More detailed 5G+ PLDT review (TLDR it rocks)
As you can see this modem has a generous amount of settings you'd normally find in P10K+ modems.
Replaceable fan. Noctua anyone?
Size comparison to the F50 lol. It's basically the same footprint and like 20 F50's high.
UPDATE: As of 01/24/2025 Smart has been blocking Unli 5G plans in sims not included with the modem as mentioned here, so be warned.
I've been able to have more time with this modem so this review is more detailed. First is the PLDT Home screen after login. It has a Disable Data button for WIFI-only mode, an Optimize Location setup button and a Mesh network button that takes you to the Mesh network configuration. You can see it has a somewhat strong 5G and 4G signal. The thing is, I've brought the modem further away from the window like 3 meters and I can barely get 10Mbps haha. (Edit: Ok now it's almost 200Mbps. And the modem is in the middle of the room lol. This is awesome) Network, Wi-Fi and Device tabs show the usual settings. Tools shows SMS, Stats and Parental control settings. Advanced has the rest of the options.
I've mentioned in my short review how some devices cannot surf even if connected and the WAN/LAN port acting up. I managed to get 6 devices plus a TP Link Wi-Fi Extender on Access Point mode through the Ethernet cable and they all worked flawlessly. LAN to a desktop PC worked the same. What I did was forget the Wi-Fi networks in the phone and started over instead of carrying over the settings from the old modem. For the LAN port I set it to "LAN only" under Network settings>Ethernet>Ethernet settings. By default it was set to Auto. I think if you want to use the same SSID/password of your previous modem and the phone cannot work or connect just forget the old network and add it again. I'm not sure if it was necessary but I also disabled 2.4/5Ghz combined signals and just used the option to use it separately. It sucked on the TP Link so I just did the same on the Zowee.
I’ve tested Smart Bro Unlifam, ALLDATA, Magic Data and Postpaid. VPN was fine. I have not tried Unlidata.
To access Developer mode you have to go to Advanced>System>System Settings. There you can lock bands/cell/frequency, and set network modes.
As for speeds it will all depend on your location/server yet this modem seems to have a decent signal pull far inside a room. I’m not saying it will be the same for you but not even my iPhone can get a decent 5G signal with Smart in the same location. Yes a lot of people can connect to this modem, but from what I’ve seen so far is that if a lot of devices are demanding bandwidth it will be somewhat slow for others and fast for another. There doesn’t seem to be an option on allocating Bandwidth for certain use cases like the more expensive modems. In the Advanced Wi-Fi bandwidth settings you can choose Auto/20Mhz/40Mhz for 2.4Ghz and Auto/20Mhz/40Mhz/80Mhz/160Mhz for 5Ghz. I just left them on Auto. There is no option to change IMEI.
Edit: The unit ran warm but you'll have to observe if the temperature gets too high under heavy continuous usage. If it does just put a fan cooler underneath for extra cooling, no sweat.
To void your warranty you would have to remove two screws behind the sticker in the bottom. Then pry open the top cover and remove a third screw under that, then separate the device. Can this be modded with external antennas? Perhaps. I saw a seller selling one for 4K lol, so maybe it is possible.
The device runs on 12V/2A so if you want to use a booster cable or backup battery it needs to output that much. So do I recommend this modem? After getting past the issues and having more time with it, I’ll say definitely. If you can get it at MSRP it’s an absolute bargain, for Smart/PLDT users that is. Once it gets the hacking treatment it will be even more alluring. The ZTE F50 was the first 5G modem I saw that was under 4K but this blows that out of that water when you factor performance for price. And did I mention it is Wifi 6 and backwards compatible? I’d say get it if you can. This works well for family use and even individual or even just a backup. Well it’s late for me lol hope this clears up my other post.
Edit: [Where to buy?] It might be difficult finding a unit for P1450, but if you cannot wait buy it from sellers who offer discounts like here. I t's still higher than MSRP but that's how markets are sadly.
Edit 2: It didn't occur to me test 5Ghz but I just did and it peaked at 500Mbps down and 19Mbps up until it settled to 310 and 9 at the same spot lmao. This modem is great!
Edit 3: Figured out how to make the AX3 router to work, I had to change the WAN port behavior on the AX3 to Bridge AP mode, then everything works. If you're having similar issues change the router settings, the modem is fine!
Edit 4: I think I know why the AX3 wasn't working normally. In DHCP mode the PLDT modem could not detect users on the AX3 so theoretically you could have bypassed the 15 user limit. In Bridge mode user management is disabled in the AX3 and handled on the PLDT modem, since they now appear under Devices.