What are the differences between the CR8809 and Redmi AX3000? I picked up a custom Telecom version for 95 yuan. After flashing the reference firmware, I'll tell you the truth

started when my mom's family needed to add a Mesh sub-node. On Xianyu, I was scanning the 'Redmi AX3000,' and a bunch of ones in the ninety yuan were displayed, but the model numbers were listed as CR8809 and CR8808. Sellers uniformly say, "Exactly the same as the Redmi AX3000, carrier-customized version." At first, I wondered why the exact same price was half the price. So I bought a Telecom version for 95 yuan to tinker with, spent over a month flashing the reference firmware, and put all the things I figured out here.

clarify first: CR8806, CR8808, and CR8809 are the three disguises of the Redmi AX3000. When Redmi was making the AX3000

2022 they conveniently customized phones for each of the three major carriers, using centralized procurement channels and broadband as gifts: China Unicom called CR8806, China Mobile called CR8808, and China Telecom called CR8809. The combined shipment volume of these three brands is much higher than the retail version, so the second-hand market now has them everywhere.

the phrase "exactly the same" is seventy percent true. Opening it up, the motherboard setup is the same: Qualcomm IPQ5000 dual-core 1.0GHz CPU, a 1GHz NPU transformer, 256MB of RAM, 128MB of flash, 2.4G 574MB plus 5GB of 5G 2402MB, making up the AX3000 spec size, with all four network ports being gigabit. To put it plainly: the same machine, wearing three sets of telecom operators' uniforms.

so don't underestimate the last column in the table. On the CR8808's M79 motherboard, after flashing the reference firmware 2.4G, the transmission power is halved, while the M81 motherboard works fine—the same CR8808 has a different motherboard version, so after flashing, it results in two machines. I'll talk about this separately later.

difference is all in the firmware: the custom version doesn't have the same system as the retail version

so why is it half as cheap? The difference lies in the software. The custom version comes pre-installed with carrier-customized firmware and still follows Xiaomi's approach. The background interface is familiar, but the features have been nerfed a bit. I personally encountered three inconveniences.

first place was couldn't tie up the Mi family's . The custom firmware does not support binding Xiaomi accounts; the Mijia App's remote management, auto-signal cutoff upon arrival, and new device notifications are all completely shut down. The router is basically a nowhere to be found in Mijia. I previously wrote about five things Mijia App can do remotely, but the customized version can't do a single thing. The second is firmware is basically stopped . Retail firmware updates go through Xiaomi servers, custom versions use carrier channels. Carriers have no interest in updating firmware for machines from a few years ago. The version I got was only in 2023. The third is the homepage with the carrier's custom entry list, which is annoying to look at.

there's also a little awkward spot with the password. The retail version of the Redmi AX3000 has a sticker on the back showing the default WiFi password—just change it after powering on. Custom versions are sourced from carriers, and many machines have passwords set by installers on the spot. The first step when buying a used one is to reset and then reset it—don't count on stickers. The CR8806 is even more impressive—the back of the device doesn't have any default password, relying entirely on the previous owner's backup.

conversely, if you don't bother with the hassle, it's just a regular WiFi 6 router that "lacks an ecosystem," and internet access itself is fine. But spending 95 yuan on a Redmi AX3000 hardware only uses 70% of its power, which personally made me feel uncomfortable, so I went for the reference version.

my 95-yuan Telecom version, how did it look when I got it? First

let's show the condition: 95 yuan with free shipping, minor scratches on the body, universal power supply, all four antennas intact, and the telecom label on the sticker looks quite new. The first thing I did after booting up and entering the backend was to dig up the hardware information and verify: IPQ5000, 256MB, 128MB, matching the seller's description.

after flashing the reference firmware, it ran steadily for five weeks. Let's talk about the numbers. Gigabit broadband wired speed is around 930 Mbps, running across gigabit ports, IPQ5000 the NPU dry forwarding is truly smooth; 5G wireless sharing is 680 Mbps per meter, but dropping to about 450 Mbps after a brick wall is basically the same as my AX3000T used for two years. I have about forty devices at home, more than half of which are IoT devices like camera sockets. After running for a month, they use about 55% of the memory and have never been restarted. Heating is also standard. IPQ5000 this generation has low power consumption; in summer, the top only warms up, and even when I put in a weak current box, it never overheats.

Stability is a separate note. My mom's phone is used as a secondary node, during the 8 PM peak when the whole family watches video. The TV is 4K and doesn't spin, and my mom's tablet never complains about lag when watching shows; During the ten days I tested it as the main router, I ran one continuous ping of the gateway for twelve hours, with zero packet loss and a latency stable under 1 millisecond. This report card is nothing to challenge for a used machine priced at just over ninety-something yuan.

the main router is qualified, and I later put it in my mom's house as a Mesh sub-node. I'll explain why this arrangement is later.

want to use it comfortably, flash the standard firmware: one legitimate path and three pitfalls

The purpose of flashing the phone is just one: to switch to the retail version of the Redmi AX3000 with standard firmware. After flashing, you can link Mijia, enable Mesh networking, and restore official firmware updates, making the device truly "complete." I won't post step-by-step instructions for the process. Both Bilibili and Enshan have fed-level tutorials, so I'll talk about the framework and pitfalls to avoid anyone going empty-handed.

the main way is to avoid disassembling the device: first use Xiaomi's official repair tool, MIWIFIRepairTool, to downgrade the firmware to version 6.2.147 one version left a loophole, and later versions were plugged in—use this vulnerability to open Telnet, push the public firmware in, and reinitialize it. No need to disassemble or solder pins throughout the process—just one computer and one network cable. The old route of disassembling the device to connect TTL is basically unnecessary after 2024; beginners can simply ignore it.

three pitfalls are laid out in front. The first pitfall is the motherboard mentioned aboveM79 Before buying the CR8808, I asked the seller about the motherboard version. If the seller didn't know, they would ask me to take a photo of the motherboard. After flashing the M79, the 2.4G power was halved, and families with many 2.4G devices were basically disabled, so I ruled it out immediately. I haven't heard of this issue with the CR8809 so far. The second pitfall is the risk of bricking. Flashing without power or installing the wrong firmware version can cause bricking. I previously wrote a story about the CR6609 from the same brand, a flashing yellow light during flashing failures. Custom machines are more troublesome than retail versions, so you can keep that idea ahead. The third pitfall is that after flashing you have to reset the . You have to copy down your broadband account and WiFi name and password before you start. I mentioned this habit in firmware upgrade article. By the way, if you want to unlock SSH and play OpenWrt after using the reference version, the route is the same logic as I wrote about Xiaomi router SSH, but IPQ5000 OpenWrt requires you to find your own community compilation package, which isn't as convenient as AX3000T.