Globe recently released officially their new LTE-Advanced Prepaid WiFi modem to compete with the LTE-Advanced modems of PLDT. The unit is quite familiar because it is the same as what has been available through online sellers as the Globe CAT7 modem. Upon checking the unit it is indeed the same Huawei B535-932 modem and in this video we'll see if there's any difference between the old Globe CAT7 and this new Globe Prepaid WiFi LTE-Advanced modem.
I got the unit from lazada at Php1,999 with a free tote bag worth Php400. Feature-wise it is the same as my old CAT7 since it's the same Huawei model but comparing it to other available Globe prepaid WiFi's it features carrier aggregation which should give you faster speeds and it is also dual band.
Speaking of dual band the 5Ghz band is theoretically faster than the 2.4Ghz band since there is less interference from other devices but it has a smaller range and is not advisable if your router is separated by walls from where you connect. Near the device there is not much of a difference between the 2 bands but when I went to the opposite room upstairs, the signal of the 5Ghz band significantly dropped. This is where the band steering feature of this device comes handy so that it will automatically switch from 5GHz to 2.4Ghz depending on signal strength.
In terms of speed, the LTE+ signal should give you faster speeds but it will ultimately depend on your location and router position. Moving it around the house gave me different speedtest results from less than 5mbps to more than 20mbps download speeds.
The widely available Globe CAT7 clearly has a Postpaid label written on the box and the reason for that is explained in my previous video. In that video I also mentioned that I had admin access to the Globe CAT7 and locked the band to band28 from 3 available LTE bands 3, 28, and 41. In this new version of the modem it supports 5 bands adding Band 1 and Band 40. However, Admin Access is currently not yet available and you cannot fix the best band in your area and have to rely on finding the best position in your house where you get the fastest speeds.
An additional note, both the old CAT7 version and the new Globe LTE Advanced prepaid Wifi cannot connected to Huawei AI Life and Huawei Hi-link so you have to rely on the router admin page for controls. One advantage though of the new LTE Advanced modem is that you can read sms which is a feature missing from the old CAT7 modem.
As a conclusion if you're looking to upgrade from your old Globe modem and already have a good signal in your area then this device is highly recommended. Now between this device and the old CAT7, it's basically the same with the main advantage of the old CAT7 is the price. I've noticed that prices have dropped to as low a Php1,000 for the old so if you chanced upon this deal I suggest you buy it. Another advantage is being able to have admin access to control which LTE band to connect to but if you're not in a hurry, you can buy the new Globe LTE Advance WiFi and just wait for admin access to be available.
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