The GL.iNet Beryl AX GL-MT3000 is an interesting travel router. It offers a lower cost (sub-$95, depending on the day and discount) way to bring along a travel router that is based on OpenWRT. The way we originally found this was that we were about to order a Banana Pi One OpenWRT WiFi 6 development kit (Amazon Affiliate Link), but this was $30 less, built around the same CPU, and was pre-built in a nicer-looking package. There are pros and cons to each, but it seemed like we should get this one since the GL.iNet GL-BE3600 Slate 7 Mini WiFi 7 Router we reviewed was great and a clear step above the TP-Link BE3600 Wi-Fi 7 Portable Travel Router TL-WR3602BE we reviewed. Still, the Beryl AX is a lower-cost WiFi 6 device, so we wanted to see what it offers.
Here is an Amazon Affiliate Link to where we purchased ours.
GL.iNet Beryl AX GL-MT3000 Hardware Overview
The unit itself is small at only 120 x 83 x 34mm and under 200g.
The antenna design that flips out helps keep the device small.
Something very different between this unit and the Slate 7 is that as a lower-cost option the Beryl AX does not have a front screen.
On the side, we get a vent.
On the other side, we get the reset button and a toggle mode button that can change the configuration of the device.
On the rear, we get the ports.
First off, the power input is a 5V USB Type-C port.
We have a 2.5GbE WAN port and a 1GbE LAN port. We wish the LAN side were 2.5GbE, but as you will see from the performance section, that may not be necessary.
On the bottom, we get vents.
Inside, this is powered by the MediaTek MT7981B. This is a dual core Arm Cortex-A53 device that is similar to what is used in the Banana Pi OpenWRT One WiFi 6 router. DIY folks may prefer the Banana Pi, but there is a lot to be said about getting something already built and integrated.
There is 512MB of DDR4 and 256MB of flash. What you might not be able to see in the above is that there is actually a fan inside.
A small feature, but one worth noting on a sub $95 device, is that we also get a network cable.
Next, let us get to the management.
I have one of these, it’s great for traveling. It would be nice to see some of the travel features reviewed since this is advertised as a travel router.
Our primary use case is when staying in hotels with the kids. I am able to connect this device to hotel’s captive portal and then re-broadcast the same SSID and security we use at home.
This way everyone’s electronics don’t need to be manually connected to the hotel WiFi. It makes it especially easy for smart devices that are app managed and can’t support the captive portal logins usually required (kids have a smart alarm clock/white noise sound machine).
The switch on the side is configure to enable or disable the WireGuard VPN back to my home so traffic is tunneled through a secure connection and everyone is still under the DNS filtering and ad blocking at my home router level. The kids get access to the NAS at home and can watch their downloaded shows on their tablets.
There is an iOS app ( I assume android too) so I don’t need to pull out my laptop or struggle with the browser on my phone to connect it when we arrive.
I use the same device when traveling for work to client sites and have to give presentations and need to connect multiple devices to guest WiFi.
Easily one of the pieces of technology I didn’t know I needed but use it quite a bit.
I own this model for more than 2 years already. Used it mostly when on the trips and it worked without any issues.
I have two of these, a perfect replacement of a TL-WR902AC.
Flashing upstream OpenWRT is so easy on this device that I don’t understand that SetveTheHome doesn’t test this in their review.
A second 2.5gbps port is still missed – I don’t do NAT with it, but use it as a dumb AP + WDS extender for wired ethernet devices.
and this need WiFi