[PLUG] OpenWRT routers was Re: Need suggestions for ADSL wifi router

[Arun Khan]

On Mon, Aug 7, 2017 at 7:32 PM, shirish शिरीष <shirishag75 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> On another point, for what I know there are/were only couple of
> vendors who sell TP-Link whose main selling point (at least for me) is
> OpenWRT but none of the vendors whom I have spoken to can either
> show/demo their piece or willing to test it on their premises in case
> I want to make a purchase, while D-Link vendors go out of their way to
> make sure the customer is satisfied before making a purchase.
>
> If anybody knows of a vendor who sells either TP-Link or any other
> router which uses OpenWRT and does testing of the modem/router
> performance, ping etc. before handing it over to customer in Pune
> please let me know.
>

I don't think any hardware vendor will flash openWRT images to their
devices and let you test it.
Some TP Link APs are compatible with openWRT images.  For model +
hardware version consult openWRT web site.  Beware the images are for
specific model and hardware version number!

Having said the above, TP Link's own firmware is very functional for
the average consumer use case scenarios.  I didn't find the necessity
to flash openWRT even though my AP hardware was compatible.

> Another query I have, are there any modem/router manufacturers who are
> putting sim  slots in their modems/routers so I could use any
> GSM-based SIM to use the router anywhere. I do know Airtel and other
> specific telephone wireless broadband suppliers do that but do think
> that the SIM slot is/would be probably tied to the specific frequency
> the service provider has been to.
>
> It would be nice if there are generic SIM slots where you could just
> pop in any GSM sim and just use it. That would make it whole lot more
> portable and hassle-free.

Take a look at MicroTik <https://mikrotik.com/products>  They have
some router boards with SIM slots.

HTH,
-- Arun Khan