CLEAR Spot Voyager IFM-910CW 4G Wireless Hotspot

I bought this product on a whim. I had just gone through a week of annoying connectivity issues using Skype over Comcast's cable internet. It always seemed to be the worst in the afternoon/evenings and I wondered if Comcast's network configuration (where I share bandwidth with my neighbors) might be contributing to the problem. Yeah, I know that the same thing happens with cell towers but when I got a postcard from Clear touting their $34.95 (and up) 4G service on the adorable Spot Voyager, I couldn't resist. I found a nice price for the Voyager here on Amazon and with a few clicks it was on its way for me for less than 50 bucks. Sweet!It arrived in record time and I quickly unboxed it and followed the 'Quick Start' directions. At the point where the Voyager attempted to 'call home' to set up my account it hung. I retried several times with the same result and ultimately used my Comcast connection to set up an account using the browser on my laptop. I can see how this glitch might deter less determined users but for me it wasn't much of an issue.I quickly learned that the opening price of $34.95 was for a much slower speed and as a result I went for the $49.95 premium plan. I set the Voyager on the top of my couch near a window attached to its USB power supply and directed my Macbook Pro to attach to its WiFi signal. The signal was strong and I quickly accessed the Voyager's admin menu to reconfigure the network name, security and to make Skype's port at the top of the queue. I was impressed with the units full-featured admin page and marveled that all this came on such a diminutive device. Isn't Science wonderful?Next came the all-important speed tests. I tried both Java and Flash based tests and found both types to be almost identical in their results. So in the end I used Speedtest.net for all my testing. With a solid lock on my nearby cell tower (literally about a 1/4 mile away from my home) I consistently got 6-8mbps down and 1mbps up. The highest test I saw was 10/1.5 mbps. I found that the 'up' portion of the test was always around 1mbps. Not bad.I then tried testing all my applications using the Voyager. Firefox, Netflix, Skype, Pandora all worked great. I had some great Skype sessions with my brother in Minneapolis where the images both coming and going were crystal clear. My VPN to my employer's network also worked perfectly. I took the unit to work and found that buried inside my office building I got only 2-3 dots worth of 4G connectivity and of course slower speeds. But they still clocked in at 3-5mbps down and .5mbps up. Again, not bad.The only downside to the device is that its WiFi signal is weaker than the Airport Extreme I have connected to my Comcast modem. But of course this thing was designed to be portable and the expectation was no doubt that it would be very near the devices that would be using it. So again, it's not bad.I will be watching the Voyager's speeds over the next 30 days to see if I experience any of the throttling other users have reported. If that happens of course it will be a deal-breaker for me and I will cancel my plan with Clear. If it doesn't happen, however, I will have to consider if the Voyager might become my one and only internet source for my home. Stay tuned for the latest updates!

Check clear.com before you buy to see if you'll have service at your location. The maps are pretty accurate but fringe areas might need a bit of tweaking to find a sweet spot.Speeds are good. I can usually get about 4Mbps download. I've seen faster and slower but that's the average. Upload is capped at 1Mbps so that's the most you'll get. In weak areas the upload speed is more negatively impacted than download speed.The router is versatile and stable. Wifi range is also good (pick short, medium or long). Battery life is at least six hours. The device is quite small and slightly convex so be careful so it doesn't slide out of pockets or off tilted surfaces.Clear has the best rates and while the customer service isn't perfect it's better than it was two years ago.A note about "unlimited data" is in order. Clear will throttle under certain circumstances so read the user agreement on their website to see if it will work for your needs. Factor in the restrictions of other providers and Clear still has the best deal.Overall, it's well designed and well made. If Clear had service in more areas it would deserve five stars.

Clear gets a bad rap for poor connection times and poor customer service, but that has not been my experience. There are occasional disruptions in service, but with the Voyager I can just take my laptop or iPad to another block and connect to another tower. I suffer much fewer blackouts than I ever did with cable or DSL.True, when a tower goes down you have to talk your way through customer service that rebooting your modem doesn't work and to submit a trouble ticket. I average about 5Mbs which is on the slow side for Hulu but works. Yes they occasionally throttle the connection during peak times, as low as 1Mbs which is irritating, but I can time my downloads for off-peak times to avoid it. It's only temporary, unlike some 4G phone services. For around 50 dollars a month for truly unlimited data, a built-in router that allows me to connect my PC laptop, iPad, and more at NO EXTRA CHARGE, and portability, this is the best deal around.

I use this for my Laptop and Xbox, and often times simultaneouslyGood:-Its very portable and can fit in my left breast pocket.-Easy setupBad:-Can't get very good signals (at my location)-Disconnects internet from my equipment frequently-Gets quite hot so I have to isolate it from everythingOften times when im in the middle of watching some streams, I loose all connection from my laptop and xbox. All the lights are solid green indicating that everything is working properly. Yet I have to reset the device to get a connection again.I would think that im overwhelming it with both my Laptop and Xbox on, but sometimes im just on the internet browsing the forums and I would loose my connection randomly. Its very frustrating.When playing online multiplayer, I only get 3/5 bars. 4 bars if im lucky.Other than that streams are pretty consistent.Not sure if I would recommend to anyone.

I both this because my first Clear device failed suddenly quit. Clear was useless at helping me fix the issue and troubleshoot, the customer service was not helpful. I had to resort to purchasing a new device...However, this new device came quick and setting it up was simple and fast. I have used it around Baltimore and in NYC. It even catches signal when I was moving on the LIRR from Long Island to Manhattan! The signal is spotty in rural areas between states (doesnt bother me, of course the signal will be bad!) but it works very well in major cities and I'm happy so far. Good battery life too!