LAS VEGAS—T-Mobile has been ramping up its rural coverage, but owners of the company's one dedicated hotspot, the Alcatel Linkzone, haven't been able to benefit. Enter the Coolpad Surf: the first (and only) hotspot we've seen that supports Band 71, the 600MHz 4G band that T-Mobile has been using to add coverage in less populated areas.

We saw the Surf here at CES being shown off by Coolpad, its manufacturer. Although T-Mobile wouldn't confirm it will carry it, T-Mobile is the only US carrier with Band 71 support.

The Surf isn't a high-end MiFi. Its modem isn't any more advanced, or speedier, than the one in T-Mobile's existing Alcatel Linkzone hotspot. That means in urban areas where faster devices like flagship smartphones may get 60-80Mbps, this hotspot would likely get half those speeds.

But the Surf has LTE bands 2/4/12/66/71, and the presence of band 71 means Surf owners will be able to tap into the new rural network where Linkzone owners could not.

Otherwise, this is a small, simple device. It measures 4.29 by 2.64 by 0.6 inches and weighs 3.88 ounces. It's made entirely of black plastic, with a 2150mAh battery and only about 5 hours of LTE download time before it needs to be recharged. While it has a bunch of indicator lights on the front, it has no screen and must be operated via a web portal.

This new hotspot could really help folks living in rural areas perpetually looking for better alternatives to satellite internet. (If you don't need the additional coverage, it's not much of an upgrade over the Linkzone.) Unfortunately, T-Mobile still makes it really difficult to figure out how to hook up hotspots. They run $85 for 22GB, which is good for a hotspot plan but not enough to support average US home internet usage.

T-Mobile doesn't want you to use its 4G network for home internet, of course—none of the major carriers do. In T-Mobile's case, it's using the potential for 5G home service as a carrot to get regulators to approve its merger with Sprint. Still, though, I see any device that can extend usable internet into rural areas as a big plus.

Coolpad promises more about the Surf "in the coming weeks."

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