HooToo TripMate HT-TM01 Review

Today, I’ll be doing a complete review of the HooToo TripMate HT-TM01 portable wireless router and external battery bank. To begin, we’ll look at the unboxing of the product, a description of the TripMate followed up with the item’s features and specifications and, as always, my personal comments and thoughts of the unit. I would like to thank RAVPower, HooToo’s “brother” company, for allowing TSF the opportunity to review this item.

Figure 1 – The product and its box.

Unboxing the Unit

Unboxing the TripMate is short, sweet and simple. On the box itself you’ll find the TripMate’s three unique features along with the unit’s specifications on the back. Once opened, you are greeted with the TripMate unit along with a helpful user manual and USB power cable for charging the item. Personally, I would have liked to see a USB wall charger as well but can understand the lack of one since the TripMate is designed to be completely reliant on its own battery.

Unit Description

While using the device at home I quickly realized that the unit’s true purpose is for a business man who tends to travel quite a bit or perhaps a student living in a dorm. With the functionality of a wireless router, network attached storage (NAS), and an external power bank for charging this small device it sure does well.

On the front face of the TripMate you’ll find the WiFi LED indicator, as well as the battery level and On/Off button. On the right hand side you’ll find a MicroUSB DC port which can be used to charge up the unit. On the top is an RJ45 Ethernet Port and a full size female USB slot on the bottom for charging devices such as a tablet or cell phone.

When looking to purchase the unit expect to pay $49.99 (8/20/13) as HooToo controls the price it sells for.

Figure 2 – A description of each function.

Features and Specifications

Beginning with the wireless capabilities of the TripMate, the built in WiFi Router can act as an access point (AP), router or a bridge.

When using the unit as an access point it allows items such as a tablet, laptop or smart phone to connect wirelessly to a network in a wireless “dead spot” in your home. Keep in mind that APs don’t have a firewall therefore not providing a secure connection. Think of it as a WiFi booster.

One of the more useful wireless features is the built in router. By connecting your TripMate into your Ethernet connection it can instantly transform your wired connection into a wireless connection. The router WiFi standard supports 802.11b/g/n at a 2.4GHz frequency, with the ability to run as a single band or dual band allowing older and newer devices to connect at the same time. The device is small which in return makes for shorter antennas; the farther you move away the less signal you will receive along with wireless speeds. I wouldn’t go as far as to say it is a replacement for a full sized in-home router, but for a small apartment or dorm it does provide a great inexpensive and easy to use router.

One feature is the ability to turn the TripMate into a home Network Attached Storage (NAS). When utilizing the built in full sized USB port users can either plug in an external USB hard drive or USB flash drive to allow storage transfer to either a different PC or for storing pictures away from your PC’s hard drive. I find this one of the coolest features out of the entire unit especially since NAS devices can cost hundreds of dollars.

Finally you have the option to set up the TripMate as a bridge. While in bridge mode the TripMate will take your current network but use a different SSID and password for others to connect. The feature allows for a secure guest network.

Figure 3 – Device Settings

With all of these features and a device that only has one button, how do you go about changing any settings? Well just like a router connecting to the device by 10.10.10.254 via your web browser, here you can access your NAS files, change network settings and change user preferences. If you are a traveler and want a secure network in a hotel but only have your smartphone, HooToo has a user friendly app for both iOS and Android that allows smartphone users to access all of the settings.

Figure 4 – (Left) Connection while connected to the TripMate (Right) Connection while connected to my router.

To finish off the TripMate’s wireless features I did a wireless speed test both while connected to the TripMate and connected to my main router (Linksys E2500). On the left you see my connection running though the TripMate unit and on the right you see my connection via the router. Although there is a small decrease in speeds the chance of noticing any slowness in your web browser is slim.

Moving on to the battery portion of the TripMate that can turn a dying smartphone or tablet back into a fully functional device. With it’s 5200mAh built-in battery, the TripMate can easily charge up your device back to full strength. Using it on my Galaxy SIII with only 10% remaining in the battery the TripMate replenished the phone back to full battery power with still 25% remaining power on the TripMate. My Asus Tablet on the other hand drained the TripMate of all of its power and only filled my tablet to 50%.

It should be noted that the battery can only sustain enough battery power for use either as a phone charger or in router mode. Any new 2013 smartphone or tablet can easily drain the TripMate which in return takes away the opportunity of a safe network connection at a hotel until the TripMate has been recharged.

If you use the TripMate only as a router expect to gain at least an entire day of full use before it needs to be recharged.

One of the few downsides is that recharging the TripMate will take some time. Using a 1 amp USB wall charger expect to wait 7 hours before the TripMate is fully charged. I have a 2 amp charger here at home and it charged my unit in about 4 hours. Also setting up the wireless itself can become a tad frustrating. The unit requires some technology background to setup in working order and even then the device at times may require a restart to connect wirelessly.

Figure 5 – Height, Length, and Width with iPhone 5 comparison.

Specifications of the device are as follows:

• CPU model/frequency: Ralink RT5350/MIPS245KEc 360MHz
• Wi-Fi: 802.11b/g/n, 2.4GHz
• Speed: 720Mbps for 20MHz, 150Mbps for 40MHz
• WAN port: RJ45 Ethernet, 100Mbit/s
• Battery indicator: 4 Blue LEDs, 25%/50%/75%/100% (Short press the power button to see the remaining capacity)
• Wi-Fi indicator (Blue/Green): long press the power button to enter power-on status, long press again to shut off

1. Flashing Green: loading process
2. Stable Green: no internet connection
3. Stable Blue: internet connected successfully

• Reset button
• Antenna: 2dB (Wi-Fi component), 14dBi (main chip)
• Input micro USB: 0.5A/1.0A/1.5A charging internal battery
• Output USB 2.0: 1A Max. for mobile devices
• Battery: 5200mAh 18650
• Operating/Storage temp.: 5°C – 40°C / 0°C – 60°C
• Operating/Storage humidity: 5% – 90% (Non-condensing)
• Dimension: 96mm (L) x 44mm (W) x 28mm (H)
• Works with: Windows, Mac, Android, iOS
• Certificate: CE, RoHS, and FCC

Final Thoughts

The HooToo TripMate HT-TM01 is a device I would recommend to anyone who may travel, or is looking for an alternative, inexpensive router. It offers the advantage of a safe and secure network from any public connection that is available, allowing hotel guests to check such things as bank accounts without others spying as well as having a backup battery for a dying smartphone. For a reasonable $49.99 the HooToo TripMate is a great buy.

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