PHS300 Review

The first thing that strikes us about this new unit is that the packaging is virtually identical to it's predecessor, the CTR-350, and that is both good thing and a bad thing. Having been in electronics distribution for 20+ years, the good news is the new unit will ship in the same cartons as the previous one, the bad news is the shipping department must now be extra diligent to make sure the right router gets to the right customer!

Once removed from the package, the new unit looks awfully small, even though it is about 30% larger than the CTR-350. The fit and finish, and overall build quality looks to be every bit as good as the CTR-350. If you are not up to snuff on the difference between these 2 routers, the PHS300 has an internal lithium ion battery for a couple of hours of use away from a power source. The trade off is that the new unit does not have an RJ45 port for Ethernet in/out, it is strictly a USB input and WiFi output device.

Set-up is just as simple an intuitive as the CTR350, and uses virtually the identical interface. We had several variations of USB cards and laptops up and running in no time, on both Verizon and Sprint. We were also able to connect to a tethered Katana II without incident.

LED’s indicate Power, Network (Cellular Link Status), and WLAN, and there is an ON/OFF switch to conserve power when not connected to a power source and the unit is not in use.

In numerous throughput tests with various combinations, we once again were struck by the fact that results from Speedtestnet and BroadbandPlace were consistently faster using the Cradlepoint product, than when the USB Card was connected directly to the laptop itself. Differences range from 2% up to almost 25%, and as counterintuitive as it seems, this WiPipe thing really works!

This new Router will definitely fill a need for those who want to travel seamlessly from home to office, office to jobsite etc. Coupled with Cradlepoints new 12v car cord (CCA-3XX), this unit will make remaining connected that much more practical. The car cord is a little pricey at $24.99, but if it works, it works. For someone that needs extended off grid power solutions, there are several good quality power supplies like the Tekkeon that should fill that bill. The AC and DC adaptors from Cradlepoint are interchangeable between these 2 units.

We think Cradlepoint definitely has another winner with the PHS300 !

Firmware updates now make the PHS300 compatible with many AT&T modems, with T-Mobile compatibility to follow shortly. 

Please send us your comments!