Last year, DITO launched their first Home WiFi Unli 5G with a monthly subscription fee of only Php1,490. This provides unlimited 5G internet with speeds of up to 500Mbps. With this new service, DITO managed to earn over 100,000 new subscribers in the past 12 months.
This time around, DITO is offering another alternative and affordable yet very similar service — the DITO Home WOWFi. Perhaps, the biggest difference between the DITO Home Unli 5G and the DITO WOWFi is the promised speed and price — the Home Unli 5G can go as fast as 500Mbps while the DITO WOWFi has a promised speed of 100Mbps.
Let’s break down the device and the service to better understand the new DITO WOWFi.
The Router
When you get the DITO WOWFi starter kit for Php1,990, you get a wireless router and a DITO 5G SIM. The router is a Brovi 5G CPE 5 SE (Model: H151-370) which is manufactured by Zowee Technology based in Shenzhen, China.
The router has 5G and 4G connectivity with 5G speeds of up to 226Mbps (downlink) and 120Mbps (uplink) while 4G speeds of 400Mbps (downlink), 200Mbps (uplink). You will notice that the 5G speeds have reduced capacity compared to the 4G speeds. This is because this device uses the 5G Reduced Capacity technology (5G RedCap).
“5G Reduced Capability (5G RedCap) is a 5G standard that bridges the gap between 4G and 5G. It was introduced in 5G Release 17 and is also known as 5G NR-Light. 5G RedCap is designed to support applications that fall between the capabilities of other 5G technologies.”
The router supports WiFi-6 (2.4GHz band and 5GHz band) with a nano-SIM slot, an RJ45 port and 4 LAN ports with the 4th port also doubles as a WAN port. The WAN port gives the router the capability to connect to a wired fiber internet connection that you normally use at home.
The device is powered by a 12V (1A) power adaptor so you can easily take it with you anywhere to plug at a home socket or power bank that supports the standard plug.
The Interface
There are two ways to manage your DITO WOWFI account. The first one is using the Web Admin Panel of the router to change the WiFi settings such as AP names, WiFi band, WiFi passwords, among others.
You should be able to see the network signal strength, network activity, number of devices connected, and amount of data used for the period.
The second is via the DITO mobile app where you can monitor your SIM and manage the data plan. You can also pay your subscription plan here and earn DITO points along the way.
Steps to activate your SIM & Modem:
1) Insert DITO Home SIM into your phone.
2) Download the DITO App & click SIM Registration. Take note of your DITO Home SIM Number for loading.
3) Wait for SIM activation confirmation via SMS.
4) Sign in to the DITO App using your DITO Home SIM number and update your profile.
5) Insert registered DITO Home SIM into the modem.
6) Plug the modem in & connect to your DITO Home WOWFI Prepaid Modem.
* You can get the SSID and default password at the bottom of the DITO Home router.
Speed Tests
DITO promises up to 100Mbps of download and 50Mbps of upload speeds using the WOWFi. These are decent numbers that many folks will find more than enough for their personal needs.
When originally tested at our house in Paranaque, we get an average of 50Mbps to 60Mbps download speeds most of the time.
However, upload speeds only average at around 5Mbps only. Of course, the results will vary depending on the location and the
We took the DITO WOWFi router with us in the car when going around the metro (mostly EDSA, SLEX, BGC, Makati and Pasay).
The highest download speed we got during the tests was a 108Mbps which is well over the promised 100Mbps of the WOWFi service.
However, you will also notice that upload speeds aren’t that high though — a measly 5 to 11Mbps only. This might not be suitable for people who do large uploads like video editors but for the most part, the 100Mbps range of download speed is adequate for most casual needs.
The Plan
The DITO Home WOWFi starter kit will cost you a one-time Php1,990 with the router and the DITO SIM that comes with 30 days unli-5G internet and additional 50GB 4G connectivity.
If you get it via the DTIO app, get it for only Php1,290 with the Php700 voucher.
The Unli 5G cost Php790 for 30 days with unlimited 5G. If you want a more budget-friendly plan, there is a data-capped plan for only php490 with an 80GB allocation for 30 days (extra data will roll over the following month).
You can also get Php190 rebate every month when you load Php790 from the 2nd until the 11th month. That means you’ll only pay Php600 per 30 days to get unlited 5G.
Loading your DITO HOME WOWFi account can be easily done via the DITO app. Simply go to the homepage and select “buy promo”.
The service is limited to a few cities and locations at the moment. However, we also tried this device at our remote farm in Anupol, Bambam, Tarlac and it worked just fine.
Verdict
The DITO HOME WOWFi is yet another affordable offering from DITO Telecommunity that caters to the people who are either one or all of the following:
- Users who are looking for a portable or nomadic solution to get fast wireless data. That way, they can take this device and use it in different locations, whether at home, office or even on vacation. Business owners of kiosks and shops may also benefit from this.
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People looking for an alternative solution that is cheaper or more affordable than the usual wired services being offered by other ISPs with long-term contracts.
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Existing subscribers looking for a back-up solution to their current broadband services.
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Moderate to light internet users that might only use 80GB a month of less of data.
There are many practical uses for this solution and the economic advantage of an affordable and prepaid service like the DITO WOWFi makes for a solid proposition.
Perhaps, the only limiting factors that needs to be considered when getting one of these prepaid kits is your location. We recommend testing out the DITO network in the places where you most often intend to use it. Just get a prepaid SIM and do the speed tests with your smartphone first. Once you are comfortable or satisfied with the signal strength and data speeds, only then you can make the decision to get this kit.
