Comparison Samsung SCH-LC11 vs ZTE AC30

Wi-Fi connection speeds, more precisely, Wi-Fi standards supported by a modem with the appropriate capabilities (see "Type", "Connection").

— Wi-Fi 3 (802.11g). A further development of the Wi-Fi 1 (802.11b) standard, developed primarily for increasing connection bandwidth (2.4 GHz) and introduced in 2003. 802.11g hardware is fully backwards compatible with 802.11b, so even the simplest of today's Wi-Fi devices support both of these standards.

— Wi-Fi 4 (802.11n). The Wi-Fi standard, which is a further development of the formats described above — in particular, by supplementing them with support of MIMO technology (distribution of input and output between several antennas). Introduced in 2009. The main operating frequency is 2.4 GHz, but there are devices supplemented with a 5 GHz band.

— Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac). Built on top of 802.11n, introduced late 2013. The main improvements were the increase in the number of streams at the second frequency (5 GHz) and the introduction of more advanced MIMO and modulation standards, which increased the throughput accordingly.

The generation(s) of mobile networks supported by the modem.

Note that this spec is rather conditional and generalized, since one generation usually includes several data transmission technologies (see below), and the set of these technologies may vary in different mobile networks and in different modems. Therefore, it is possible to evaluate the compatibility of a device with a specific cellular network using this parameter only approximately. Nevertheless, generation data may well come in handy at the preliminary selection stage: they allow you to at least select the generation you are interested in and then search further among models that are compatible with it.

As for specific generations, today they are as follows:

— 2g. Communication standards of the second generation implemented through mobile networks of the GSM standard. Support GPRS and EDGE transmission technologies. Due to low bandwidth, today they are considered obsolete and are gradually being replaced by the next generations of communication. However, this process is uneven, and in some countries 2G is still the main mobile standard (although everything is moving towards changing this situation). Also note that even the introduction of newer standards does not mean the replacement of GSM — many operators keep this technology as a spare and intended for the simplest mobile phone models. Actually, the second generation in its pure form is pract...ically never found in cellular modems — it complements more advanced standards.

— 3G. Communication technologies of the third generation. Includes W-CDMA, HSUPA, HSDPA, and HSPA+ technologies, and in CDMA networks, EV-DO Rev.A and Rev.B. Significantly outperforms second-generation standards in terms of both pure throughput and additional features. And the data transfer speed itself can be comparable to that of a fixed wired Internet connection, which allows you not only to comfortably browse the web, but also use video calls, listen to streaming audio, etc. However, in fact, the quality of communication depends both on the specific technologies used, on the signal level, and the workload of base stations, etc.

— 4G. The fourth generation of communication, the most advanced to date. It includes WiMAX and LTE technologies, which significantly exceed not only 3G standards in terms of data transfer speed, but also the usual fixed wired Internet connection via Ethernet. However such a connection is not cheap.

The 4G (LTE) mobile connection speed supported by the modem.

All modern LTE equipment is assigned one or another category (Cat.3, Cat.4, Cat.6, Cat.7, Cat.9, Cat.12, Cat.13, Cat.16, Cat.18, Cat.19, Cat.20, Cat.22), on which the transmission speed directly depends. This paragraph specifies both this category and specific speed indicators, moreover, in two parameters — for reception and for transmission. The transmission speed is always much lower, but given the specifics of mobile Internet access, this is usually not critical.

Note that equipment with different speed categories will be quite compatible with each other, however, the throughput will be limited by the capabilities of the slower device. It is also worth saying that this paragraph indicates the theoretical maximum; practical amounts can be noticeably lower (depending on the quality of the network coverage and the features of specific electronics). However, a modem with a higher speed category will perform faster in fact.

Data transfer technologies supported by the modem.

— GPRS. The oldest communication technology in use today. It was developed as a standard for GSM cellular networks, allowing data to be transmitted in parallel with voice communications and text messages, as well as charging network access by the amount of data transmitted, and not by connection time (as in the previous CSD standard). At the time of its creation, it was very progressive, but now it is considered completely obsolete and is used only in cases where more advanced standards cannot be used.

— EDGE. A technology created as a modification of the GPRS described above, which would increase the channel throughput and improve communication reliability. Otherwise, this standard is completely similar to GPRS in terms of its main practical features.

— W-CDMA. One of the early third generation ( 3G) communication standards. Used in UMTS networks. One of the main advantages of such networks is the ability to build networks based on the existing GSM infrastructure. Therefore, UMTS, and specifically W-CDMA, is being used by many mobile operators in the early stages of their transition from 2G to 3G.

— HSUPA. Third generation (3G) communication technology, an evolution of W-CDMA described above. The name stands for "Hi...gh-Speed Uplink Packet Access" — high-speed packet data transmission in the "from the subscriber" direction. This, in fact, describes the purpose of this technology: it increases the speed of data transfer from the modem to the base station, which can be useful for some specific tasks — for example, video communications.

— HSDPA. Further, after HSUPA, improvement of the W-CDMA standard (see above). It belongs to third generation (3G) networks, but is considered an “extended” standard, which is why HSUPA-enabled networks can be referred to as 3.5G, 3G+, etc. The name itself — "High-Speed Downlink Packet Access" — translates as "high-speed packet data transmission from the base station to the device."

— HSPA+. Today's most advanced third-generation communication standard based on UMTS networks (W-CDMA). Thanks to a number of improvements, it allows to achieve higher speeds than the options described above, approaching fourth-generation networks in terms of capabilities; therefore, sometimes conventionally referred to as 3.75G.

— WiMAX. Initially, WiMAX was created in two versions — "mobile" and "stationary"; the vast majority of modern cellular modems use the second option. It belongs to the fourth generation standards — 4G (whereas "mobile" was a competitor to 3G technologies, although sometimes it is also referred to as a 4th generation connection for marketing purposes). Some time ago, WiMAX was actively promoted as an alternative to wired broadband Internet connection (in particular, as the best option for areas, where it is difficult to reach the cable). However, now this standard is gradually losing popularity — in particular, in connection with the development and promotion of a more advanced LTE (which also does not have a division into "mobile" and "stationary" varieties).

— LTE (up to 173 Mbps). The fourth generation cellular communication standard, the most popular 4G technology today — in particular, due to the fact that it is a further development of W-CDMA/UMTS and can be implemented by improving existing networks (both UMTS and CDMA2000). Another reason for the popularity is the same convenience for both stationary and mobile equipment. On the other hand, when choosing a modem of this standard, you should keep in mind that LTE bands and channels may differ in different countries, so the support of this technology does not guarantee compatibility with a particular network. It should also be taken into account that in some countries LTE networks are only at the deployment stage, and in some they are not available at all.

— EV-DO (Rev.A). EV-DO is a third-generation (3G) data transmission technology used in CDMA mobile networks (not to be confused with W-CDMA, built on another basic standard — UMTS). Note that in some countries this type of 3G network became widespread much earlier than W-CDMA and its modifications, and for a number of technical reasons it is mainly used for data transmission — that is, for the operation of 3G modems. As for Rev.A, this is the second and most common version of the EV-DO standard.

— EV-DO (Rev. B). The third version of EV-DO technology, the development and improvement of Rev.A; see above for details. Here we note that this standard is also often used as a 3G data connection; its coverage area is not as extensive as the previous version, but still covers most major cities and their surroundings. It is also worth considering that in order to use all the features of Rev.B, you need a modem that supports this version, and not all modern EV-DO devices can do this.

When evaluating the capabilities of a modem, note that the speed values given for each technology are the maximum, which in fact is achievable only under perfect conditions. The actual values of the speed, usually, are lower than the potential ones; they may depend both on the specs of the network, signal strength and other technical issues, and on the policy of the operator and the conditions of a particular tariff.

The presence of a slot for a SIM card in the design of the modem. The abbreviation SIM stands for Subscriber Identification Module, and this is the main purpose of these cards — binding the device to a specific subscriber account (personal account, mobile number, etc.). Note that in this case, the term SIM refers to both the original cards of this standard used in GSM networks, and USIM used in 3G W-CDMA networks (with all relevant add-ons, see "Transmission Technologies"). The presence of a SIM slot is mandatory for modems that support the mentioned communication technologies — they practically do not use firmware for binding to the operator's network.

The maximum operating time of the modem with battery power (see "Power") on a single charge in Internet browsing mode. Such power is typical for Wi-Fi routers, therefore, usually, Internet browsing is supposed to provide access to the World Wide Web for an external Wi-Fi device.

This spec is the main indicator of battery life for any battery-powered modem, because it describes the time of using it for its main purpose without recharging. At the same time, you should know that this indicator is measured under certain "perfect" conditions; the actual operating time depends on a number of factors, including the intensity of browsing, the amount of data transferred, the number of connected devices and the distance to them, the cellular network signal strength, etc. Therefore, in fact, the battery life of the modem may be somewhat lower. Nevertheless, it is quite possible to compare different models with each other according to the operating time stated in the specs.

The maximum time the modem can operate on battery power (see "Power") in standby mode on a single battery charge.

This mode can be described as the standby mode. It assumes that the device is turned on, its operating circuits are powered and ready to respond to an incoming signal or user command at any time, but no data exchange occurs and no features work. This indicator is not as important as the Internet browsing time (see above), but it is also of practical importance and allows you to evaluate the battery life of the device — after all, during breaks between communication sessions, the modem is in standby mode.