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paulrob's avatar
paulrob
Aspirant
Mar 16, 2017
Solved

Aircard MR1100 won't tether on USB

I got this device from Telstra today and it basically works ok on Wifi. Battery charged ok too and is now full.   I tried tethering it to the PC but nothing happens. I tried on two different Window...
  • paulrob's avatar
    paulrob
    Mar 18, 2017

    Here's the non-reply I got from Netgear support:

    Based on the serial number of your device, we were able to identify that your unit is not a retail product. This type of unit is engineered / customized based on the needs of an Internet Service Provider and can only be obtained through them. This means that the support including the replacement / return should be handled through the Internet Service Provider which the product was obtained.

     

    So I spoke with the Telstra store where I bought it and they said to contact their technical support call centre. I pointed to the store sign that said "Tech Bar" and they said I had to call the call centre.

     

    The call center got me to tether the modem to the laptop, then open a browser (I used firefox - which couldn't go anywhere) then log into http://m.home/, and this actually got me to the modem control panel and I could log into the modem from there ok. After that I was able to go to other web sites via the tethered connection ok on firefox. First time in three days that tethering has worked...

    BUT...

    I tried MS Edge browser in windows 10 and it was stuck on not rendering any page. Telstra got my postcode and said there are cell tower upgrades at present in my suburb and there will be service interruptions until Feb 21. Try after that. So I asked them to keep the help ticket open until then. They asked me to try Google Chrome (which they said is the "fastest" browser) and that seemed to work okay.

     

    So it's not completely resolved, but there's some progress. Hope I don't have to log into the stupid comtrol panel every time I want to use tethering (that's not documented anywhere) but there you go.

     

    And Netgear, thanks for offering zero support on your product. I'll remember that next time I see your brand on anything, and I'll tell all my social networks about how much you've refused to helped me. In my view, you should remove your branding from the device if you want to avoid support calls like mine, as most tech dealers tell customers to call the manufacturer if there's a problem.

     

    Kind regards,

    Paul