Alcatel LinkZone Mobile Hotspot (Unlocked, Brand New)

Product Description

Imagine you need a reliable mobile hotspot that can cover communication and web-based tasks on the go. Factor in that you probably don’t want to spend too much on that device. If that sounds familiar, Alcatel Linkzone is a good option for busy professionals who want a stable internet connection wherever they might be.

This write-up gives you a quick rundown of the critical characteristics that make the Linkzone a good choice.

Alcatel LinkZone Specifications

As a low-end model, the Linkzone has some tricks up its sleeve that make it good value for money.

Design

The Linkzone has a simple but elegant design. Basically, it’s a relatively small brick with blue status indicators. The device measures only 2.6 x 4.1 x 0.8 inches and weighs 5.2 ounces. Due to that, it’s one of the most compact hotspots you can easily move from one office to another.

The lights show battery capacity, signal strength, SMS messages, and whether Wi-Fi is on or off. There are two physical buttons on the back – one for WPS connection and the other for power.

Battery and Connectivity of the Alcatel LinkZone

You get USB-A ports to charge auxiliary devices and USB-C ports are there to hook up a modem and your computer. The device’s battery is one of its main selling points.

The capacity is 4,400mAh with a good run and recharge time. You should be able to use it for an entire shift without a recharge. Plus, the device isn’t likely to overheat.

However, the Linkzone doesn’t feature an antenna port. Therefore, it’s not exactly useful as a home internet hotspot because the signal is likely to drop significantly as you move away from the device.

Configuration

This hotspot doesn’t feature a display, so the configuration is entirely web-based. You can configure the following parameters:

• Block device MAC
• IP filter
• UPNP
• Port forwarding
• Manual DNS

Note that you’ll need to configure the device to a 5GHz or 2.4GHz network. You can’t access both at the same time. That’s peculiar. But keep in mind that the Linkzone is a low-end device, so some limitations are to be expected.

Other than that, you don’t get parental controls, speed testing, or guest network configuration.

Internals and Connectivity

The Linkzone runs on Qualcomm MDM9207. Sure, this is a low-end chipset, but you get support for Category 4 LTE. But be aware that the chipset has the following limitations:

• Only 1x20MHz and 2x10MHz carrier aggregation
• Only 64QAM download encoding
• Single 20MHz for uploads

However, with certain carriers, the device supports up to eight LTE bands. In other words, you’ll be able to access most 4G networks in the country.

Generally, you can expect speeds of up to 30Mbps, although your carrier might offer more. But the speed may also depend on the network congestion, not only the device’s limitations.

Create Your Hotspot

This snappy review may have led you to believe the Linkzone is a poor choice, but it’s not like that at all.

The device’s features are more than enough to set up an outdoor office where there’s no internet. And you’re not likely to experience any lag or connectivity issues unless you hit peak network hours.