Review: Verizon Wireless MiFi 4510L mobile hotspot

The scoop: Verizon Wireless MiFi 4510L Intelligent Mobile Hotspot, by Novatel Wireless, about $100 (after $50 debit card mail-in rebate with two-year agreement, plus $50 per month, 5GB data plan).
What it is: So, Verizon’s LTE (Long Term Evolution) 4G wireless network has been up and running in the Boston area for almost six months now, so it’s always fun to try out the newest devices that can connect to this speedy network, especially since our office in Framingham has a 4G LTE tower on top of it. This guarantees pretty good 4G speeds for the devices, as is the case with the 4510L.
The device, about the size of a small smartphone, can connect to the LTE network for a PC directly connected by USB cable. Or you can enable the device as a Wi-Fi hotspot, allowing up to 5 users to connect via Wi-Fi, then up to the 4G network. The unit has a nice LED screen on the front that indicates wireless signal strength (in terms of bars), and battery life left (or blinking if charging via power adapter). The unit blinks green if you’re in a 4G LTE zone, or violet if you’re in a 3G 1x or EV-DO area.
Why it’s cool: If you’re in a great 4G LTE coverage area, the speeds on this thing are smoking. In my tests, I was able to get an average 10.38Mbps of download speeds, and upload speeds of about 4.78Mbps (using five different tests at Speedtest.net). This is the equivalent of an average broadband connection (at least non-FiOS homes), and the upload speeds surpasses that in many cases.
As long as you’re in a great area of 4G LTE coverage (sadly, my home in central Massachusetts doesn’t have 4G yet), this is a great device to own if you’re looking for super-fast downloads and uploads.
One caveat: For some reason, I couldn’t power down the device unless I removed the battery.
Grade:4.5 stars (out of five)