SIM7600G-H 4G HAT (B) Setup Guide
What You'll Achieve
By the end of this guide, your Raspberry Pi will have a reliable 4G LTE connection through the SIM7600G HAT, providing high-speed internet for professional drone streaming applications.
💡 Why SIM7600G-H HAT?
- Professional grade - Industrial quality modem with global coverage
- HAT form factor - Direct connection to Raspberry Pi GPIO
- High performance - Up to 150Mbps download speeds
- Reliable connection - Better signal reception with external antennas
LED Status Indicators:
- Blinking LED: Modem is working properly
- Solid LED: Issue with modem - check configuration
Safety Notice
The Pi 4 can get hot during operation. Ensure proper cooling and ventilation. Never hot-plug the HAT while the Pi is powered on.
📋 Before You Start
Make sure you have everything ready:
- SIM7600G-H 4G HAT (B) - The modem board with antennas
- Raspberry Pi 4 or Zero 2W - With Raspbian OS installed
- 16GB+ microSD card - Class 10 or better for performance
- Cooling solution - Active cooling case or heatsink with fan
- SIM card - With active data plan and APN information
- USB cable - To connect HAT to Pi via USB
🗺️ Setup Overview
Step 1
Hardware Setup
5 minutes
Steps 2-4
Modem Configuration
15 minutes
Steps 5-6
Network Setup
10 minutes
Hardware Connection
💡 Important: Always power off your Raspberry Pi before connecting the HAT to avoid damage.
Follow the connection diagram below to properly connect your SIM7600G-H 4G HAT to your Raspberry Pi:
Step-by-Step Configuration
Follow these steps in order to configure your SIM7600G-H modem for USB network mode.
Connect Modem
🕒 Time: 2 minutes
Why: We need to establish USB communication with the modem to send configuration commands.
Connect the modem to your Raspberry Pi using the USB cable. Then check if it's detected:
✓ Success: You should see /dev/ttyUSB2 (or similar) in the output
Install Minicom
🕒 Time: 3 minutes
Why: Minicom is a terminal program that lets us send AT commands to configure the modem.
✓ Success: Installation completes without errors
Basic Modem Checks
🕒 Time: 5 minutes
Why: We need to verify the modem is working and has good signal before proceeding.
Open minicom to send AT commands:
Tip: Press Ctrl+A then X to exit minicom when done
1. Check if modem is responding:
✓ Expected: OK
If no response, check USB connection
2. Check SIM card status:
✓ Expected: +CPIN: READY
If it shows "SIM PIN", your SIM has a PIN lock
3. Check signal strength:
Understanding the response:
- 0-9: 🔴 Poor signal (may not work)
- 10-14: 🟡 Fair signal
- 15-19: 🟢 Good signal
- 20-31: 🟢 Excellent signal
You need at least 10 for reliable connection
Configure APN
🕒 Time: 2 minutes
Why: The APN (Access Point Name) tells the modem how to connect to your carrier's data network.
Set the APN (most carriers use "internet"):
Note about APNs:
Most carriers worldwide use "internet" as the default APN. If this doesn't work, check with your carrier.
View carrier-specific APNs (if "internet" doesn't work)
- AT&T: "broadband"
- T-Mobile US: "fast.t-mobile.com"
- Verizon: "vzwinternet"
- Google Fi: "h2g2"
✓ Success: Response should be "OK"
Configure USB Mode
🕒 Time: 3 minutes
Why: This switches the modem from serial mode to RNDIS (network adapter) mode for internet access.
Send this command and the modem will restart automatically:
The modem will disconnect from minicom and restart in network mode
✓ Success: Modem restarts and minicom disconnects
Network Setup
🕒 Time: 5 minutes
Why: After switching to network mode, we need to configure the network interface.
Wait 30 seconds for the modem to restart, then check for the new network interface:
Look for "usb0" in the output
Get an IP address from the modem:
This may take 10-20 seconds
✓ Success: You'll see "bound to" followed by an IP address
Test your internet connection:
✓ Success: You should see replies from google.com
🎉 Setup Complete!
Your SIM7600G-H modem is now configured and providing internet to your Raspberry Pi. The connection will automatically restart when you reboot.
Next steps: You can now proceed with installing AirCast software.
Troubleshooting
LED Status Issues
- •Solid LED indicates configuration problem
- •Check power supply and connections
- •Verify AT commands were successful
Modem Not Detected
- •Check USB connections
- •Verify power supply is adequate
- •Ensure kernel modules are loaded
No Network Connection
- •Verify SIM card is properly inserted
- •Check signal strength (AT+CSQ)
- •Confirm APN settings are correct
- •Try power cycling the modem
Poor Performance
- •Check antenna connection
- •Verify signal strength
- •Monitor temperature for thermal throttling
- •Test in different physical locations
Support Resources
On This Page