Clear Spot Voyager Limited Edition 4G portable hotspot review
The Clear Spot Voyager Limited Edition from Clear is a super small, portable, 4G hotspot that provides Unlimited 4G internet service over wifi for up to 8 simultaneous devices. $49.99 for the device and a month to month plan with no overages.
Starting up and using the Spot Voyager is a cinch. Simply fire it up, wait a few moments for it to boot and obtain signal, then hook up your pc, smartphone, tablet, camera, TV, anything that can access an 802.11 b/g wi-fi signal and your off and running!
It’s tiny!
The device measures 2.6″ x 2.6″ x 0.5″ thick and weighs only 2 ounces! I wouldn’t necessarily keep this running in my pocket, too close to the nads but it’s so small and easy to carry. We are reviewing the Spot Voyager Red Limited Edition IFM-920CW, but there are an array of modems, USB sticks and puck style portables for you to choose from.
Technical Specs
Using WiMAX 2500 MHz the Spot Voyager supports 802.11 b/g wi-fi and WEP, WPA and WPA2 wi-fi security. The range on the Spot Voyager Limited Edition is up to 150 ft. though your mileage may vary depending what type of interference you have around you, but up to about 100ft distance or more it was solid for us. A supplied USB wall plug and USB to micro USB charges the internal 1500mAh battery. A small plastic panel that snaps out and twists reveals the micro USB charge port on the rear of the unit.
Battery life and User Interface
Battery life is pretty good at about 5-6 hours of usage depending on how much your using it and how many clients are hooked up. A full charge can be completed in about 4 hours but we tended to keep it plugged in when stationary and took along a portable power source when on the move.
The device unfortunately does not have a battery percentage indicator but instead a 3 level: high, medium, low battery indicator on the device. It is tuff to tell where your at with battery life when your in the Red and would benefit greatly with a percentage indicator, even if only in the admin UI. You can access the UI via admin interface on your smartphone, PC or mobile device, like you would access your home router’s interface, in this case http://192.168.1.1.
Within the administrative user interface is where you will find extended information such as the; number of devices connected, security type, assigned ip, as well as a 5 level 4G signal and battery indicator.
Coverage and Performance
Budget conscious, convenient Internet service you certainly get, but what you also get is very spotty coverage across the United States. If you plan to use it within a towers’ range you will get good signal. Clear provides an easy to use map to check your coverage area on their website, www.clear.com, so you will know if this will work for you ahead of time. They also offer a full refund if you cancel within 15 days and return the unit in 30.
Initially I was slightly disappointed when I was only able to get about 2mbps down and about 450kb/s up, but after speaking with support, a quick shut down of the device, pointed it to the nearest tower, (which for me was about 2 miles to the South) booted the Clear Spot Voyager back up, I was getting smooth consistent coverage 6.5-7mbps/1mbps and boosts of up to 8-9mbps down during off peak times. Performance is heavily dependent upon proximity so again your mileage may vary. Driving while utilizing the device did not yield good results as expected, so find a spot and plant yourself for the best results.
The NY/NJ/CT Metro area seems to have the strongest blanket concentration of service, Manhattan particularly but the major cities on the East coast had coverage. We have heard rumors of Clear throttling back the bandwidth after the initial 30 day period; that did not happen to us. We were able to consistently get a clear 4G signal at the full bandwidth for over a 45+ day period; we ran torrents, streamed media, Skype video conferencing, VOIP services and more on multiple devices without too much noticeable degradation in speed with pretty consistent bandwidth tests on dslreports.com and speedtest.net.
The All Important Price
The device itself will run you $49.99 but what’s nice is that you are month to month, no annual contracts so you can safely use it when needed or full time as your traveling hotspot. Clear offers 3 data plans:
- 4G Unlimited Internet Plan at $49.99
Which offers unlimited data and a maximum of up to 6mbps down and 1 up.
- 4G Basic Unlimited Basic at $34.99
Which offers unlimited data and a maximum of up to 1.5mbps and 500k up.
- 2GB Data Plan at $19.99
Which is typically enough for a single user if your casual Internet user, checking email, Facebook and the occasional video or multiple users if your just using it for email and light duty.
Conclusion
Whether your using the Spot Voyager as supplementary Internet access or relying on it for access at all, service is great and offers an unlimited data plan for a pretty reasonable price. It’s tiny, lightweight and with month to month billing plans and no overages, this is a no brainer for someone in need. If you live or plan to use it in the coverage zones I would highly recommend it.
Available from clear.com sprint.com for $49.99 plus data plan
