WanderRouter Standard-5G — Full Spec (delta from Standard)
Device ID: WV-NET-ROUTER-STD-5G Family: WanderRouter · Tier: Primary Gateway (Standard), 5G WAN variant Chassis: Medium (same as Standard + Bridge) Status: spec v1.0 · SOP v2 compressed · 2026-04-24 Ship target: Q2 2027 (same cert window as Standard — variant cert cheaper) Parent spec: ../router_standard/WANDERROUTER-STANDARD-SPEC.md — this doc captures ONLY the delta.
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Brief
Standard-5G is WanderRouter Standard with cellular 5G as the primary WAN instead of / alongside wired internet. Use cases:
1. Rural households without reliable wired broadband — T-Mobile Home Internet / Verizon 5G Home replacement 2. Urban dead zones where Comcast/Spectrum service is poor 3. Mobile-living (RVs, vans, travel) — though Ultra is better for this, 5G-Standard is adequate for settled mobile-living 4. HAVEN safehouse mobile deployments (though again Ultra is the target) 5. Travelers in long-term rentals — plug in 5G modem, BYO plan 6. Temporary / secondary residences — snowbird homes, short-term deployments
Most buyers of 5G-Standard are either (a) rural customers swapping out a $50/mo T-Mo Home Internet gateway for something they own outright, or (b) people without decent wired broadband options who want privacy + modularity + ambassador-made hardware.
Target price: $399 (base 5G config) → $649 (full options + dual-SIM + mmWave + UPS + Lux cover).
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Delta vs Standard
Platform changes
| Axis | Standard | Standard-5G |
|---|
| **Cellular modem** | optional USB LTE | **INTEGRATED M.2 B-key 5G NR Sub-6 modem** — **primary: Telit FN990Axx** (Perplexity-verified 2026-04-24: holds explicit AT&T + FirstNet + T-Mobile US + Verizon + FCC + IC + RED + PTCRB certifications, strongest US carrier pass-through); **alternate: Quectel RM520N-GL** (certified but less carrier-explicit per Perplexity) |
| **SIM slots** | none (USB only) | 2× nano-SIM + **multi-profile eUICC** (5-10 eSIM profiles — Airalo/Holafly/Nomad/Saily/Flexiroam compatible via GSMA SGP.22). See `../_ESIM-MULTI-CARRIER.md` for full architecture. |
| **GNSS** | no | **Integrated GPS/GLONASS/Galileo** (via 5G modem's embedded GNSS) |
| **Cellular antennas** | no | **4× 5G RP-SMA bulkheads + 4× cellular antennas included** |
| **mmWave option** | no | **optional daughterboard** for n258/n260/n261 mmWave (28 GHz) |
| **Power** | PoE or 12V brick | 12V brick required (5G modem needs higher sustained draw than PoE-at allows during TX peaks) |
| **Thermal** | 35W sustained | 45-55W sustained (5G TX is power-hungry) — thermal envelope re-validated |
BOM additions
| Component | Part | Qty | Price 1k |
|---|
| 5G modem M.2 B-key | **Telit FN990Axx (Sub-6 Cat-20, US 4-carrier certified)** | 1 | ~$135 (pending RFQ; FN990A typically 10-20% over Quectel RM5xx-class) |
| Dual nano-SIM + eSIM socket | Hirose IX-SIM holder | 1 | $3 |
| Cellular antennas | Taoglas MA330 ×4 | 4 | $28 |
| Cellular RP-SMA bulkheads | 4 | 4 | $7.20 |
| GNSS antenna | Taoglas AA.114 passive | 1 | $4 |
| 5G RF front-end filter | Qorvo QPQ1901 | 1 | $4 |
| Extra thermal capacity | larger heatsink on 5G modem | 1 | $3 |
| **5G subtotal** | | | **+$169** |
Platform total: Standard ~$371 + $169 = ~$540 FOB platform before modules.
Retail floor: $399 → margin is 26% (thinner than Standard). Acceptable because 5G modem is the value-add buyers are paying for.
Configurator deltas
Add to Standard's 16 axes:
17. 5G band config: Sub-6 only (default) / Sub-6 + mmWave daughterboard (+$180 retail) 18. Dual-SIM mode: single-SIM / active-active failover / carrier-split (primary for data + backup for voice) / travel-switch (auto-select best signal) 19. eSIM provisioning: disabled / WanderOS-managed (we handle carrier enrollment with your credentials) / open (configure yourself) 20. GNSS use: disabled / location-services-for-NTP-only / full location-based-policy (HAVEN safe-zone detection, etc.) 21. Travel eSIM tier: Basic (5 profiles, default) / Traveler (+$10, 10 profiles) / Global (+$25, 20 profiles via premium eUICC chip) 22. Travel provider integrations: none / Airalo API (+$0, default for Traveler+) / + Holafly (+$0 v1.1) / + Nomad + Saily + Flexiroam (+$0 v1.2)
Carrier compatibility
Key question: will US cellular carriers activate third-party 5G modems on their "home internet" plans?
- T-Mobile Home Internet: SIM is IMEI-locked to T-Mo's Inseego/Nokia gateway. Third-party 5G modems on a TMHI plan = blocked.
- T-Mobile 5G Away / Verizon Business / AT&T Business: regular mobile-data plans work with any 5G modem. Budget $55-75/mo.
- Verizon 5G Home: same IMEI-lock issue.
- Starry Internet: proprietary 28 GHz, not compatible with 3GPP 5G modem.
- T-Mobile / Verizon / AT&T prepaid: generally compatible with third-party modems (less policy enforcement).
- Google Fi: compatible with 5G modems for data plans.
- MVNOs (Mint, Visible, US Mobile, etc.): varies — document per-MVNO in product marketing.
Product positioning: "Works with any 5G SIM — bring your own plan." Document the IMEI-lock issue transparently so T-Mobile Home Internet customers know to switch to regular 5G data plan if they want to use our router.
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Example configurations
| Config | Axes | Retail |
|---|
| **Rural household** | Sub-6 single-SIM, 2GB RAM, 500GB NVMe, Std cover | **$399** |
| **Travel family** | Sub-6 dual-SIM travel-switch, Thread + Zigbee | **$489** |
| **HAVEN mobile** | Sub-6 + LoRa + UPS 3-hr + Solar + Pro cover | **$629** |
| **mmWave prosumer** | Sub-6 + mmWave + 2 TB NVMe + Lux walnut | **$769** |
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Compliance delta
All Standard cert regime PLUS:
- FCC Part 22/24/27 (cellular) — 5G modem carries modular cert; we inherit if antenna placement + host design stay within grant envelope
- PTCRB / GCF (carrier certification) — required for most US carrier networks to activate SIMs
- Band-specific certs — n71 (T-Mo 600), n41 (T-Mo 2.5), n77/n78 (C-band, Verizon/AT&T), n261 (mmWave)
Cert budget delta: +$15-25k for cellular-specific tests + carrier PTCRB/GCF submissions. Timeline +6 weeks per carrier.
Strategy: launch with T-Mobile + AT&T + Verizon + Google Fi support. MVNOs inherit from primary carriers automatically. Cert for Rogers/Bell/Telus (Canada) + EU/UK roaming adds per-region.
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Feature inventory delta
| Feature | Standard | Standard-5G |
|---|
| 5G NR Sub-6 primary WAN | — | ✅ |
| 5G mmWave | — | ✅ opt |
| Dual-SIM active-active | — | ✅ |
| eSIM | — | ✅ |
| Integrated GNSS | — | ✅ |
| Location-based VLAN policy | — | ✅ (via GNSS) |
| Carrier-agnostic SIM activation | — | ✅ (marketing claim — bring-your-own-plan) |
| Mobile-settings profile | — | ✅ (RV / travel / boat configurations) |
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Differentiators
- Own your 5G home-internet gateway instead of renting from T-Mobile/Verizon. Pays back in ~14 months at $50/mo gateway rental savings.
- Any-carrier SIM — carrier lock-in is broken
- Dual-SIM + up to 10-20 eSIMs — load country-specific Airalo/Holafly/Nomad/Saily eSIMs, auto-switch when you travel. See
../_ESIM-MULTI-CARRIER.md for full architecture. No other consumer router ships this range of carrier flexibility.
- Travel mode auto-switch via GPS — cross a border, router offers you a local eSIM
- Carrier-switch when you move — T-Mo to Verizon in <10 minutes, no hardware change
- Emergency "any available carrier" — cycles through all loaded profiles to find signal in crisis
- mmWave option — very few consumer 5G routers support mmWave; beats Inseego FG2000/FG4000
- Ambassador-assembled + repairable — nobody else in 5G home internet space
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Perplexity-validated decisions (2026-04-24)
- Modem selection: Telit FN990Axx chosen over Quectel RM520N-GL. Rationale: Telit publishes explicit AT&T, FirstNet, T-Mobile US, Verizon carrier certifications. Quectel RM520N-GL confirms T-Mobile + FCC/IC/GCF/PTCRB but doesn't explicitly list the other major US carriers. For a product where carrier-agnostic SIM activation is a marketing claim, Telit reduces risk. BOM cost delta ~$15/unit, acceptable.
- US carrier activation reality-check: even with carrier-certified modem, actual SIM activation can still be blocked by carrier IMEI database / device-class rules. Document to buyers: "FN990Axx is certified on major US carriers; activation success depends on carrier's policy for third-party modems. Bring-your-own prepaid or business-line SIM most reliable path."
- Biggest schedule risk: carrier activation integration (not raw modem availability) — start PTCRB + per-carrier device-class submissions at DVT.
- Biggest cost risk: cellular host cert — +$15-25k + 6 weeks per carrier. Phased approach: launch with T-Mo + Verizon + AT&T + Google Fi, add per-region afterward.
Open items (remaining)
- Telit FN990Axx 2026 distributor availability + lead time at 1k volumes — direct Telit FAE inquiry needed
- Simcom SIM8202G as tertiary fallback if Telit / Quectel both hit supply issues
- Carrier approval timelines — start PTCRB submissions at DVT stage (~9 months before ship)
- Data-plan bundling deal? — could WanderVerse partner with an MVNO (US Mobile, Visible) to ship pre-activated SIM with router? Revenue-share opportunity. Defer to launch-strategy decision.
- mmWave antennas — high-gain directional needed; different form factor than Sub-6 — chassis cutout planning
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Summary
Standard-5G is a variant SOP run, not a fresh one. ~60% of Standard's platform + BOM + config is inherited; the delta is cellular-specific. Ships alongside Standard in 2027-Q2 as a separate SKU with shared chassis + shared cert base.
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v1.1 AMENDMENTS — Dual-mode + Community Pool + Companion App (back-fix 2026-04-24)
Per ../_STANDALONE-AND-PLATFORM-INTEGRATION.md canonical principle (2026-04-24) and for feature parity with WanderBand v2.1 + WanderStore + WanderNode Hub v2, this spec now explicitly commits to dual-mode architecture + Community Pool integration + shipped companion apps. Most dual-mode posture is inherited from Router Standard parent spec; this section captures the 5G-specific deltas.
Standalone + industry-integration + WanderVerse-native mode (5G-specific)
Mode 1 — Standalone (5G delta):
- Works with just: Router Standard-5G + any phone (iOS or Android) + a SIM (bring-your-own nano-SIM OR eSIM profile downloaded from carrier)
- 5G-specific standalone features: integrated Telit FN990Axx Sub-6 5G modem, dual nano-SIM + multi-profile eUICC (5-10 eSIM profiles — Airalo / Holafly / Nomad / Saily / Flexiroam), integrated GNSS, optional mmWave (n258/n260/n261) daughterboard
- Setup delta: after standard QR pair, 5G config wizard walks user through SIM insertion, carrier selection, eSIM profile download, signal-strength test (all local, no WanderVerse cloud)
- No cellular data plan required to setup — user can configure on wired WAN first, activate cellular later
- All Mode 1 features from Router Standard parent spec apply
Mode 2 — Industry-integrated (5G delta):
- GSMA SGP.22 RSP compat: Router Standard-5G supports industry-standard eSIM Remote SIM Provisioning — any RSP-compatible carrier can push profiles (Airalo, Holafly, Nomad, Saily, Flexiroam, US Mobile, Visible, Google Fi, major carriers)
- Carrier certifications: AT&T + FirstNet + T-Mobile US + Verizon (via Telit FN990Axx explicit certifications) + Google Fi + US Mobile MVNO compat + PTCRB certified
- Apple / Google: cellular status exposed via HomeKit/Google Home as sensor entity (signal strength, carrier, data usage)
- Home Assistant: full cellular telemetry via MQTT (signal strength, RSRP/RSRQ/SINR, band, carrier, data usage per SIM, failover events)
- MVNO partnership opportunity: potential for pre-activated SIM bundle at launch (US Mobile / Visible revenue share, deferred to launch strategy)
- What we MATCH: Netgear Nighthawk M6 Pro's 5G performance, GL.iNet Puli AX's eSIM support, Cradlepoint's enterprise cellular multi-SIM
- What we BEAT: Netgear's cloud requirement for eSIM, Cradlepoint's enterprise-only positioning, T-Mobile Home Internet's locked carrier (our unit is carrier-agnostic)
- What we lag (honest): we do NOT ship a pre-activated SIM at launch (bring-your-own); we do NOT have T-Mobile/Verizon "Certified for Home Internet" marketing badges (buyer-education lift)
Mode 3 — WanderVerse-native (5G delta):
- WanderBand Pro/Ultra: band's cellular eSIM + Router Standard-5G's cellular eSIM can share multi-profile state (same Airalo profile on both for sub-60-second travel)
- WanderCar: Router Standard-5G can tether into Car's cellular backup as a redundant WAN path when home
- WanderStation (HAVEN): Router Standard-5G is preferred HAVEN safehouse gateway when wired broadband is unavailable — cellular + LoRa multi-path resilience
- WanderVault: scheduled cellular-aware backup (pause backup on metered cellular unless user approves)
- All Mode 3 features from Router Standard parent spec apply
Community Pool Integration
Per ~/Downloads/Claude/wandersafe/specs/WANDERVERSE-COMMUNITY-POOL-SPEC.md:
- Router Standard-5G hardware revenue feeds existing 60/30/10 Ambassador split:
- 60% Ambassador wages / 10% PrideFund / 30% WWP Community Pool (Layer 1 ops cap 65%; Layer 2 Ambassador-voted min 35%)
- Layer 2 categories (Ambassador-voted): Scholarships · Emergency Grants · HAVEN Expansion · New Ambassador Seeding · Open Community Grants · Program Reinvestment
- Governance: 1 Ambassador = 1 vote, Annual Assembly each January, 25% quorum, Board veto for 501(c)(3) legal/ethics only, 60% supermajority overrides
- 5G-specific buyer framing: a rural / HAVEN / mobile-living buyer replacing a $50/mo T-Mo Home Internet gateway has a clear dollar-math argument — "own outright + Community Pool contribution on every unit sold replaces rent + corporate profit"
- Secondary revenue: Standard-5G-specific accessories (cellular antennas, mmWave daughterboards, Lux covers, replacement modems, STL printables) flow through WanderStore tiered 10/15/25 model (
../wanderstore/_REVENUE-MODEL-FINAL.md); WanderStore platform take feeds the same Community Pool
- MVNO partnership revenue (if deal struck): revenue-share on pre-activated SIMs flows through same 60/30/10 model as hardware (Ambassadors who ship the bundle earn the 60%)
- Router Standard-5G is NOT a separate revenue silo — every sale routes through the democratic pool already designed April 2026
Companion App Spec (5G delta)
- Companion apps inherit entirely from Router Standard (iOS Swift + SwiftUI, Android Kotlin + Jetpack Compose, web PWA) — same codebase, per-SKU feature flag
- 5G-specific UI surfaces:
- Dual nano-SIM + eUICC profile management (view active profiles, download new eSIM via QR, switch primary/failover SIM, per-SIM data usage)
- Cellular signal strength + band indicator (RSRP, RSRQ, SINR, band number, MIMO stream count)
- GNSS status (GPS/GLONASS/Galileo fix quality, satellite count, accuracy)
- Multi-WAN failover visualization (wired + cellular + LoRa priority + current-active WAN)
- Per-carrier data-cap alerts
- eSIM marketplace deep-link (Airalo / Holafly / Nomad — user opens in their app, profile downloads back to Router)
- Engineering budget: 5G-specific UI adds ~$25-35k NRE on top of shared Router-family $200-300k budget; still amortized across 6-SKU family
- Accessibility: full Apple + Android accessibility API support inherited; cellular status readable via screen reader; VoiceOver/TalkBack compatible with all 5G-specific controls
- Languages: 10 at launch inherited from Router Standard