Your LTE Router
Getting your LTE router up and running is easy.
Please ensure that you insert your SIM card within 48 hours of delivery. This is important as the network provider will cancel the SIM card if it’s not activated within this time frame.
Please click ZTE MF253 for detailed information on this LTE router.
Unboxing Your Router
Your box should contain the following:
- Quick start guide
- Your router
- Power supply cord
- LAN cable
The Set-up
1. Insert your SIM card
- Ensure that your SIM card is correctly inserted into the router (it should ‘click’ in)
- Make sure your chip is facing the right way (Hint: the correct way is displayed on your router)
- Also ensure you have the correct SIM card size for the router (Huawei B525, B535, B618 routers use the micro-chip SIM card and the B315 and the ZTE_MF253 use the standard-sized SIM card)
2. Plug the router in
You will find the WiFi password (key) printed on a sticker on the bottom of your router.
It can take up to 2 business days for your service to activate.
Your router will have an indicator light (see image below) to tell you when it’s connected. These details will be included on the information sheet in the box.
If you want to personalise your router’s name and password as each brand and model of router is slightly different, refer to the information leaflet that can be found in the router box.
Logging into your LTE router
To log into your router:
Open your web browser (such as Chrome or Firefox).
In the URL search bar, type in this address: 192.168.8.1 (default for Huawei)
Select the “Settings” option.
You will be prompted to enter a user name and password. The default details are:
Username: admin
Password: admin
LTE troubleshooting – No connection
No connection on your LTE after activation? Let’s troubleshoot!
The main lights to check for on your LTE router will be Signal and Mode.
Both of these lights indicate connectivity to the LTE tower in your area.
The Mode light should always be blue and the Signal lights should preferably be on 2-3 signal bars.
On the Huawei B315/525, you’ll find the Mode light as per below screenshot and on the Huawei B618, it will be listed on the front with the word “mode” next to it. (Note: Click ZTE MF253 for more information on this router)
The following troubleshooting process should resolve disconnection issues on an LTE connection.
- Restart router
- Try moving the router to a spot where you might get a better signal – right next to a window is generally a good place.
- Turn the router off and remove the SIM card. Turn the router back on and reinsert the SIM card.
- If you’re fairly sure about resetting and retesting your connection, then reset your router by holding down the reset button on the back or bottom of your router. Note: You will have to reconnect to your WiFi network and test that connection if you do decide to follow this step.
- Log into your router, check the APN settings and set the Network Mode to 4G – we’ll list the process for logging into your router and changing these settings below:
Manually adjust APN and network mode
If after following the login process listed above and you are still experiencing issues, try the following by selecting “Dial-Up” on the left screen menu.
Select Profile Management and then New Profile.
You’ll need to enter a name. Remember, this is only a placeholder so just call it Cell C/ Telkom internet.
VERY IMPORTANT: In the APN section, type:
APN
For Telkom LTE: internet
For Cell C LTE: lte.broadband.is
Now ensure the profile is selected. Save and Apply.
Lastly, you will need to adjust the network type that is preferred to connect to.
Select “Dial-Up”: “Network Settings”.
Set the Preferred mode and Mode to “4G only”.
Hit “Apply”.
It could take your router a while to locate available networks. Once connected, you can simply select the relevant network (for example Cell C 4G in the case of a Cell C LTE service).
Well done! You should be online!
LTE Troubleshooting – Slow speeds
Slow speeds on your LTE connection can’t be fun. Here’s how to deal with this issue…
There are a few parameters that we need to make you aware of when it comes to your LTE connection with Webafrica. These are also available on our website.
After rigorous testing, we’ve seen speeds of between 4 – 50Mbps depending on various factors (proximity to the tower, where the router is placed in the home, interference from Mother Nature, etc).
Usually, our customers get around 10Mbps to 20Mbps.
The most common issue affecting slow speed on LTE is signal strength, coming from the tower in your area to the router.
This strength will normally be shown on the router in the form of 3 lights. See below:
Typically all three lights should be on but sometimes the signal from the tower can get disrupted by obstacles in your area, such as trees, tall buildings, bad weather etc.
The easiest way to tackle this is by moving the router to a different location within your home including different rooms to see if it improves the signal strength. Usually, a room with a large window works well.
If you’re trying to find the best possible room for signal, try a mobile app such as Open Signal, which can be downloaded from the App/Google Play store on your smartphone.
This app will give you an indication on which direction your signal is coming from and you could try locating your router accordingly.
NOTE: This is not a Webafrica application and is freely available on the App/Google Play store.
Other things to check are the network settings on your router. By changing this, you’re forcing the router to use a faster mobile signal such as 4G instead of 2G and 3G. However, this can mean disrupting your internet connection if your signal is simply not strong enough to obtain the forced network mode. It’s usually a good idea to use “Automatic” in cases where the signal is a bit of an issue, but in some case when two conflicting towers cause the signal to bounce back and forth, limiting the mode to one type can actually assist with speed.
This can be applied by logging into your router, going to “Settings” and changing the “Network Mode” to 4G.
– On the top section of the next page, find the “Settings” button and select it.
– Then select “Dial-Up Network Mode” and set the “Preferred Network” mode to 4G.
– Once you’ve saved the correct settings, select “Apply” at the bottom and restart your router.
If this does not help or you need some guidance through the process, give us a call on 086 000 9500 or send us a WhatsApp.
To download the user manual PDF for the Huawei routers as well as the ZTE MF253, please see the PDF below.
Please note: All Webafrica deals and packages are subject to change without notification. These include our terms and conditions as it relates to costs and deal/package structures for all of our service providers.