HINT Control vs DIRECTV TECH PROTECT
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
HINT Control
Manage your T-Mobile Home Internet gateway with advanced features. Control WiFi settings, view statistics, and more. This app is not affiliated with T-Mobile.
- Advanced statistics
- WiFi radio control
- SSID management
- Band steering
- Gateway access
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HINT Control is a cross-platform app for accessing and managing your T-Mobile Home Internet gateway, with some extra features compared to the official app. Features include advanced statistics, WiFi radio control, SSID management, and band steering, with more to come as more is discovered about the gateways. HINT Control currently supports the Arcadyan KVD21, the Arcadyan TMOG4AR, the Sagemcom Fast 5688W, the Sercomm TMOG4SE, and the Noka 5G21. The Askey LTE gateway is not supported at this time. This app is NOT affiliated with T-Mobile. HINT Control is open source and also available for other platforms. Check out the downloads and source code at https://github.com/zacharee/ArcadyanKVD21Control/.
DIRECTV TECH PROTECT
Manage your tech protection plan and access personalized tech support for your connected devices. Get help with repairs, replacements, and troubleshooting through articles, videos, and live chat with tech pros.
- Manage tech protection plans
- Access device-specific articles and videos
- File and track repair/replacement claims
- Get live tech support via call or chat
- Remote device connection for troubleshooting
- Support for various home electronics
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Having connected devices as part of your home tech life is great since it keeps things running smoothly. But keeping up with multiple connected devices can be complicated. That’s where the DIRECTV TECH PROTECT app comes in. It’s personalized tech support right at your fingertips and hassle-free repair and replacement protection. Manage your tech protection plan and benefits with the DIRECTV TECH PROTECT app. • Register your home office and entertainment devices to access thousands of device-specific articles and videos, how-to tips and tricks, and step-by-step quick fixes — all curated by our tech pros. • View protection plan details, including service fees, from one convenient spot. • File and track your claims easily and get immediate help. • Check the latest repair or replacement status on your device. • Get to the bottom of your tech challenges with help from live tech pros via call or chat. • Enjoy unlimited tech support for your home electronics and technology such as laptops, computers, smartphones, printers, routers, game consoles, smart TVs, wireless speakers, and smart thermostats. • Connect remotely and securely with a tech pro via smartphone screen or camera share to get quick fixes.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: HINT Control at 4.3 against DIRECTV TECH PROTECT's 3.2. HINT Control also leads on update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 3 months) and ratings volume (113 vs 12). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
HINT Control holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 3.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: HINT Control has 113 ratings behind it against 12, so its average is the more settled of the two.
HINT Control ships an update every 2 weeks, DIRECTV TECH PROTECT every 3 months. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.
| Parameter | HINT Control | DIRECTV TECH PROTECT |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.3 (113 ratings) — better | 3.2 (12 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 66.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 113 — better | 12 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks — better | Every 3 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 15.1 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 99 MB | 91 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Zachary Wander | Assurant, Incorporated |
Customer experience
HINT Control
DIRECTV TECH PROTECT
Bugs and requests
HINT Control
Reported bugs
18 issues- UI bug hides settings on SSID management page
- Cannot disable 5ghz wifi after warning
- Disabling 5ghz radio breaks gateway functionality
- Latest update crashes repeatedly
- Not compatible with newly released G5AR T-Mobile gateway
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- Invalid JSON error when trying to log in
- Latest update crashes over and over
- G4AR not showing LTE stats
- Cannot paste password or use password manager to login
- Keyboard will not reduce on login screen (iPhone 11 Pro)
- App doesn't work with VoiceOver
- Unauthorized Error at Login
- Doesn’t work - Unauthorized error
- Doesn’t work - unauthorized access error
- Changed channel, now cannot connect on other devices, requires factory reset
- Latest update breaks Sagemcom gateway, won't pass login screen
- Cannot pick channel 36 for 5ghz, always goes to channel 40
- No G4AR support
Requested features
14 requests- Add automatic reboot schedule (daily, weekly, monthly)
- Trigger reboot on connection loss
- Add Beacon Interval control
- Add more Transmit Power control (e.g., 8mW on 5GHz, 21mW on 2.4GHz)
- Advanced control with number input for transmit power
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- Restore transmit power slider
- Add temperature of gateway
- Allow users to name unknown devices
- Clarify named devices further
- Add port forwarding controls
- Add DMZ controls
- Support for G4AR gateway
- Adjust APN settings
- Web app version
DIRECTV TECH PROTECT
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
HINT Control
No in-app purchases
DIRECTV TECH PROTECT
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is HINT Control free?
Is DIRECTV TECH PROTECT free?
Which has better reviews, HINT Control or DIRECTV TECH PROTECT?
Do HINT Control or DIRECTV TECH PROTECT have ads?
Which is updated more often, HINT Control or DIRECTV TECH PROTECT?
Other comparisons
