It seems that GL.iNet has open source firmware for it, but for now OpenWrt doesn't have official support for MT3000, is it wise to buy it?
SoC in question: MT7981B
It isn't among the supported SoCs for AX devices https://openwrt.org/toh/views/toh_available_16128_ax-wifi
Might want to read Easiest/fastest way to get an OpenWrt Router: Gl.iNet
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Right, I read it, maybe MT1300 (SoC: MT7621A) is a better option for now
Given the negligible price difference, I'd get the AR-300 instead.
It is supported in the new release candidates for openwrt 23, if you want to check it out.
Couldn't find the MT3000 on the OpenWrt 23.05.0-rc2 - Second Release Candidate - 28 June 2023
Has someone here tried the release candidate for the gl-mt3000?
I'm about to pull the trigger but unsure if I will be happy with it.
Then you flash it back ?
I meant that I am about to buy it but still hesitate.
I have the GL-MT3000 (Beryl AX). I was initially using it with GL-iNet OEM firmware but that contains Mediatek proprietary wifi driver and I experienced some latency (bufferbloat) with it.
I flashed OpenWrt 23.05-SNAPSHOT and it has been wonderful using it with the open-source mt76 wifi driver. Latency wise I feel it is better than the ath11k driver+firmware used in my Dynalink DL-WRX36.
However I feel that GL-MT3000 (Beryl AX) (both GL-iNet OEM firmware and OpenWrt firmware) has a shorter wifi range compared to Dynalink DL-WRX36, which is expected since this is supposed to be a travel router.
I do like the ease of use of GL-iNet OEM firmware interface and the pre-installed packages and preset config. It is a little more work to setup the similar set of features in a vanilla OpenWrt system (packages are there in the repos but the config has to be setup manually).
If you haven't bought the GL-MT3000 (Beryl AX) yet and you need the wifi range of a proper full-sized router, I suggest waiting for the GL-MT6000 (Flint 2) which may launch any day now.
There's already a Pull Request in GitHub for GL-MT6000 https://github.com/openwrt/openwrt/pull/13414
I haven't tried the RC, but did run master snapshots in late August for a trip to Iceland. I had power issues specific to my configuration ( GL-MT3000 (MT7981) USB host reliability - #5 by fdm ) but once I solved the power supply issues, it was quite stable.
I saw some evidence of a possible memory leak, I haven't taken the time to track it down, partly because I'm back from my trip.
As others have mentioned, the range is quite poor compared to most other products. Usually wasn't a problem in Iceland, except in one place where I kept the router in the living room of our rental and it had problems reaching phones/tablets in my bedroom.