I just received my MiFi 4510L and am already having issues. I have gotten it to work with my WiFi iPad, but not reliably. I am hoping some of the experts can answer these questions. I am in need of step-by-step instructions, if that is possible. * How can I see the log that I read about on this forum? * Why does MiFi change from 4G (green light) to 3G (pink light) when I have not physically moved? Speed correspondingly changes from 7mps to .5mps. * I have had some trouble turning on the MiFi - where after a full charge, it turns on and then immediately shuts down. I have also seen a red light on startup, indicating SIM card problem. Should I exchange device for new one? * Generally speaking how long will MiFi device run on battery? I imagine it depends on system activity, but could you provide a range of up time? * How long does it take to charge a fully depleted battery? * How can I tell what version of the operating system I have? If I do not have the latest (2.23?) how do I perform an OS update? Many thanks for taking the time to answer.

Some Basic MiFi 4510L Questions

I just received my MiFi 4510L and am already having issues. I have gotten it to work with my WiFi iPad, but not reliably. I am hoping some of the experts can answer these questions. I am in need of step-by-step instructions, if that is possible.

How can I see the log that I read about on this forum?
Why does MiFi change from 4G (green light) to 3G (pink light) when I have not physically moved? Speed correspondingly changes from 7mps to .5mps.
I have had some trouble turning on the MiFi - where after a full charge, it turns on and then immediately shuts down. I have also seen a red light on startup, indicating SIM card problem. Should I exchange device for new one?
Generally speaking how long will MiFi device run on battery? I imagine it depends on system activity, but could you provide a range of up time?
How long does it take to charge a fully depleted battery?
How can I tell what version of the operating system I have? If I do not have the latest (2.23?) how do I perform an OS update?

Many thanks for taking the time to answer.

Accepted answers

John_Getzke

Q: Is there a specific shutdown proceedure I should be following?

A: Here is what I like to do.

1. Press and hold the power button until the LED turns Yellow

2. Wait for the E-Ink display to clear and LED to turn off

3. Give it 5-10 seconds

4. Press the power button (no need to hold)

5. Wait for the E-Ink to power up and display the signal strength and battery icons

6. Confirm the LED is in Purple/3G or Green/4G LTE

Im thinking you might not be holding down the power button long enough when powering it down. Simply pressing the power button does not always shutdown the device the first time. Pressing and holding is much more consistent from my experience.

All comments

John_Getzke

Hello,

In response to your questions:

1) To view logs:

1. Connect to the Mifi

2. Navigate to http://mifi.admin

3. Sign into the MiFi

4. Navigate to Advanced > Diagnostics

5. Click the System Log button

- You may have to enable your logging feature the first time. Steps should be displayed on the MiFi.

2) Your MiFi will automatically transition between 3G and 4G in your area depending on the quality of the signal. This normally happens when the MiFi detects an issue with 4G when 3G is also available. You can configure around this feature and lock the device in either 3G or 4G if you find it annoying. I would also suggest updating the firmware to the latest as each firmware update so far has been released to address this issue.

3) Those are all good reasons to call in for a replacement device or parts. You might want to examine the battery and try using the MiFi without it for a while to compare. Remember that the device will not remain powered on with a USB connection unless you are on the most recent firmware version. Red lights are also a good reason to call in for hardware replacement.

4) Battery life is rated around 6 hours, but I find I can normally get around 4 with normal useage.

5) Fully charging the battery does not take too long. I would estimate around 20-30 minutes. I normally charge and use my MiFi at the same time though. If you can give it enough juice to boot then you can attach the power cable later and continue to use it.

6) We refer to the OS as firmware. Your Firmware version can be found under the Diagnostics screen from the steps above. Look for the value next to "Modem FW Version".

Let us know if you have any other questions.

compfan03

Thank you so much for all the information John. You answered all my questions and presented everything in a very understandable manner, but I am still having serious problems. As you recommended I exchanged my MiFi 4510L for another unit. I am still seeing most of the same problems. Fortunately, I have not seen a red light, so that is good. But I do experience a dropped internet connection. Then I have a problem turning the unit back on. Here is what happens.

I turn the unit off

I press the button to turn it back on

The green light lights up on the side

The outline of a battery shows up on the little screen

After a moiment, all lights go out

I have tried resetting the battery (taking it out and putting it back in) and the results are the same. After a while (maybe 15-30 minutes) I am able to turn the device on normally. I can't believe this is normal. Can you please advise.

John_Getzke

There are a wide variety of connection dropping issues with the MiFi device. Some are resolved with simple reconfigurations while otheres appear to be issues with the local towers and Verizon Network and continue to bother us. Check around the forum a bit to see if any of the other threads can match your disconnection symptoms.

Disconnections can be sumarized into two categories. Either the MiFi is dropping the connection with your computers/tablets/phones (local disconnect) or the MiFI is dropping the connection between the Verizon network (network disconnect). The system logs seem to be more useful for network disconnections. Network disconnections normaly require us to move to a different enviornment or purchase additional equiptment to improve our signal. Local disconnections are normally seen when one device can connect to the internet but another cannot. We can configure around most of the local disconnection issues.

I wish I could explain the behavior that you are seeing with your 2nd MiFi. These devices definitly should not be powering down so soon unless the device is having problems recieving power from the battery. I would update the firmware to 2.23 if it is not already updated. Also, try using the MiFi without the battery and plug it directly into the wall for a few days if possible. This test should isolate the problem to a battery issue or device issue.

compfan03

John - I cannot tell you how much I appreciate your complete and understandable answer. I have been a (wireless phone) Verizon customer since the days of Southwest Bell, and I have never found such good technical information.

I wanted to clarify - although I am concerned about the disconnect issues, what is really driving me crazy is not being able to turn the MiFi back on. This happens intermittently but often.I press the button to turn the MiFi off. I am turning it off because of a dropped signal and I am hoping turning the MiFi off and then on again will reestablish the signal. I am calling this a dropped signal - the symptom is that the iPad says it cannot establish a connection with the internet/network.

So I press the button to turn off the MiFi. If I immediately try and turn th MiFi back on, I cannot get it to come back on again. I see the green light, an outline of the battery, and then all the lights (the little screen and the green light) go out. I cannot get the MiFi to come on again. The only thing I seem to be able to do is wait - like about a half hour - and then the MiFi turns on normally.

Is there a specific shutdown procedure I should be following? Is this a reported problem? Should I maybe try another MiFi exchange? I do understand about the dropped signal. I am a longtime user of the 3G USB Broadband Modem. Occasionally it would lose the signal. Quitting out of VZManager and restarting the program or restarting the laptop easliy resolved the issue. Right now I am concerned about the inability to be able to restart the MiFi. It is just not usable in its current state. I will try the plug in with no battery and see if I can replicate the problem that way. I will report back. In the meanwhile can you please answer the questions at the beginning of this paragraph. Many thanks.