Cudy AP1300 Outdoor and OpenWRT

...OK kiddos, buckle up. Can the AP1300 run OpenWRT? Seems like it can.

Evaluation (See below links for a comparison)

• Cudy AP1300 Outdoor: https://techinfodepot.shoutwiki.com/wiki/Cudy_AP1300_Outdoor#Flashing_OpenWrt
  • CPU Info: https://techinfodepot.shoutwiki.com/wiki/MediaTek_MT7621
• Cudy WR1300 v3: https://techinfodepot.shoutwiki.com/wiki/Cudy_WR1300_v3 (v2 and v3 are the same, confirmed by the fact that Cudy's "Intermediary Firmware" is in the same file, WR1300+V2-V3.zip)
  • CPU Info: https://techinfodepot.shoutwiki.com/wiki/MediaTek_MT7621

Notice how the CPU link is the same for both? The AP1300 has an MT7621DAT and the WR1300 has the MT7621AT

What does ChatGPT have to say about this?

Here is a comparison table of the MediaTek MT7621AT and MT7621DAT SoCs based on all publicly documented differences and similarities;

Feature / Category		MT7621AT							MT7621DAT
CPU Architecture		MIPS 1004Kc Dual-Core @ 880 MHz		MIPS 1004Kc Dual-Core @ 880 MHz
CPU Cores				2									2
Process Node			28nm								28nm
Cache					32KB I-Cache  32KB D-Cache per core	Same
L2 Cache				256KB shared						Same
Memory Support			DDR2 / DDR3 up to 1GB				Same
PCIe Support			2× PCIe 2.0 (1×1 lane, 1×2 lanes)	Same
Switch					5-Port Gigabit Ethernet switch		Same
GMAC					2× RGMII Gigabit MACs				Same
USB					1× USB 3.0 Host, 1× USB 2.0 Host		Same
NAND/NOR Flash			NAND (via EBU) and NOR support		Same
SATA					Yes (1× SATA 2.0)					Same
Crypto Engine			Yes (IPSec, AES, 3DES, SHA)			Same
Hardware NAT			Yes									Yes
Target Devices			Consumer Routers, APs				OEM-Specific Variants (functionally same)
Difference				Mass-market, more common in retail	Same SoC, different labeling for OEM

Clarification;
MT7621DAT is a functionally identical variant of MT7621AT. The "D" in the part number is believed to represent a packaging, sourcing, or binning difference, and there are no architectural or functional changes between the two according to all known sources, including hardware dumps, OpenWRT device trees, and boot logs.

📚Source references;
MediaTek MT7621 SoC data sheets (partial, not public in full form)

OpenWRT wiki – MT7621 platform
Bootloader reports from various devices (GL.iNet, Mikrotik, etc.)
Community decompilation and board testing (e.g. boot logs from U-Boot showing SoC IDs)

Wow, in a rare lucid moment for ChatGPT creates what seems to be something that passes for factual and accurate. Double checking it manually confirms it.

Where's the Firmware?

Nope (seems like it should be though): https://mirror-03.infra.openwrt.org/releases/24.10.0/targets/mediatek/

Yup (of course, it's obvious): https://mirror-03.infra.openwrt.org/releases/24.10.0/targets/ramips/ (mt7621 Directory)

Historical Note: RAMIPS = Ralink, which was the name of the entity before MediaTek bought it.

Wait! What about the "Intermediary Firmware" that Cudy makes?

The WR1300 V2 & V3 Firmware should work, right?

Cudy AP1300 Firmware Upgrade Attempt with WR1300 v2 and v3 Intermediary Firmware FAILURE