Overview

The E300 is a 5G ready router designed to work as a provider of Wireless WAN as well as failover from a Wired WAN interface. It is part of the Branch Network offerings.

The E300 series is an upgrade to the AER1600 router. The E300 is suitable for Pop-Up stores, temporary locations, small offices, branches and restaurants. It is designed for a typical client count of 50 users. The AER1600 was designed for 4 to 5 users.

Like the AER1600, the E300 comes with a plastic casing and embedded WiFi antennas. The WiFi on the E300 is WiFi 6. WiFi6 is faster than WiFi 5 and performs better in congested areas. WiFi 6 is backward compatible for any legacy devices. WiFi 6 is known as 801.11.ax. The WiFi on the E300 is good, but because of the embedded antennas it may not as good as other CradlePoint devices with external antennas.

The unit comes with an embedded Cat 4 modem ( 150Mbps Down/50Mbps up) or an embedded Cat 18 modem (1.2Gbps Down/150Mbps Up). It is more powerful than the AER1600 and is 5G ready. As a stand-alone unit, the E300 is really a 4G LTE router. With the Cat18 Modem, it is able to handle LTE Advanced Pro Communications.

There are 5 1Gbs Ethernet ports. The default is 1 WAN and 4 LAN ports. These ports are reconfigurable.

CradlePoint has introduced a concept called 'Captive Modem' (not the same as bonded modem). A captive modem is a method of joining 2 CradlePoint devices and have them function as 1. In Captive Modem configuration, the E300 would function as the 'router/controller'. The 2nd device would function as an external modem. Currently, since the 5G devices are in test mode in Australia, and are not available in the United States, the CBA850 or the CBA550 can function as the 'external modem'. This is especially valuable for the CradlePoint CR425P router, which is a powerful router, capable of handling 300 users, but it does not have a modem. In this situation, the CBA850 or the CBA550 can function as the modem for the 425P. It allows the 425P router to have failover capabilities. The 'captive modem' allows the CR425P to be located in a wiring closet and the 'external modem' can be located in a location which allows for good cellular communications, such as near a window. The 2 devices are connected via an ethernet cable.

When CradlePoint has their 5G appliances certified in the US, one for indoor use and one for external use, these devices will be used as the 'external modem' in the 'Captive Modem' configuration and will be able to handle 5G communications. Captive Modems are available for the E300, E3000, IBR1700, AER2200 and CR425P models. Initially, I thought that the modem choice in the E300 would affect the throughput of the 5G communications, but since the interface between the controller and the external modem is through an ethernet cable, the speed of the modem plays no part.

Purchasing the E300 is a pathway to 5G communications.

Both the embedded modem and the MC400 modem have the capability for dual SIMs. The description of Dual SIMs is in almost every router Overview section on TCI's website. But it is so important that it appears again. Dual SIMs do not allow you to connect simultaneously. It is not the same as 2 modems. Here is what dual SIMs allow you to do. You can have SIMs of different carriers or the same carrier. In both cases, if the primary connection fails, the unit can be configured to failover to the secondary connection. You can also use Dual SIMs to prevent data overage charges. This requires 2 SIMs with different data plans associated with each SIM, preferably for the same carrier. The primary interface can be configured to monitor data usage. Once the configured maximum data usage is reached, the primary interface will be deactivated and the configured secondary interface will take over. Failover to a different carrier is not immediate. It can take in the range of 7 minutes or more. In order to failover to a different carrier, the unit must load modem firmware for the second carrier into the modem. Once the firmware is installed, the modem then has to connect. This means that failover can take some time.

The E300 is part of the Branch Market Segment. The router is sold as a package which includes the router and NetCloud Essentials. Branch Segment Essentials consists of NetCloud Manager, 24x7 Support (CradleCare), and NetCloud Perimeter. NetCloud Manager manages the routers remotely from a 'single pane of glass'. NetCloud Perimeter provides a simple, software-defined cloud-based alternative to VPN. An update to NetCloud Advanced is available.

In summary, the E300 is an excellent choice for a small business, a branch office or a Pop-Up store as it provides excellent cellular communications with a planned path to 5G.

As an aside, I have a love/hate relationship with this unit. When connected to NCM, there is a bright white light along the entire bottom of the faceplate of the unit. This light is positive affirmation that the unit is connected to NCM. It can be seen from across the room. You don't need to go next to the unit to see if there is connectivity. This is the love part. And this is also the hate part. It is a very bright white light which can be seen from across the room. Thus if the E300 is being used as a device for remote working, the light is obtrusive and annoying. So, as I said, this is a love/hate relationship. I just wish there were a way to turn the light off after the initial connection was verified.

Extended Warranties can be purchased in subsequent years, and as a follow-on warranty at the conclusion of the standard warranty period. No gap in coverage is allowed: the new warranty must be in place before the existing warranty expires.

• Hardware repair/replacement — extend standard warranty to 2, 3, or 5 years.
• Pricing based on annual subscription.

Cradlepoint's Extended Enterprise License provides advanced routing and security features that are designed to increase productivity and business continuity for an enterprise's network. Customers who opt in will have immediate access to a number of features.

• Routing: OSPF/BGP/RIP; VRRP; STP; NHRP
• More Advanced VPN & Tunneling Protocols: OpenVPN (SSL VPN); L2TP
• NEMO (NEtwork MObility) / DMNR (Dynamic Mobile Network Routing from Verizon)
• WiFi: WPA2 Enterprise Authentication for WiFi as WAN