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As 5G fixed wireless gains traction for home internet use, customers are looking for easier and better ways to get connected with their carrier. For many people, using the gateway provided by the carrier is enough.
Sometimes, though, the built-in antennas on these gateways can be a bit weak. Indoor signal is always going to be worse than outdoor signal, and for some customers the effort of getting an antenna outside the home is worth it.
That’s where a company like Waveform comes in. We’ve covered Waveform in the past, and their outdoor 5G antennas are quite popular among 5G home internet customers. That being said, what if you want more control over how your connection between the modem and the nearby tower works? Well, Waveform now has an answer to that: ProLink.
The Waveform ProLink
The ProLink is a new all-in-one solution developed in collaboration with Elsys that features a 5G gateway/modem and a high-gain directional antenna all in one easy to use outdoor device.
It’s a complete 5G connectivity kit, and is designed for customers that want better signal and more control over their 5G home internet connection without all the hassle of buying and rigging up complicated modem/antenna setups.
The device features a Qualcomm X62 modem capable of reaching over 4Gbps in ideal 5G conditions and has 5x Carrier Aggregation capabilities. It supports 5G NSA and 5G SA, and of course LTE as well, on every band carriers currently use in the US.
There’s even dual SIM slots, so you can switch between two different carriers if desired (though both can’t be used at the same time).
The ProLink is directional, and you simply install it outdoors where you want it to be to get the best signal, and power it via the included PoE injector. It’s IP65 weather-sealed, so you can put it basically anywhere. Just a single ethernet cable is all you need. That means there’s no signal loss between the antenna and the gateway, because they’re all in the same unit!
Best of all, the firmware is designed by Waveform, and they know a thing or two about cellular. That means you get a fully-featured web UI with real-time signal metrics (especially handy for aiming), band locking, and frequent firmware updates.
What’s included
The kit comes with the Waveform ProLink and both a pole mount bracket with two clamps as well as a wall mount adapter, with the option of adding on an UltraPole if desired. That gives you multiple ways to mount the device.
Also included are two 50ft outdoor-rated Cat6 ethernet cables, a single 5ft Cat6 ethernet cable, an ethernet window entry cable, and the aforementioned PoE injector. Everything you need to get online fast.
Plus, it’s backed by Waveform’s famously helpful support team, so no matter what issues you might run into, they’re ready to help.
Carrier compatibility
The ProLink works with every carrier in the US, though there are a few caveats depending on your plan.
For AT&T customers, you’re good to go. Both AT&T 5G Home and Business internet plans are compatible and simply swapping your SIM into the ProLink is all that’s needed.
As for Verizon customers, if you’re on Verizon 5G Home Internet, you may be out of luck. Those devices uses eSIM, and that can’t be transferred to the ProLink. Other plans with physical SIM based plans will work.
T-Mobile customers with business internet are also plug and play ready. Standard home internet customers, however, aren’t. T-Mobile, annoyingly, ties the SIM card to the gateway they send you, so moving it to a new device isn’t supported by the plan. We’ve got a solution to that, though, and you can find that here.
For both beginners and power users
Not only is the ProLink easy to use for beginners, there’s also plenty under the hood for advanced users as well.
Waveform believes in users’ right to access and repair devices they own. As part of that, the ProLink is an open system. It has the ability to use custom AT commands, which is especially nice for power users who want to tweak every possible setting to their desires.
Plus, since there’s live signal metrics and band locking, customers that want to spend some time fine-tuning their connection will have an easy go of it. Your regular gateway always connecting to a slower band? With the ProLink, you can tell it to use the faster bands instead.
The future
Waveform says the ProLink is the first step in their roadmap towards modular outdoor modems, and they even have ambitions to work directly with carriers to provide hardware.
In the future, the company plans to offer omnidirectional and portable versions of the ProLink, and even to one day offer multi-WAN routers for customers.
We’re excited to see what comes next from Waveform. As for the ProLink, keep an eye out, because we’ve got one coming our way to test and will be sharing a review soon.
If you’re interested in more information about the ProLink, check out Waveform’s site at the link below.
