Is there any OS agnostic and operator agnostic 4G modem which receives SMSes?

sntshkmr60

Broken In
Hi all,

Internet connectivity at my PG is terrible. That's the reason I have to use my phone to connect to the internet. I either do wifi tethering which consumes my airtel 4G data, or USB tethering which uses the PG's wifi. Both of which are unhealthy for my phone's battery :(

I am looking for a USB modem which takes in a SIM card and relays connectivity to my PC.

Requirements are:

- Should work on Linux. Fedora is my primary OS, but it would be nice if it on other's computers too.
- Should be able to receive SMSes. This number is liked with several accounts I don't remember. I will need to OTPs to access those accounts.
- Should be operator agnostic. Although I have airtel right now, an operator agnostic interface would be good in case I want to.

Note: If all the criteria don't meet, at least it should work on Fedora and receive SMSes.

PS: 8-10 years back I used a Micromax modem which has the last two functionality (2G era). Not sure if it worked on Linux too (the SMS part).
 
OP
S

sntshkmr60

Broken In
I am living a nomadic life, so fiber connection might not be the good option for me.

If there is no option available, I will have to consider carrying a LAN cable to connect to routers with weak wifi connection.
 

RumbaMon19

Feel Pain.
I am also in the requirement of this. As earlier I used Airtel hotspot, but now the device is dead and I am left with only SIM card.

If possible, Find the dongle below 1.5k.
 

whitestar_999

Super Moderator
Staff member
Something like this but it needs a usb 4g dongle too & probably won't be able to send/receive sms.
*www.amazon.in/TP-LINK-TL-MR3420-Wireless-Router-Modem/dp/B003WK62OS

Better to just take jiofi & use that for net connectivity while use the other sim in mobile as usual to receive sms.
 
OP
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sntshkmr60

Broken In
Better to just take jiofi & use that for net connectivity while use the other sim in mobile as usual to receive sms.

An Ethernet cable will be better in my case, as I already have 2 SIMs, maintaining another SIM will be hard on cash.

Which category cable do you suggest? 5E, 6 or 6E? They all seem to have similar prices and configs.

PS: I have this motherboard: M5A97 R2.0 | Motherboards | ASUS USA
 

whitestar_999

Super Moderator
Staff member
An Ethernet cable will be better in my case, as I already have 2 SIMs, maintaining another SIM will be hard on cash.

Which category cable do you suggest? 5E, 6 or 6E? They all seem to have similar prices and configs.

PS: I have this motherboard: M5A97 R2.0 | Motherboards | ASUS USA
5E is more than enough for a typical pc user.
 

Desmond

Destroy Erase Improve
Staff member
Admin
Why do you need a modem that receives SMS? Perhaps you are looking for a 4G dongle that has a SIM card?
 
OP
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sntshkmr60

Broken In
Why do you need a modem that receives SMS? Perhaps you are looking for a 4G dongle that has a SIM card?

Oh! I thought both were the same, I was talking about 4G dongle only.
Can I put my airtel SIM in this dongle: *www.amazon.in/JioFi-JDR740-150Mbps-Wireless-Portable/dp/B08DRR5D14
 

RumbaMon19

Feel Pain.
Oh! I thought both were the same, I was talking about 4G dongle only.
Can I put my airtel SIM in this dongle: JioFi JDR740 (Dongle) 150Mbps Wireless 4G Portable Router - Buy JioFi JDR740 (Dongle) 150Mbps Wireless 4G Portable Router Online at Low Price in India - Amazon.in

No, it is limited to only jio sim.

I scratched the internet and found this (CLICK ME). It is TP-LINK WiFi Hotspot, exactly what you need.


And as I remember, Digit used to give this as a free gift with its subscription. But it was around 2015-16.
 

whitestar_999

Super Moderator
Staff member
No, it is limited to only jio sim.

I scratched the internet and found this (CLICK ME). It is TP-LINK WiFi Hotspot, exactly what you need.


And as I remember, Digit used to give this as a free gift with its subscription. But it was around 2015-16.
As far as I know only usb dongles receive/show sms & not such "portable hotspots".
 

whitestar_999

Super Moderator
Staff member
My Airtel 4G Portable Hotspot did receive messages. It can be seen in the special SMS tab. Also, It is very rare to find such Dongles.
I didn't know about Airtel portable hotspot but yes it does seem quite likely for it to receive sms. I was mainly talking about "universal/non-telecom brand" portable hotspots & I used to have a 3g usb dongle 3-4 years ago which was fully capable of sending & receiving sms from its dashboard software installed in pc.
 

RumbaMon19

Feel Pain.
I searched on the customer question and answer section for Does it takes SIM cards?
And the responses are not affirmative.


I didn't read the Ques./Ans., But now on reading the review, I am amazed that they had provided wrong information about the device.

1598038291749.png



Actually I too was searching for this and the description had mentioned it. But the reviews are different.


Now, the only option left is to either buy Airtel 4G hotspot like this :-

1598038450451.png



Or to buy a Jio-Fi like device and then unlock/Flash a different firmware which will allow the use of all other sim cards with it.



But If you can wait for like 6 months AND live in a big city like Mumbai etc. 5G is on its way. So buying a 5G hotspot will be much more better option.
 

SaiyanGoku

kamehameha!!
But If you can wait for like 6 months AND live in a big city like Mumbai etc. 5G is on its way. So buying a 5G hotspot will be much more better option.
Not going to happen for at least 6 months till AFTER 5G spectrum auction takes place. Realistically, 2023 is when that should be.
 
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