John, thank you for your post. I'll try to provide more details, however I do not believe there is any possibility whatsoever of any person on this site being able to even remotely improve the situation. I strongly believe Verizon is simply facing a situation where engineering and QA testing failed miserably, and architectural constraints prevent any real improvement of the situation for those of us currently experiencing it. I BTW have some experience in this general field - though not direct experience with 3G/4G network support.
First of all, the most common issue is that regardless of the type, OS or number of clients attached to the MiFi via 802.11x, the unit comes up and finds a (good) 4G connection. It seems as though it's performing well. However, with no obvious trends concerning the length of time before problems start, the green light simply stays on solid and no 4G traffic is passed between the MiFi and the VZ network (that I can determine, anyway). This often occurs within minutes of the bootup process, but can be delayed by an hour. At this point, no matter the client device, I cannot in any way (direct IP, DNS supported browse traffic, SMTP, etc) access anything beyond the Mifi. I can bring up the MiFi console (which, btw, is perhaps the worst designed management console I've seen in more than a decade) at the defaul 192.168.1.1 address. Often, I'll get a status of "dormant". I can typically successfully disconnect the device from the LTE network. However, I can NEVER reconnect (with perhaps less than 5 exceptions over the past 3 months). When I click "connect", it tells me it's DISCONNECTING again and goes back to dormant. Sometimes if I choose to just wait it out, the device/connection will come back within between 30 seconds and 5 minutes. Sometimes no matter how long I wait, the connection never comes back. The only sure remedy is to completely power the MiFi down and then power it back on.
The second issue is that of the 3G vs 4G LTE network selection. Without exception - and I mean that in the very factual sense of the phrase, if I allow the device to be set to "Global" it has extreme difficulty in accurately selecting 4G LTE when in a known, great signal, 4G LTE area. Let me be perfectly clear as to dispell any propaganda from VZ or anywhere else. I am currently sitting in my kitchen and over the top of the trees I can seethe top of the closest 4G LTE equipped tower - which is in BTW a somewhat rural area where the density of calls is typically low, and the utilization of that tower is also typically low. I know this because of close connections with the tower operator (Crown Castle Communications) - having made inquiries and gotten hard data supporting my claims. If my device is set to "Global", more than 60% of the time it comes up in 3G mode. In the 40% where it comes up in 4G LTE, it often switches down to 3G at some point. When I'm stationary, with full signal strength, in full view of the tower, which is less than a 5 minute WALK from where I'm sitting - with no line of site obstructions, hight tension power lines, etc. Nothing. I find the same behavior regardless of my location. The network and protocol selection process is just plain broken. It's not even close. Verizon claims that relatively recent updates "improved" the performance. That may be. Frankly, moving the accuracy needle from 10% to 15% is an "improvement". But neither are acceptable. Not saying the actual numbers are 10% or 15%. I AM saying that the numbers are FAR less than 95% - and far less than any service level that any reasonable customer should expect. Therein lies the reason why those of us in LTE regions must set the device to LTE Only.
I also take exception with the description of "resets" as a "quick" solution. There is nothing quick about it when you're in the middle of a meeting, or trying to upload a critical file. I define "quick" as a the most less than 100ms. This process is both too frequently required, and takes MINUTES. And frankly, sometimes, immediately after the reboot you're facing the same exact situation. It is simply not acceptable.
You are correct in that VZs "solution" thus far is to replace devices - with replacement devices that behave EXACTLY as the original devices. It is a DESIGN problem. And I am SO friggin tired of hearing inexperienced, poorly trained and poorly motivated VZ employees try to say that it's not their fault because they didn't build the device.
Bottom line is that I'm trying hard to get my money back to get rid of the device. It is simply not capable of functioning as designed, nor is VZ capable of providing any even remotely reasonable support. I have absolutely not a single shred of confidence that this device will ever work reliably at this point. Not one.
