D-Link DWR-U2000 Portable 5G Router Review – It’s A Mixed Bag

Low Boon Shen
By Low Boon Shen 10 Min Read
D-Link DWR-U2000 Portable 5G Router Review - It's A Mixed Bag - 17

Product Name: DWR-U2000

Brand: D-Link

Offer price: 649

Currency: MYR

  • Efficiency - 8.5/10
    8.5/10
  • Features - 8/10
    8/10
  • Performance - 7.5/10
    7.5/10
  • Portability - 8/10
    8/10
  • User Experience (UX) - 8/10
    8/10
  • Value - 7/10
    7/10

Summary

The D-Link DWR-U2000 is one of the few mobile hotspot that can tap into 5G networks, and it has a big battery to keep it going for a full day. 

Overall
7.8/10
7.8/10

Pros

+ Dual-band Wi-Fi
+ Great battery endurance 
+ User-friendly app

Cons

– Weak 5G signals can cause switching issues
– Extremely slow reverse charging 
– Expensive

Unboxing & Walkaround

Today we’re taking a look at D-Link’s 5G mobile hotspot, the DWR-U2000. This portable router is advertised with some pretty neat features, including Type-C charging and reverse charging, and a battery big enough to last a day if you’re out and about.

Here are all the items you’ll be getting inside the packaging:
– Quick start guide
– SIM ejector pin
– USB-C cable
– D-Link DWR-U2000 main unit

The DWR-U2000 has the same footprint of a typical smartphone, mostly thanks to its relatively large 5,000mAh battery, which is the same capacity most smartphones have these days. That being said, the entire device doesn’t have any screens – only four indicators that lights up depending on status. These four indicates the Wi-Fi connection status, 5G status, 4G status, and the battery level.

Elsewhere, you can find a USB-C port responsible for charging, reverse charging, and LAN tethering to host systems if Wi-Fi isn’t an option. You have a Nano SIM slot on the left side with ejector pin provided in-box; whereas right side features a reset pin and a WPS button for quick connection.

Specifications

Full specifications available on product page and datasheet.

Product TypePortable Mi-Fi Hotspot / Router
Wireless Specification802.11ac (Wi-Fi 5)
Antenna Topography4G: 1 transmitter, 2 receivers
5G: 1 transmitter, 4 receivers
Wi-Fi: Internal 2×2 MIMO
Operating Frequencies4G bands: B1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 20, 28, 34, 38, 39, 40, 41
5G bands: N1, 3, 20, 28, 41, 77, 78
Wi-Fi: 2.4GHz, 5GHz (1.2Gbps)
Bandwidth ModesUnspecified
Throughput Rating HSDPA: Max. 42.2Mbps (DL) (Category 24)
HSUPA: Max.11Mbps (UL) (Category 7)
WCDMA: Max. 384Kbps (DL) / 384Kbps (UL)
LTE FDD: Max. 300Mbps (DL) / 50Mbps
LTE TDD: Max. 260Mbps (DL) / 30Mbps (UL)
5G NR TDD: Max. 2Gbps (DL) / 500Mbps (UL)
I/O1x USB 2.0 Type-C (LAN tethering, charging & reverse charging)
Wireless SecurityWPA/WPA2, WPS 2.0
Control InterfaceVia gateway IP address (Web)
D-Link Mobile Connect (Mobile)
SIM SupportNano SIM
Battery5,000mAh (supports reverse charging)
Dimensions150 x 70 x 15 mm
Weight150g

User Experience

Setting up the DWR-U2000 is simple – just insert the SIM card, hold the power button, and you’re ready to go. The Wi-Fi SSID and password is labeled at the back of the device, and you have two bands to choose from (we highly recommend changing the default password for security). I’d always recommend using the 5GHz as you won’t be dealing with potential signal congestions, but if the router is close enough you should be perfectly fine.

For our testing we used SIMs from two telco providers: Yes and Maxis. In terms of signal coverage, Yes has less areas covered within Klang Valley compared to Maxis, where in certain areas (i.e. Batu Tiga at the outskirts of Subang Jaya) it struggles to pick up the 5G signals. When that happens, we did observe the router ending up in a constant fight to switch between 5G or 4G as the fallback (despite the device set to receive 5G signals only, oddly enough), and this can cause connection dropouts until it gets stabilized again.

During the entirety of our testing we’ve only managed to pick up the low-band 5G, or band 28, to be exact. There’s three types of 5G networks: low-band (700MHz), Sub-6GHz (3.5GHz for Malaysia), and the part that’s most advertised on, mmWave, which goes up to the 28GHz spectrum. In simple terms, the higher the frequency, the faster the network gets – at the cost of range.

The low-band 5G we picked up at various part of Klang Valley isn’t particularly fast, clocking ~35Mbps download at KLCC park in particular (this applies to both Maxis and Yes 5G). However, when sticking to the 4G+ (LTE-A) band on Maxis, we managed to hit around 75Mbps downlink (the phone I use, the Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G, managed 100Mbps, though speeds does fluctuate a fair bit on the day we did the testing), as it uses a much faster Band 7 (2.6GHz) instead.

We were unable to capture the faster N78 band (sub-6GHz) bands that comes with significantly faster speeds, and we can say the router lacks support for the ultra-fast mmWave (N257) band that is yet to be mass deployed in the country. 5G reception in large buildings is also lacking in the case of Suria KLCC mall nearby, but that’s not exactly the fault of the router as the signal just lacks the penetration power through buildings and walls. (Note, as with the nature of testing cellular networks, results can vary depending on location and relevant infrastructure, with up to 400Mbps speeds. Our results are for reference only and may not reflect accordingly.)

Battery wise, the 5,000mAh battery is large enough to easily last through a whole day, and there’s no concerns of battery running low. If you’re conservative enough, it can last up to 3 days for every charge. You can view the exact battery level through the D-Link Mobile Connect app, which also provides detailed information on network status, among other things. You can also use the battery to provide power to the smartphone – but we’ll get in detail on this in a bit.

Besides that, you can also access the web GUI via 192.168.0.1, where you can access a few more settings that isn’t showed in the app. These includes locking signal bands, which can be useful if you need a specific connection – but most users don’t have to touch this option unless for diagnostic purposes.

The Good

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D-Link DWR-U2000 Portable 5G Router Review - It's A Mixed Bag

One of the strongest strengths of D-Link DWR-U2000 is its battery life – there’s no worries on running low battery during several few field trips with the device. If you’re a light user, the router has no issue lasting up to three days (or even more) on a single charge.

The dual-band capability also allows greater number of devices to connect to the router, which D-Link says supports up to 32 (8 from 2.4GHz and 24 from 5GHz). Alternatively, PCs can tap into the connection via a dedicated USB-C cable that can function as LAN tethering. The D-Link Mobile Connect app is also easy to use, and you can access most settings through the app, including SMS and USSD functions, user filtering, and modify Wi-Fi settings.

The Bad

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D-Link DWR-U2000 Portable 5G Router Review - It's A Mixed Bag

There are two notable issues with the hotspot, however. Firstly, if you’re in an area where 4G and 5G’s signal strength may overlap, the switching process can cause a brief loss of connection. This happens often enough and you may end up having a bad experience, though manually setting a specific band should fix this.

Another downside is the reverse charging support, which is one of the selling points of the device. However, the charging speed is extremely slow to the point that it’s more about keeping the phone powered than actually charging it. You’ll still lose charge if the phone is under heavy workload – just slower. While D-Link says you can use the special cable for reverse charging, we observed no difference when using a regular USB-C cable.

Verdict

D-Link DWR-U2000 Portable 5G Router Review - Its A Mixed Bag
D-Link DWR-U2000 Portable 5G Router Review - It's A Mixed Bag

Unlike most 4G LTE portable hotspots you can find on the market today, the D-Link DWR-U2000 is a very costly offering with a RM649 asking price. However, it is also the only model on the Malaysian market today that offers 5G capabilities that we know of, so it’s pretty much a unique product that, if you need to tap into the capabilities of 5G, can consider. Be aware though, you’ll need to count on your area having the appropriate infrastructure to get the most out of it.

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Special thanks to D-Link for providing the DWR-U2000 5G portable hotspot for this review.

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2 Comments
  • Useless piece of trash, had it for 4 days then it just seems not to be able to do its job 90% of the time. I’m staying in a good 5G coverage area and the device shows there is always 5G but the speed is fucking slow. 90% of the time it is below 10Mbps. Very rarely can get over 100Mbps (YES, DiGi and U Mobile 5G SIM cards). DO NOT BUY THIS MODEM. YOUR PHONES GET FASTER 5G SPEED THAN THIS TRASH

  • It really depends on the area. I have this unit, and there’s a 5G tower on the opposite side, so I can get speeds of nearly 700 Mbps. Last time, before I upgraded the firmware, I was only getting about 90 Mbps. I tried reaching out to D-Link for help, and they were very helpful in solving the problem. Don’t worry, bro!

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