlock the Aircard 341u easily.  

 

  If you want to unlock Netgear 340u or other Sierra Wireless Aircards, you could also use this method. However, you need buy credits to enjoy this service.    

Huawei E5186 LTE Cat6 Wireless Gateway Review

From 2014, Huawei bring a new 4G router E5186 to its 4G product range, which is expected to mark a quantum leap in the development for 4G equipment. It’s virtual that all of the new standards are on board and will shape new global standards from the end of 2014. For the first time, LTE-Advanced (CAT6) and VoLTE are supported on the same device, that is Huawei E5186 LTE Wireless Gateway. You can read more about the new flagship below.

 

 

 

Features and characteristics of Huawei E5186
Manufacturer and type designation		Huawei E5186s-22 (HiSilicon chip)
Download rate		Up to 300 Mbit/s
Upload rate		Up to 50 Mbits/s
Supported LTE Bands:		LTE 2600 MHz / 2100 MHz / 1800 MHz / 900 MHz / 800 MHz (FDD) + LTE 2600 MHz TDD
LTE-Advanced Support		yes (first time)
Backward compatible with		HSPA/HSPA+/UMTS (900/2100 MHz); GSM
MIMO Support		MIMO 2x2
Connector for external antenna		yes, 2 SMA connectors (Buy Huawei E5186 Antenna)
Category		LTE modem category 6! (CAT6)
Telephone
With integrated telephone system		yes, VOIP SIP Client
Support VoLTE (Voice over LTE)		yes
Connection for analog phones		yes, 2xRJ11
DECT		no
Integrator answering machine		-
Network | LAN & WLAN
LAN ports		4 LAN Gigabit ports (RJ45)
WLAN standards		WLAN 802.11b/g/n/ac for up to 64 users
5 GHz WLAN support		yes
Encoding		WEP, WPA, WPA2
USB		yes, 1 x USB 2.0
Dimensions / Weight		194 x 177 x 64 mm and 450 grams
Information material
Manual		Not available online
Available		On WWW.4GLTEMALL.COM

   

LTE Advanced and VoLTE  

In spite of the appearance of Huawei E5186 looks like its predecessor Huawei B593, the standard is still the new evolution of the LTE technology.  Many European operator such as O2, Vodafone and Telekom, start deploying the further significant faster LTE-Advanced network from this summer. With the LTE-Advanced technology, the data rate of 225-300 Mbps could be achieved. We also concern about "true" LTE telephone which has not been in use. The so-called VoLTE is very convenient when calling significantly increases. Huawei E5186 could also work at the outdoor environment and is therefore ideally equipped for the future.  

 

Technology at a glance  

As already indicated, the wireless capabilities of the E5186 are outstanding. LTE is supported on the band 1/3/7/8/20 and 38 on Huawei E5186s-22. But there is Huawei E5186s-61 which supports different LTE frequency bands. In addition to LTE-Advanced  Category 6 ( CAT6 ), the operation over 3G and 2G is also possible. So all mobile phone types are supported by Huawei E5186. The router also dominates the latest wireless standard AC so that internal networks can be established with a maximum data rate of 1300 Mbps. A bottleneck via WLAN is therefore not to be expected in LTE-Advanced mode.

 

 

Connections  

 

On the back of Huawei E5186, there are 4 Gigabit LAN ports (RJ45), two RJ-11 jacks for phones and a USB port. In addition, the power port and an on/off switch are at the side of phone jacks. Two external antennas can also be connected as usual, in case the reception conditions are not sufficient.  

 

Telephone  

 

You will probably never find a DECT connection at Huawei. However, the operation over VOIP is possible on E5186. What is new, as already mentioned, the support of Voice over LTE ( VoLTE ). If the provider offers the LTE technology, calls can thus be handled directly by the contract SIM card via mobile phone. The advantage for customers: more stable connections, call setup in under 2 seconds, and perfect voice quality.    

 

The Huawei E5186 has some OEM version at the leading LTE vendors. Vodafone will soon release the B4000 LTE Gateway with Vodafone logo. Probably the Telekom will use the device, but it is not yet known. Here now the E5186 is already available on www.4gltemall.com. If you want it, you could have a check.