We got a chance to check out Novatel's next generation MiFi at CES this past January, and came away impressed with the update. Officially titled the Novatel Wireless MiFi 4620L 4G Global Ready Jetpack, it has big shoes to fill as the successor to the Wireless MiFi 4510L, which was our favorite LTE hotspot device when we reviewed it late last year. The Jetpack 4620L includes global WCDMA and GSM/EDGE support in addition to CDMA 2000 1x, EVDO and Verizon LTE support. Unfortunately, 5GHz WiFi is still not on board, as 802.11 connectivity is limited to b, g, and 2.4GHz n bands. But the most interesting thing about the Jetpack 4620L is the small OLED screen on the front, giving access to settings menus, device information, connectivity, and battery status. This makes it significantly easier to use and troubleshoot than the previous MiFis, and in our brief use, we found the display to be quite responsive and intuitive. 

At the time, we didn't have any details on pricing or availability, but earlier today, Verizon announced that the Jetpack would go on sale April 12th for $49.99 after a $50 mail-in-rebate, with data starting at $50 a month for 5GB. We'll have a review unit soon, so stay tuned!

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  • keitaro - Wednesday, March 28, 2012 - link

    Am I the only one who envisioned something else when reading the article title?

    Now if I can just find my Spinfusor...
  • jkresh - Thursday, March 29, 2012 - link

    nope,

    my first thought was that it was a little early for an April fools article
  • fic2 - Thursday, March 29, 2012 - link

    My thought was how safe good it be for only $49.99? My second thought was I am still going to get one. My third thought upon opening the article was - oh, never mind.
  • Paul Tarnowski - Thursday, March 29, 2012 - link

    That...was exactly my own train of thought.
  • GuinnessKMF - Friday, March 30, 2012 - link

    I was too excited at the prospect of zooming around on my jetpack to let logic start to cloud my thoughts, for some reason it didn't cross my mind in the slightest that $50 is way too cheap for a jetpack.

    Now I'm just really really disappointed.
  • dananski - Thursday, March 29, 2012 - link

    Bad marketing to name anything Jetpack because no matter how cool the actual product is, people will still be rightly disappointed that it isn't actually a jetpack.
  • Riseofthefootclan - Thursday, March 29, 2012 - link

    I envisioned the method travel for generations to come...

    What a let down, especially considering $50 would have been a steal!
  • This Guy - Thursday, March 29, 2012 - link

    I read jetpack - four kilolitres. I saw the price and I was crushed. Then hopefull that it was a cheap water system.

    Boycott Novatel until they produce a real $49.99 jet pack?
  • GuinnessKMF - Friday, March 30, 2012 - link

    Count me in. I'd even be okay with a $4,999 jet pack.
  • Squidward - Friday, March 30, 2012 - link

    All I saw was $50 Jetpack, my dreams were crushed.

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