ZTE MF28B says i'm connected but unable to go online!?!?

[IcePack04]

Hey guys. If anyone knows how to configure this device, any help would be greatly appreciated. I've had a sudden drop in speed to now no connection at all, although when i log in it says i am connected to the network  and on the modem i have full connectivity bars, internet and wifi lights are on....Called tech support twice today, and although they were friendly and tried to help me, it didn't resolve anything. Not sure how to change dns settings or if this will help with the zte as it seems to have worked with the netcomm..Problem not on my part for sure, since no settings have been change on my desktop, laptop, ipod, iphone and xbox and none can access the internet anymore... quite frustrating

*** Edited Labels***

[skinorth]

@IcePack04:

the ZTE MF28B was the subject of discussions a few months ago.  As I personally have no ZTE experience (I own an Ericsson W35 RocketHub), I did a few Googles, and found....... not much of anything.  The documentation available on-line was quite minimal, so it was difficult to learn much about the device.

With the description you give of your setup, I guess I would begin by temporarily disconnecting all devices except the desktop or laptop.  I would connect that with an ethernet cable, and then go from there.  Can the ZTE be made to work with just that one device connected to it?

This will definitely lead to the temporary inconvenience of not being able to connect all of your other devices.  But that seems one way to establish if the ZTE does actually work at all in your location, and whether the problem is either loading, or an interaction between the ZTE and/or some other device(s) in your network.  Hopefully you won't face a household revolt over the temporary inconvenience.

There may be other, better ways to approach this problem, but the above is all I can think of at the moment.

Good luck.

skinorth

[rafk]

if you haven't already, power cycle your device.  this will re-establish your connection to the nearest tower.  i am nearly certain rogers de-prioritizes internet traffic at their towers in favour of cell phone traffic.  during peak periods, you may notice you are connected but get slow/no internet access. 

if that doesn't help, i'd write down all your settings and restore to default. [if you changed any that is].

you can try using google's DNS service by setting 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4 as the DNS servers to eliminate Roger's DNS.  [note you can only change the DNS settings while being disconnected from Rogers' network]

[IcePack04]

Thanks for the reply skinorth. Online info for the zte is definetely quite limited. I rarely connect more than 2-3 devices at once, but even just the one didn't  work. My desktop and xbox are always plugged in when i use them so the problem is not wireless. ZTE worked perfectly fine in my area prior to DEC 20th or so...i'm on HSPA+, LTE not available in my area yet..I plugged my eyhernet cable on LAN1/WAN last nite(although i;m supposed to disconnect it while in LTE gateway mode) and it's been working fine ever since..I used to plugged both ethernet cables in LAN2 and LAN3 (only ports that used to work) so i don't know if this fixed the issue or not, i gotta admit i'm living in constant fear that it's gonna give up on me again (not literally but figure of speech 🙂

@ rafk

Thanks for the reply. i did power cycle and it worked for 5 minutes then back to nothing. Also restored settings to default and again, worked for only a few minutes. re: DNS settings : What i'm not sure about is that  I can't just manually change DNS without having to  add new profile selection, profile name and APN which i do not know what to type in this case. I can't just manually change DNS without having to go through this..Any info  on how to do this would be awesome..

Thanx guys and have a nice day

[skinorth]

@IcePack04:

if you suspect that your problems are location-specific, you could take the ZTE and your laptop, and maybe some of your other stuff, and try it in a different location, perhaps even a location that has LTE.

I have noticed that my W35 will in some locations lose internet connectivity quite predictably at certain times of the day.  These times are usually during rush hour, when one would expect cell phone traffic to peak, given that two of the three locations I have used it in are adjacent to busy major highways, e.g., the 401 west of the GTA, and Ontario Hwy 6 north of Hamilton.  Curiously enough, the phone support on the W35 (which I believe the ZTE does not have) continues to work regardless.

Something in the technology deems data connections to be of lower priority than voice connections and cannibalizes the resources required for the data connection to feed the demands of voice connections.  This seems to be a localized issue depending on both traffic requirements and the capacities of the local cell infrastructure.

It certainly must be annoying to be working with minimal documentation on the device.  I get the feeling that Rogers support really does not have access to much more than we as customers can find on the web (not much!).

skinorth

[IcePack04]

Yes i agree it is frustrating to work with minimal info on the device. I just thought it was weird that speed suddenly dropped and ultimately was not responsive as i have remained in the exact same location. As mentionned b4, speed and connectivity has always been great prior to this happening. I may have lost connections twice but for a short period of time (less than 10 minutes) and all lights on device were off. But anyway, You may be right re: data connections are deemed lower priority, and this is what may have affected me over the holidays period. Connection is back to normal now and coincidence or not, holidays are over.I guess time will tell...But it will b hard for me to verify my hub in a location that has LTE because the nearest place is Vancouver, which is quite a ways from where i live (Comox valley, Vancouver island) Thanx for your replies/input and i will keep posting if i figure out any new valuable intel on this device...

[brianwithoneeye]

I am having same problem. It’s garbage equipment.

[RogersCorey]

Good afternoon @brianwithoneeye!

Welcome to our Community!

I am sorry to hear that you're having this same issue. I understand how frustrating it is.

In this case, we should troubleshoot. Please PM us @CommunityHelps so we can further assist. If you're not familiar with our PMing process, you can find instructions here.

Regards,

RogersCorey

[brianwithoneeye]

up and running now. Turns out Rogers shut me of because I have reached a set limit. Was not even close to my limit.