Cricket rejected my MOFI 4500

[Plawerth]

After trying for about two weeks to get my Mofi 4500 registered with Cricket, I ran into a dead end where they just simply refuse to do anything, and I am denied getting service.

Apparently only phones and tablets can be activated over the phone using a Cricket SIM purchased on Amazon or elsewhere.

Hotspot devices are required to go to a Cricket store to be "checked" to see if it is compatible. The nearest store for me is 50 miles / 80 km away so I spent an evening going there and trying to get it registered.

They tried entering the IMEI into the sales kiosk on their front counter and it rejected the MOFI. The sales people just shrugged their shoulders, said there is nothing they can do about it.

Would I care to buy a Netgear hotspot instead that has no external antenna connectors? No thanks, I want to use my $800 worth of roof yagis.

So going through "normal channels" to get a MOFI on Cricket just does not work, and the physical store people can't do anything to make it work.

,

Is there anything else I can do to resolve this? It seems possible to replace the internal modem card in the MOFI with a different one.

[BillA]

A couple of suggestions.... when activating a Cricket sim card, don't tell them that you're going to use it in a router, instead bring with you an actual ATT phone (if you don't have one, borrow one for a few hours from a friend or family). If the imei is rejected with the sim card in the Sierra, try a Quectel modem (hoping it's allowed), or tether a phone to the router via a usb cable (https://wirelessjoint.com/viewtopic.php?p=10303#p10303). Just keep in mind that Cricket has a speed limit of 8Mbps at all times, there's no way around it, it's limited by the network.
A better option are PagePlus (Verizon towers), or SimpleMobile (Tmobile towers). Both are prepaid, no contract, and they don't have a modem limitation (yet). Here's some more info about prepaid services.
https://wirelessjoint.com/viewtopic.php?p=5790#p5790

[Criplgamer]

Cricket does NOT have a speed limit of 8 Mbps anymore. Hasn't for some time . That is only with their $50 unlimited plan. Not the $60 unlimited More.

I use cricket and get the Same exact speeds I get with ATT. Actually most times my cricket speeds are better.

Also, get something with a Quectel Modem inside. You could be up and running in a matter of minutes with a simple AT command. 1 last thing. Just add a phone line, keep the cheap phone they give you for it's phone ID feel free to DM me if you have questions as I have helped many people get up and running on ATT with Quectel modems.. mostly on FB tho.

[jiggz125]

Hello I need help on this. Have at&t near me would like to get a modem and advice on the AT command..I get 25-45 mbs on my phone with at&t and haven't tried cricket yet. Moving in a few months and will need a set up. Thanks for any help!

[jiggz125]

Cricket does NOT have a speed limit of 8 Mbps anymore. Hasn't for some time . That is only with their $50 unlimited plan. Not the $60 unlimited More.

I use cricket and get the Same exact speeds I get with ATT. Actually most times my cricket speeds are better.

Also, get something with a Quectel Modem inside. You could be up and running in a matter of minutes with a simple AT command. 1 last thing. Just add a phone line, keep the cheap phone they give you for it's phone ID feel free to DM me if you have questions as I have helped many people get up and running on ATT with Quectel modems.. mostly on FB tho.

I don't even know how to direct message on here. But I would be interested in getting cricket set-up on a Quectel Modem. If you have time and would not mind helping me out that would be great. Thanks!

[bvwelch]

I bought, from The Wireless Haven, the external usb enclosure and the quectel EC25. Typing its number into Crickets boyd compatibilty web page said it was compatible, so I bought the universal cricket sim card at local Walmart store. I then called the cricket phone number and (based on helpful advice found here on Wireless Joint ), signed up for their cheapest 'simply data' plan. I connected the external usb enclosure to an existing openwrt router (flashed with Golden Orb firmware), and it works good for me so far. The Wireless Haven has a nice router that you use with the EC25 instead of the external enclosure but I saved a few dollars by using an existing router that I already had on hand. As for speed, I had download speeds of 19 M bits/sec yesterday, according to the graphs on the openwrt router. I am a total newbie but from what I understand, B2 is 20 Mbps down.
https://www.cricketwireless.com/cell-ph ... ata-device

[Jason01]

Cricket does NOT have a speed limit of 8 Mbps anymore. Hasn't for some time . That is only with their $50 unlimited plan. Not the $60 unlimited More.

I use cricket and get the Same exact speeds I get with ATT. Actually most times my cricket speeds are better.

Also, get something with a Quectel Modem inside. You could be up and running in a matter of minutes with a simple AT command. 1 last thing. Just add a phone line, keep the cheap phone they give you for it's phone ID feel free to DM me if you have questions as I have helped many people get up and running on ATT with Quectel modems.. mostly on FB tho.

I have a mofi4500 that I would like to use with an unlimited cell phone plan, if possible. Can't get att prepaid to work. I would also be interested in helping with the quectel modem route, if that's what I must do. I would appreciate any help!