I want to set up a home router for a single Verizon LTE connection. Needs to have PepVPN capability. It looks like I can use a Balance 20 plus a USB modem from Verizon. Or I can use a Balance 30LTE with a Verizon sim card. Question: which setup would provide the most bandwidth? Or would they be about the same?
The 20+USB modem would be much cheaper because Verizon will give you the usb modem with a contract.
The common problem we see with USB modem is that they gets overheated after long period of consecutive use. This should be the primary concern in deciding which model to go for.
In terms of bandwidth, you can refer to the routing throughput under model comparison for more details. The value here should be equal or higher than what your Verizon LTE connection is able to provide.
Additional to the stability problem with external USB modems (we gave up on them - they’d lock up after a day or two of use), the 30LTE also provides you with good options for upgrading the antennas for better connectivity.
I am not sure I understand the Verizon contract point - I thought Verizon pricing was by line, regardless of whether the SIM card is in a USB modem or in a Balance 30 LTE router.
Verizon allows you to save some equipment cost ($150 savings for an AC791L, which prices at $199 retail) at the cost of locking in two years, and the B20+modem combo is less expensive than the B30LTE - but the result is a more complicated setup with known likely points of failure.
If reliability is important then a simple, integrated architecture (the B30LTE) would be my choice.
Thanks for the input. To clarify my question about bandwidth, I was asking if the connection between the B20’s USB and the modem is a limitation. All else being equal, would there be any difference in data speeds between a B20+USB cellular modem vs a B30LTE on the same carrier?
Hello @Don_Ferrario,
The majority of USB based modems on the market are only USB2 standard and they have a theoretically speed limit of 35MB/s (USB - Wikipedia), while with a builtin LTEA modem chip set on a Peplink MAX router combined with suitable external antennas you can get much higher and stable throughput speeds.
Another reason not to use USB based modem is they regularly overheat and also need to be physically power cycled (also mentioned by @Kv_Chen).
This is how we approach the decision with our customers, do you want consumer reliability or professional reliability, do you want to waist precious time due to the poor reliability of consumer units or save time and money with a professional solution.
You do need to understand that regardless of the technology, your service & connection to your carrier will impact the actual throughput you get. In Australia the carrier Telstra publicly advertises that you can have a 1GB/s speed on their mobile/cellular network, I’ve worked with both carrier supplied consumer modems and commercial modems and never seen even close to these speeds in real world uses.
Happy to Help,
Marcus 
Here’s a thought: Instead of going for the B30LTE , consider the Pepwave MAX BR1 MK2 LTE Router (https://www.peplink.com/products/max-cellular-router/single-cellular/#br1). It has an LTE-A modem which far outspeeds the USB connection of an external modem (particularly assuming your are in an (urban) area where Verizon offers LTE-A). Unlike the B30LTE it offers WiFi support. The only drawback is that you would probably want a switch if you need more than two wired LAN ports (besides the WiFI).
As a PS: With the redundant SIM card slots (two slots per modem) you can have two SIM cards (i.e., two lines) and if you run out of your allocation on one line you can automatically switch to the other. With Verizon limiting its “unlimited” plan to 15 GB/month per line you may run into wishing for an additional line for the next 15 GB
The “redundant SIM” is a feature of both the B30LTE and the MAX BR1.
I never considered the MAX series as its marketed as mobile, but no reason it couldn’t be used in a building. Are there any of the MAX series that would do all of:
Three simultaneous WANs. One ethernet and two LTE? This would be the same as I do all the time with Balance and three ethernet.
Can the two LTE be blended with Fusion, with suitable Fusion on the other end (the Balance 380 at our home office) then force all LTE traffic through the Fusion to yield greater internet bandwidth than one LTE alone?
Reading the product description for some of the devices it appeared that there are two sim slots but only one modem so they are switch-over, not simultaneous. Maybe I misunderstood.
That would be the models listed on the multi-cellular sites:
HD2: https://www.peplink.com/products/max-cellular-router/multi-cellular/
HD2 IP67 (outdoor): https://www.peplink.com/products/max-cellular-router/outdoor/#hd2
Transit Duo: https://www.peplink.com/products/max-transit/
The HD2s have SpeedFusion Bonding in place, the MAX Transit Duo offers Bonding as an add-on license. Using the router outbound rules you could force all traffic to go to the home office.
The models I mentioned above are all two-radio models (two simultaneous cellular WANs), each radio having two SIM card slots (for failover, if you want to work with two carriers, or if you want to shift from one line to another upon reaching your 15GB/month Verizon allocation) for a total of up to four SIM cards.
Your interior location pretty much rules out the USB modem strategy - such modems have low-gain internal antennas, and the ones with external antenna options are for small TS9 connector antennas.
All the MAX (and B30LTE) products have external SMA or N connector coax antenna connectors. For each radio you want to have two anntenas (main and aux). With the exception of the HD2 IP67 they all come with stock low-gain antennas. You can replace them with antennas more suitable for your particular context, e.g. higher-gain omni antennas mounted directly on the router, or (in your case) mount two antennas for each radio on your roof, connected to the router using low-loss 50 Ohm coax. Alternatively, mount the HD2 IP67 on the roof with its four antennas, with two ethernet cables to your in-door switch (the HD2 IP67 is a POE device).
There is a nice thread on antennas and related topics: Max Transit Duo - the two modems report different connection qualities
However, I get the sense from your initial posting that you are price sensitive to some degree, so consider the following:
A single cellular router such as the B30LTE or MAX BR1 series or the MAX Transit (https://www.peplink.com/products/max-cellular-router/single-cellular/) is in line with what you were considering. Add the cost of antennas or amplifiers as needed.
You get the dual-SIM failover/allocation change, but not dual cellular WANs. Cost starting at about $300 in my experience. In all cases you get the PepVPN functionality (e.g., to the home office).
A dual cellular router such as the Max Transit Duo will provide dual simultaneous cellular WANs (and a wired WAN in addition) and local WiFi. It will provide WAN load balancing, but not WAN bonding. Cost significantly more than the single cellular routers.
For cellular WAN bonding you add a license to the MAX Transit Duo, or you go for an HD2. Cost significantly more than the routers without a SpeedFusion license.
For outdoor deployment you can consider the HD2 IP67. It includes SpeedFusion, and costs is a bit more than the indoor HD2 models.
Zegor - thank you for the excellent explanation. The HD2 series would do what I am considering. The application for the HD2, is different than the one where I was considering a single USB modem.