Review: ZyXel MWR211 Wi-Fi Travel Router

The ZyXel MWR211 works something like a MiFi device but can use any USB broadband modem, or a wired connection in a hotel room, to create a Wi-Fi hotspot. Ideal for small business teams that travel as a group.

"A mobile broadband router can be an indispensable tech accessory for people who travel with companions or groups, turning a single wireless broadband connection into a Wi-Fi hotspot. Novatel Wireless's MiFi devices are great examples, but a MiFi supports only the carrier that sells it, which binds you to that carrier's data plan and coverage. The Zyxel MWR211 Portable Router ($85 as of March 10, 2011) takes a BYOB (as in, bring your own broadband) approach: It turns almost any carrier's USB broadband modem into a Wi-Fi hotspot.

About the size of a deck of cards, the MWR211 isn't as sleek as the credit-card-size MiFi, and because it may require some configuration, it lacks the MiFi's unparalleled ease of use. But because it lets you use whatever USB modem happens to be handy as your broadband source, the MWR211 far outstrips the MiFi in versatility. If one mobile broadband network isn't available (for example, because you're overseas or out of a coverage area), or if data roaming fees are outrageously high, you can swap in a USB modem from a network that has better coverage or a cheaper plan."