Extending Wi Fi Range WIRELESSLY

[#1]

Thanks for that and you're right - I found some on Gumtree for under £20.

So I'm guessing they have a much better range than a Plusnet Hub1 router and will work on PLusnet Broadband.

OK - I'm going down that route and when the BT Smarthub 6 comes I'll look at your guide again but if I have trouble setting it up I'll get back to you if that's OK.

[#2]

@mmacmillan55 

They have a better range and are more stable than the Hub One, which underneath the garish case is an old BT Home Hub 5A with tweeked firmware.

Don't hesitate to come back if you have problems setting it up.

[#3]

OK got the router this morning so as per your guide.

Step 1 - Done

Step2 - I'm trying to connect wirelessly as my laptop doesn't have an ethernet port.

When you say:

"Alternatively connect wirelessly by connecting wirelessly using the wireless SSID and Password found on the pull out panel on the rear of the router."

I'm not sure what you mean by that. I have the Hub SSID and password but how do you connect wirelessly with them at this stage?

I would have thought by doing the next step to get to the homepage but when I do  type in 192.168.1.254 in the address bar I get No Internet.

Can you help?

[#4]

@mmacmillan55 

First switch off your Plusnet hub so that it doesn’t confuse things.

Connect the hub to the mains, no other connections should be made.

Reset the Smarthub.

Find the Smarthub SSID in your Laptop available wireless networks, select this and enter the password.

Open your browser and enter 192.168.1.254 in the address field, not the search box if your browser has one. This should give you the Smarthub Home page. If it throws up a diagnostic page make sure that it hasn’t opened up an extra browser page, if so select the other.

You will not get any Internet at this stage, you must not plug the DSL cable in and connect to the Internet until AFTER you have input your Plusnet credentials.

Come back if this does not work.

[#5]

Thanks Baldrick1 - got it done now.

I'm one for following instructions to the letter so step 10 didn't work for me at first.

After connecting with the DSL cable and then going back to Advanced settings, as there was no save prompt, resulted in the username and password being lost. I then tried selecting connect at the top of the Broadband page where I had just entered the username and password and it connected so I got there in the end.

Many thanks to Chilternphil who was first to reply to my problem but a special thanks to Baldrick1 who with patience and expert guidance has managed to get me connected.

Kind Regards.

mmacmillan55

[#6]

Hi mmacmillan55

So the question is, now that you have upgraded your router do you actually find it any better than your older Hub One?

I live in a large modern detached house with excellent insulation throughout. I can't get wi-fi in some rooms (or it is extremely weak and unreliable). I already have 3 PCs connected to my ethernet ports and a TP-link mains extender for my CCTV system in the 4th ethernet port. So I have limited options.

From my furthest room I can see several of my neighbour's networks and not my own!.

I am more than happy to buy a BT Hub 6 if it will extend my wi-fi range but would like to know first if you have a real improvement.

Thanks, Mike

[#7]

Hi Mike

Your situation seems a bit more extreme than mine. I could always get wi-fi in my downstairs living room after the router was moved to an upstairs bedroom at the opposite end of the house, it was just that the tv was on the edge of the wi-fi range. Using a laptop or a phone was no problem, it was streaming tv that was the problem. I was regularly getting buffering and poor picture quality which spoiled my viewing. Now that I'm using the BT SmartHub I haven't had any of that but I only got the router on Friday morning, £3 on Gumtree would you believe. OK I had to pay £3.50 postage but who's complaining.

Friday and Saturday night's viewing was undisturbed.

I am getting a slightly better download speed now when doing a speed test but it's not a dramatic increase. I was getting good download speeds anyway so there wasn't much room for improvement but it was range that was the problem. I use an app on my phone to measure wi-fi strength and it's about 10% stronger now at the tv.

So to answer your question - yes the BT SmartHub is certainly better than the Hub One and the improvement it provides has so far solved my problem. Whether it would do the same for you I honestly don't know. Your house is, by your description, obviously larger and grander than mine and the fact that you can't even get wi-fi in some rooms may still be a problem.

I looked at the advice provided by Baldrick1 regarding powerline adapters and range extenders as well as upgrading the router and you should certainly look at that but I decided on the BT SmartHub.

Sorry that I can't be of any more help than that.

Regards - mmacmillan55.

[#8]

@mikeshaw 

The first choice always has to be Ethernet cable. Secondly try your TP Link extender in the furthest room. If it's not wireless then just try it with a computer in this room. If this works you can buy an add on wireless version of these devices. This can be added to your network, the master unit connected to your router will happily communicate with both so you need nothing more at the router end.

If you do the job properly and install Ethernet cabling you can get an Ethernet switch to expand the number of router LAN ports for very little money https://www.amazon.co.uk/TP-Link-LS1005G-Wallmount-Ethernet-Splitter/dp/B07VWB347G/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?d...

[#9]

Hi Baldrick, an interesting point you raised. I happened to be wondering the same myself. I assumed that these mains powerline extenders came in pairs with some sort of matching codes. But I read that someone had 5, and 4 all talked successfully to the one connected to the router. Do you know if it is incorrect and they do not have internal matching pairing codes, and instead any number can be added in different rooms and they will all "talk" to the extender connected to the router. That could be my best option if I can't guarantee a replacement router that has a stronger wireless signal than the PlusnetHub One.

[#10]

@mikeshaw 

They are added by going into the settings and pairing them, you will find how to do this in the manual. However read this before investing in one  https://community.plus.net/t5/Tech-Help-Software-Hardware-etc/Powerline-Unit-Performance/m-p/1607450....

Your only guaranteed solution is to install an Ethernet cable.