At the same physical location, these were my results:
| Setup | Speed |
|---|---|
| TP-Link TL-MR100 4G router | 8 Mbps |
| Phone with an Airtel SIM, in 4G mode | 10 Mbps |
| Same phone and Airtel SIM, in 5G mode | 100 Mbps |
That makes a 5G phone a reasonable hotspot for remote work where I am.
For prolonged plugged-in use, my key requirement was bypass charging: powering the phone directly from the charger to reduce battery cycling and heat, helping battery and device longevity.
After looking at various phones, the Realme Narzo 100X 5G stood out.
Buying a local-market 5G phone also helps avoid the operator compatibility headaches that imported 5G hardware can bring. Check support for your local operators' 5G bands and network modes before buying.
It also connects to my MikroTik hEX S over USB. Once I enable USB
tethering on the phone, an lte1 interface automatically appears in the
hEX S UI. A useful way to feed the mobile connection into the existing
network.
Once Starlink Mini is available locally, it could give us another connectivity option for remote work.