Wifi basically ceased working

[#1]

Hi,

This is my first time posting at this forum. I know others have posted similar or related issues, but I have struggled to find a thread where my issue is addressed directly, so I decided to post it and see how it went. To be honest. I've done everything I knew and I could to sort this out, but I'm not a techie at all.

Since I joined Plusnet on March I have had issues with the connection. We have a small flat and own 2 laptops, an Echo Dot and 2 mobile. I work with my laptop, which requires being able to attend videocalls, download emails, the usual. Other than that, we watch some streaming services and have a quite basic usage. I started with the basic package and out of goodwill, upgraded to the next level to see if that would sort out the issue. It didn't.

I have no idea why the wifi has never worked as it should. When I call the tech support, I get told everything is in order systematically. But the quality of the wifi has consistently degraded to the point where it's down most of the time, or where it struggles to even open simple websites. Having a call with family and friends is annoying, and I have to use 3G/4G to work, as the constant disconnects, poor image and sound quality and drop outs make it impossible.

It should be noted we own 2 Apple computers, which means none of our devices have ethernet sockets. And to be honest, the router is in the hall by the flat's door, 3-4mts from where I sit to work. So I don't understand how there is a constant poor connectivity level.

I've tried the channel switching, splitting the networks (2.4 and 5Gh and all that), resetting, factory resetting. I don't know what else to do, and was about to switch to a different provider, even if I have to pay for the penalty. My fear is having the same issue with a new provider, but I've read some people have bought their own routers to sort the poor quality of plusnet's devices. Any help will be greatly appreciated!

[#2]

Hi, the Plusnet supplied hub one is pretty dire compared to others. You can buy a BT homehub 6 off eBay pretty cheaply. A lot of folks here have used them , the wireless range is a lot better the the Plusnet router .
There are several posts on here telling you how to configure the hub 6 to work on Plusnet.

[#3]

Seems like your laptop is pretty much touching the router, which should deal with issues with the wifi range etc.

How reliable is your connection to the hub's admin pages etc (typically 192.168.1.1 in your web browser). If you can get to that with no problems then it's unlikely to be your wifi connection that's dropping in and out.

Have just tried to find the mac commands for ping and it looks like you just need to open a terminal and type ping 192.168.1.1 and it will continually check connectivity to the router until you stop it. If that's solid then it's more likely to be your connection from the router to the outside world that's slow. If that's timing out on a regular basis then it may be the source of your problem.

[#4]

Thanks Shep41, I will look into those posts and get a new router!

[#5]

Hi mbround,

Thanks for your reply! I can easily connect to the hub's admin page right now, but when the connection is failing it takes quite soe time to load. I tried pinging as you indicated, and after 3 attempts it fails. I do not know what that means though!

[#6]

To rule out it being Wireless, can you try a wired connection and see if that performs any better.

That will tell you whether it is your connection or not.

EDIT: Just read that will be difficult for yourself, but worth trying if you can do so.