New ZTE equipment in the PLAY offer, MF258K

Recently, new devices from ZTE have appeared in the Play offer.
For customers within the range of 5G N1, i.e. DSS2100, the operator offered an external CPE 5G / LTE access point.
This MC7010, hardware based on the Qualcomm X55 chipset, consists of an external router integrated with a 5g / LTE modem, powered by a dedicated POE power supply via an Ethernet cable, which is included in the set.
In addition, a mesh MF18a router was added to it, which creates an internal Ethernet and WiFi AC network.
Of course, the equipment also works in the LTE network and aggregates 4 bands in QAM256 modulation and uses MIMO4x4.
It works very well in the tests, in my case the following speeds were obtained in Play https://www.speedtest.pl/wynik/281584700. Unfortunately, the lack of access to the 5G network did not allow me to check the operation in this technology.
The specification can be found at https://www.ztedevices.com/pl/product/zte-mc7010-5g/
Another 5G router in the offer is the MC801A, it is the equivalent of the previously known Huawei PRO2 but, unlike the competitor, it has two TS9 antenna connectors, which Huawei lacks.
This is an important feature because in most locations the use of external antennas is necessary. Like the MC7010, this router is based on X55, which is a proven 5G / LTE chipset known from many flagship phones, works on the N41 bands, so it supports 5G 2600 Plus, works on N1, i.e. in DSS 5G2100 for Play, Orange or T-mobile, https technical specification: //www.ztedevices.com/pl/product/zte-mc801a-t-mobile/
Of course, there are also new products in the LTE equipment segment.
The offer also includes a new version of the MF286 router.
This MF286D supports the aggregation of 3 LTE bands in the QAM256 modulation, which is allowed by the Qualcom MDM9250-2 category 12 modem.
The router is a cheaper alternative to the Huawei B818.
I have had it for some time and it works very well, but in its case it would be worth the Polish version to include an FW similar to the Scandinavian one in the Telia network, where the management panel has a lot of useful functions not available in FW for Play.
More data at https://www.ztedevices.com/pl/product/zte-mf286r-t-mobile/
MF258K
Finally, I left myself an external LTE access point which is the successor to the well-known WF830 and this model is worth spending more time on. Due to the expansion of the LTE network and its modernization, when aggregations of 4/3 LTE bands appear at the base stations, an affordable CPE LTE access point is necessary, which is perfectly capable of dealing with greater distances from the BTS. Easy to assemble and configure. This role is perfectly fulfilled by the MF258K.
It allows you to resign from the use of additional external antennas to improve the signal, which in many locations need to be connected to classic LTE routers.
. Its precursor was the WF860 that I was using. It has long aroused great interest and many questions whether it will be officially included in the Play offer. It was good that ZTE Polska and Play enabled these users to purchase an improved and final version in the form of the MF258K.
The users finally received CPE LTE with a 15 kat modem, i.e. aggregating 4 LTE MIMO2X2 bands in QAM256 modulation.
Very handy when we are aroundbase station working in the aggregation of 4 LTE bands, and there are more and more of these in Play, Orange or T-mobile.
The device is available in the Play and T-mobile subscription for an affordable price, you can also buy it yourself without a subscription in Play
In return, we get an elegant set consisting of an outdoor unit-ODU, i.e. an external MIMO4X4 antenna with a gain of about 7-9dBi and quite wide radiation angles in the horizontal and vertical planes.
The antenna has a built-in LTE15 modem cat
The ODU is powered by the POE of the WAN port of the internal router -IDU, the 10m Ethernet cable is included, the WAN port is Gigabit as well as the other two LAN ports.
LTE 15 CAT modem is GTC GDMA7243A built-in powered by POE 24v 1A, allows aggregation of 2 LTE MIMO4x4 bands in QAM256 or 4 LTE MIMO2x2 bands in QAM256 modulation on DL which in theory allows speeds up to 800Mb / s, UL supports QAM64 modulation and LTE band aggregation but so far, Polish operators do not aggregate LTE bands on UL, so we will only use one band with QAM64 modulation, which allows UL up to 67Mb / s if the base band in aggregation will be 20MHz.

The internal router is based on the well-known MediaTek MT7621A chipset, while the FW is based on OpenWRT.

With this equipment, you can start using it.
Starting the set is based on mounting an external antenna with modem, inserting the card into the SIM reader at the bottom of the antenna.
We set it to a specific operator base station, connect it with an Ethernet cable to the WAN POE port.
We connect the computer with an Ethernet cable to one of the two LAN ports or via WiFi, the router works in the AC1200 standard and has two MIMO2X2 network cards with internal antennas, works at 2.4GHz with a speed of up to 300Mb / s and at 5GHz up to 866Mb / s.
After about a minute, the equipment is ready for use.
Management is done by logging in to the browser on the 192.168.1.1 page, the default account is admin and the password is admin.
After logging in, we gain access to a number of functions, which are divided into those regarding the LTE connection and the internal network.
In the factory settings, the LTE connection is established automatically.
The set of advanced local network settings in the case of ZTE is rich and we gain access to functions often unavailable in LTE equipment.
More about them can be found at https://www.ztedevices.com/pl/product/zte-mf258k/
In this short description, it is difficult to present the capabilities of the equipment in many matters, so if there are questions or problems, you can ask about their solutions in the discussion.

As I wrote earlier, I am a user of the precursor MF258K, or WF860, which I have, courtesy of ZTE Polska, for 19 months and now I also use the MF258K.
The above-mentioned equipment works for me on the cards of all operators, it does not have a simlock. I have a short distance to NetWorks, Play and Plus base stations, while NW and Play are fiber optic stations with aggregation of 4 LTE bands and Plus with LTE2600 + 1800 + 900.
The collected experience allows us to conclude that both models work stably, provide a connection in both MIMO4X4 and aggregation of 2 LTE bands as well as MIMO2X2 with aggregation of 4 bands, but I personally lean towards the latter, which, in combination with QAM256 modulation, allows me to obtain speeds from Play stations in around 300Mb / s. Below are the results of several speed tests performed at different times of the day
https://www.speedtest.pl/wynik/282220772,
https://www.speedtest.pl/wynik/282099988,


https://www.speedtest.pl/wynik/281528490

The question for whom is CPE LTE listed?
For all those who have a greater distance to the operator's base station supporting the aggregation of 3/4 LTE bands, in this case an external antenna to the router and pulling 2 antenna cables are required. Thanks to such devices, the antenna becomes redundant and we only use an Ethernet cable to connect. The decent gain of the antenna and its directivity allow to obtain the correct signal parameters and a stable connection, but at the same time it should be noted that the speeds in the mobile Internet depend not only on the range but on many other factors and these should also be taken into account.
This solution is an ideal choice for an average user who, after installation, gains easy, permanent access to the mobile Internet. At this point, however, I would have a request to ZTE Polska for access to a smartadmin account that allows you to choose aggregation bands, carriers and even PCI, functions, although not welcome by operators, are often useful for advanced users.
Attached are a few screenshots of the WebUI MF258K, especially the one from LTE Settings which shows us the data about the base station and signal parameters on individual LTE bands.
It is worth mentioning that the MF258K is also available in the T-Mobile offer.
I hope that I was interested in the latest LTE / 5 equipment from the offer of Polish operators and ZTE Polska. If you have any questions, feel free to continue the discussion. As modestly possible, I will try to help.
Links to operators' websites where this set is offered:
https://www.play.pl/telefon/zte/zte-netbox-mf-258k/?oid=4012574679&ogrp=internet,
https://www.t-mobile.pl/telefon-i-urzadzenia/...0.phtml?data-color=0&collection=ZT-M-T080:KA- M-T010: AT-M-P060: AT-M-T060: HU-M-T440: AT-M-T070: AT-M-P070: ZT-M-T090: AT-M-T080: HU-M- T380: prod4960200: KA-M-B010: HU-M-B410: HU-M-T410: ZT-M-T110: HU-M-B380: HU-M-T430: ZT-M-T100 & returnURL = / phones-i -urzadzenia / modems-and-routers / cat10022.chtml? catId = cat10022

Another one that prints nonsense about the Play network, the LTE2100 band has not been turned off, now it works at 15MHz because the last carrier from UMTS2100 went to LTE / 5G 2100, now this band is actively shared between LTE2100 and N1 DSS 5g / 2100, of course LTE2600 aggregation works +2100 + 1800 + 800. And the price of the new equipment is debatable, the latest one has to cost, those interested can buy the second-hand MC7010 for around PLN 1300-1500.

I have this MF258K set and it's hard for a layman to know what's going on. It's nice to have a preview of all these parameters, but in my opinion, it's hard to improve anything in conditions of a large distance from the transmitter. When I write a long distance, I mean 8 km and more, so in my case it is hard to do something about it. The signal parameters are bad, but the internet works somehow, I definitely have more control over what transmitter I use, I did not have this in the case of the B818. As for the minute after turning it on, in my case it is unrealistic, the modem tests (it seems to me) all available frequencies from the transmitter, trying to choose the best possible system. In my case, it shows that it uses, because I think this is how I can interpret it, that it uses four frequencies, but I have no possibility to decide which is to be first. Looking at how he shuffles individual bands, it shows that at 2600 he had quite a strong SINR to show not very good after stabilization, but surprisingly good CINR on this band. The modem is at the top of the building at the highest point and there are only fields and a few trees around. Unfortunately, the documentation is greatly simplified, as if the manufacturer did not allow the possibility of additional activities, but only targeting and switching on. In my case, on the left and right, I have two other transmitters that can appear in the field of view of the antenna, which probably catches quite wide.

Consigliero, have you compared the B818 and MF258K in the same place? Do you have a lot of distance, have you tried what transfers would you achieve on Mikrotik SXT LTE6 or LHGG LTE6? I know the technology is out of date, but there are situations where they save their ass.

Maybe this topic will lighten the darkness https://www.elektroda.pl/rtvforum/topic3664243.html, tomorrow B818 comes back to me and then I will compare the possibilities. This time I'm smarter about aggregation and I'll try to do something about it.

Hello, I am a complete layman when it comes to networks and everything related to it. I came to Poland for Christmas and I would like to extend the Internet play contract for kids. I have no idea which router to choose huawei 4g 3 prime or zte mf258k. I would be grateful for a simple answer whether there is a positive difference between them for a given model or indifferent. Mainly internet games + netfliks. Lubraniec if it helps. Regards

Hello
Today I started my tests with tmobile. The speeds are even satisfactory, but I can not change anything in the router settings.
Such bases such as SSID, password, pin deactivation end with the message Configuration error.

I tried a reset and nothing helped.
Maybe someone has an idea?

Version information
Device model
MF258
Running software
ZTE_STD_V1.0.0B04
Module version
MG62_BYPASS_V2.0.6_D3

Hi,
I had exactly this problem with the set from Playa. Resetting the router did nothing. It turned out that all you need to do in Incognito mode is to enter the configuration interface and everything works.

I have this kit and it is average (15-20Mb download), but at peak times it is sometimes a tragedy (1-5Mb download). The BTS is about 3.5 km from me (eNBID - 26612). Interestingly, the router sometimes connects to a completely different BTS (eNBID - 26954), which is on the other side of the house and then there is a total crap (max 1 Mb download), because there is only one band. The fitter said something that transmitters can be overloaded during rush hours, but should it really look that thin? The external antenna is located on the wall of the building about 6 meters above the ground.

MOTHER I have a question for you. I have just extended the Play net box to unlimited. I am using the Huawei B818-263 4G modem. When extending (I did not want to, but I could not do otherwise) I have a ZTE MF258K modem on loan (goes by courier). And now the question is much better than Huawei is there any difference. Because I don't know whether to install it or hide it in the wardrobe. Location Niemcz Ul.Bydgoska / Kopernika gm. Osielsko

I refresh. Anyone able to answer? And can I connect this external antenna / odu-id modem to the Lan2 / WAN port in the Huawei B818 modem and connect it with a cable (PoE power goes there). I'm not gonna smash it with Huawei? Such would be a hybrid for this?

Signal parameters on individual LTE2600 / 2100/1800/800 bands and speeds, BTS Play Moczarowa works in the aggregation of 4 LTE bands, you have about 1km to it, you use an external antenna for B818, what are your speeds in the aggregation of 4/3 LTE bands?
The ODU in the MF258k WORKS only with the IDU internal router, why do you want to connect to the B818?

I will send the measurements on Friday. So far I have been using the B 818 modem without an external antenna because it works very well. And by the way, I will ask what antenna / external antennas are recommended for this with a code? Anyone done any tests?

I am continuing the thread because I now have the ZTE code at my disposal and the question is whether it is better than B818, will you not see the difference?

Hello everyone, I don't want to start a new topic, so I'll ask here, I purchased the net box service in the Play network with the zte mf258 set. I quickly mounted an external antenna on the lower edge of the roof at the top of the building, but this location makes the range poor or medium. The nearest transmitter is 3.76 km, it has been placed recently about 800 m from me, but there is no LTE service yet. Now my question, is it better to mount the antenna holder under the ridge so that it protrudes above the roof, which is covered with sheet metal, or screw the mast to the chimney? However, installation on the chimney requires a longer cable.

Will it be better, you have to try it, as there is no possibility to block / select the band, it can be difficult. At home, I use only one band, knowing that after midnight this band is turned off, after some time it catches 1800 from a similar direction but four kilometers away. I haven't found anything better than what I have now

Good afternoon. I am a total layman on the subject of LTE (aggregation, bands etc). Will there be a good soul to help me choose the best operator and equipment for mobile internet according to my location?
I currently have internet from a sim card from ORANGE in some old ZTE internal modem. It seems to me that the best option would be to mount an external modem of the kind powered by POE on a pole. My gps location is indicatively here: 49.82938745286967, 19.313510191947476
my budget is 400zł. I only care about the LTE modem, the rest of the equipment I have. Thank you very much in advance

Something like this will be ok?
https://allegro.pl/oferta/router-na-karte-sim...e-wf830-net-box-300mb-s-wifi5-lte-15470843365
Or a little more expensive:
https://allegro.pl/oferta/router-zewnetrzny-zte-mf258-zestaw-15824087433

Ok I bought a ZTE MF258K and the internet is working but I noticed that the station keeps changing. Is it possible to force the router to select the preferred station?

And you've made a mistake, the MF258k is well known for jumping around base stations, changing them and bands. The antenna has a wide radiation angle, it receives sideways and even backwards, there are several NetWorks base stations for T-mobile in the area. Show me a screen shot of the LTE tab on the MF258K, where did it come from?

>>21142596 .

I don't understand a bit. In your first post you write all superlatives about this equipment. So what equipment would be better?
I attach a screen from the Overview tab (later I can add from the LTE tab)
Station 27 has better parameters and the router switches to station 18 which has worse parameters
I purchased from this offer:
https://allegro.pl/oferta/zestaw-zte-mf258k-net-box-lte-cat-15-bez-simlocka-13679273282 .

In the course of using the MF258K, problems with it came to light, the main one being the aforementioned changes of BTS when there are several in the vicinity. It works particularly poorly with Play softm, slightly better with T-mobile or without branding.
Show LTE and speedtest results.

matek451 wrote:

In the course of using the MF258K, problems with it have come to light, the primary one being the aforementioned changes of BTS when there are several in the vicinity. It works particularly poorly with Play softm, slightly better with T-mobile or without branding.
Show LTE and speedtest results.

.
It's hard to measure anything because these stations change all the time. The first time I set it up I caught the best range on station 27 and there I had a result of 13/33Mbps on the speed-test. Today when I was at the plot the antenna was connected to station 18 and the speed-test showed 4/14Mbps. Please find attached screenshots

I have a question, are there any such devices where it is possible to set the stations rigidly?

Write down what software you have, because it is the key

Device model: MF258
Software running: ZTE_STD_V1.0.0B11
Model version: MG62_BYPASS_V2.0.6_D3

I'm linking to the topic
Isn't there some software on Linux to improve the performance of this hardware?????

I still wanted to mention the band blocking function itself. From what I have tested, selecting "block bands", a list of bands appears (1,3,7,8,20) and selecting the individual bands with a "tick" (checkbox) does not mean which bands are blocked but which are left for use (the remaining ones without a "tick" remain blocked).
List of bands distinguished by frequency:
1 - 2100 MHz
3 - 1800 MHz
7 - 2600 MHz
8 - 900 MHz
20 - 800 MHz

I have left bands 1 and 7 for use and then I have the best transfer of 13/31Mbps and next to the LTE icon there is a + sign, i.e. LTE+ (I do not know what this means exactly)

Are the bands the same on all stations
Do they change depending on where I am located????

kontojacek wrote:

Whether the bands are the same at all stations

.
Check yourself the map with the transmitters
https://beta.btsearch.pl/

Quick question so as not to make a new topic. Is there anyone who has this equipment and also has problems with coverage dropping out in the rain? It's a massacre for me, nothing works straight away, although you can't tell from the parameters

Perhaps it is high time to clear this topic from the overheads ?
It is neither new equipment nor something to be recommended anymore....