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Nighthawk M6 Pro MR6500 Dropping internet
My Nighthawk M6 Pro MR6500 keeps disconnecting from the internet. It will show it has a signal on the device itself but my computer will have no connection. I only use the ethernet port, I don't use ...
JohnPengSame problem here with the unlocked MR6550 on Verizon. I called Verizon and they said the SIM card was completely activated with no issues. I have opened up a ticket with NETGEAR support, Case Number 48164926. I submitted screenshots as well as the model.json file to the ticket. Other information:
- PRI: 04.11
- Firmware version: NTGX65_12.01.47.00
Symptoms: the hotspot constantly loses internet connection (shows Mobile Broadband Disconnected or a red ❌ in the Network Map square) despite having full bars of service. An iPhone SE 3rd Generation and Samsung Galaxy Note9 in the same location and on the same network have no connectivity issues.
I refuse to run the Ethernet port at a slower speed, as gigabit Ethernet from a hotspot is the entire reason paid almost 1000 USD for the unit. I'm really disappointed, but I'll happy return this and the matching NETGEAR antenna if there's no resolution.
One idea I haven't seen in the thread so far: what AC adapter are people experiencing this problem using? The reason I'm asking is if the hotspot uses a proprietary charging protocol, then it could be losing connection due not getting enough power.
> One idea I haven't seen in the thread so far: what AC adapter are people experiencing this problem using? The reason I'm asking is if the hotspot uses a proprietary charging protocol, then it could be losing connection due not getting enough power.
TL,DR: The connection drops are probably the result of using 3rd party AC adapters and USB cables.
So more on this idea: my earlier posts were from the office environment I bought the MR6550 for. There, I was using 3rd part AC adapters (Anker, Nekteck, Samsung) and USB-C cables.
On a hunch from previous experience with Raspberry Pi power supply undervoltage, I decided to try the MR6550 at home with the stock AC adapter and USB cable. Since then, it's found a connection and hasn't dropped it
The stock AC adapter's outputs 5V/2A or 9V/1.8A. The latter, 5V/2A, is what most chargers provide. It's sufficient for phones, and therefore also for the MR6550 when it's in Balanced Power Mode using Wi-Fi only. I'm guessing the 9V/1.8A mode is for the Performance and higher Power Modes. The problem is, AFAIK 9V/1.8A isn't a standard VA combo most chargers can output, and so it's likely the MR6550 suffers undervoltage in Performance+ Power Modes when connected to 3rd party chargers and cables.
Now, you'd think that a device that needs 9V/1.8A would easily charge from a higher power source, but you'd be wrong. I had the MR6550 connected to a 60+ W rated USB-C adapter with matching cable and it still lost connection.
I'm unable to find any 9V/1.8A USB AC adapters from reputable US brands and retailers, including NETGEAR, who don't seem to sell them separately.
The charging cable itself is clearly has blue USB-A male connector with a USB logo, which implies compliance with USB 3.x. The best result I got from Googling the various numbers and strings on it is this, describing the manufacturer's compliance to this UL spec. That UL spec calls out a 30 V rating. Searching "usb-a" "usb-c" "30v" and selecting USB 3.0+ results only gives this 3 ft cable as a likely equivalent.
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Now, compare the fact that NETGEAR are charging $1000 for a hotspot with proprietary charger you can't find an equivalent of anywhere to the fact that the Inseego MiFi X PRO 5G UW supports industry 18W QC 3.0 - with Wi-Fi 6 for less than $400.
This renders the MR6550 one of the worst product deals I've had the misfortune to experience firsthand in my life. You're paying over twice as much for something that's both unreliable, extremely difficult to set up, and inconvenient to use.
Proprietary charger? If you consider Qualcomms QR charger systems as proprietary: Yes, they all are, indeed.
Netgear does nowhere specify 9V/1.8A in any MR6550 documentation - that's your own or based on some wild Internet ideas. The point? Netgear have missed to provide exact specs of the power supply for many of these devices, stating the device requires a Quick Charge 2.0 (or higher), clearly do us all a great disservice.
Any QC 2.0 compliant power supply (adapter, converter, whatever) does provide the correct voltage and power - the user does not have to worry about. And no, without a device connected, doing the handshake between the power supply and the operating/charging device, only an USB standard default voltage might be available.
This is similar to IEEE PoE 802.3af, 802.3at, and 802.3bt Ethernet. With the difference that a a PoE PS does not apply power to the wires without any request from the powered device (PD) and successful negotiation - there is no risk killing Ethernet devices not designed for PoE (the most fear users coming to the community and asking for). Users don't need to know about the voltage and the power here either! However, systems listing voltages in some specs should be looked for carefully - these are typically proprietary, dumb, passive power devices.
Said this: I'm convinced also in the US one can find QC 2.0 or higher power adapters.
The standard? Yes, there is one in the USB standards! It's called USB Power Delivery (PD), and allows complaint devices to get up to 100W of power and more. 28V, 36V, and 48V fixed voltages - enabling 140W, 180W and 240W power to the powered device. The free USB-C cable might or might not be sufficient for carrying 5 Amps - for these purposes look for purpose built USB-C PD cables for 100 or for 240 Watts.
I won't talk on the sense (and nonsense) your favorite mobile provider does over there in the US - from what we see with customers (I don't talk of Netgear!) overseas it's just a mess, and Netgear suffers as much as other vendors, too. Yes you can upgrade and downgrade plans (in the sense of bandwidth available) on the fly, but you can't randomly change SLA, contract types, and more .... JohnPeng knows exactly what I'm talking about ... so you do good and listen to what he is posting to the community. Yes, he mentioned of QC 2.0 earlier, too.
QC, PD, PoE are newer technology for many, a new world - difficult to understand that just voltage and amps alone are the right answer.
Regards,
-Kurt.
For QC 2.0, any standard USB-A to USB-C cable is perfectly sufficient. For replacement cables matching the QC 2.0 power supply and it's USB-A outlet, any industry standard USB-A <-> USB-C cable can be used. You don't have to worry about USB 3.0 compatibility. QC 2.0 power supplies can come with either an USB-A or an USB-C power outlet. Higher QC specs (>= 3.0) require an USB-C port, so what is supplied by Netgear is perfectly correct, matches all industry and regulatory standards, and de-facto standards QC. Of course, these Netgear mobile hotspots are build on Qualcomm chips.
In case you got a cable with a blue USB A connector, this indicates a USB 3.0 or SuperSpeed (SS) USB cable - and is unrelated to the power supplied. It was introduced around 2008, offering a data transfer speed of up to 5 Gb/s, which is more than 10 times faster than USB 2.0. The cable with the blue USB port marking is also backward compatible, meaning it can be used with devices that only support USB 2.0 or 1.x.
> Netgear does nowhere specify 9V/1.8A in any MR6550 documentation
It's the output voltage listed on the AC adapter that ships with the device. However, you're correct that the adapter is a QuickCharge one. I missed that logo when I was looking at it yesterday. My apologies.
Anyway, I did some more testing overnight and today at home with different cables and chargers and have been unable to replicate yesterday's signal drops. For now, it seems the solution is to change the plan as JohnPeng suggested and then wait a few hours for the change to propagate. I've even rebooted it since and it connected to the internet immediately upon picking up signal.
I also picked up an Inseego MiFi 5G X PRO today direct from Verizon for comparison. So far the Inseego is much easier to setup and doesn't need a reboot for stuff like changing the Ethernet port status, but the MR6550 has 3 dB better SINR at the same location (~2x better) and of course has the antenna capability.
I'll test both at the problematic location from earlier in the thread next week (hopefully Monday).
The MR6550 lasted an entire weekend at home in my basement without any connection drops. Testing some more in the remote location this week. So far, the MR6550 is able to maintain an internet connection for longer, but still drops eventually. The Inseego MiFi X Pro 5G's connection is both faster and has fewer drops. I'd run a speedtest on both, but I had difficulty loading an entire page on the MR6550.
I'm actually posting this message from the Inseego connection.
I ordered a Proxicast antenna for the MR6550 over the weekend; it should be delivered tomorrow. I'll see how it performs later this week.
