Terrible Wi-fi

[#1]

I’m having real issues with my router and Wi-fi stability.
I’m getting disconnections on various devices, amazon echos, google home and phones.
It seems to be hardware /firmware related.
Broadband connection is stable with good up and down speeds. No issues via Ethernet.

Troubleshooting carried out
- reset (power cycled) multiple times
- split 2.4 & 5ghz
- turned off 5ghz network
- combined 2.4. & 5ghz
- optimised channel selection with Wi-fi analyser
- Factory reset router

Software version 4.7.5.1.83.8.263


Still the same issues persist..
The problems seems to have been getting worse over the past few months. iPhones are all but useless on Wi-fi, have to fallback to 4G.

Please help!

[#2]

If it's PN's router, it's known for poor wifi. Grab an Openreach one on E Bay; can be configured
to work with PN.

[#3]

Thanks. To be fair the router hasn’t been too bad until recently.
Reading these posts I suspect it’s the firmware that was pushed at the end of March.

I’m loathe to buy replacement hardware. We just browse and stream so I’m not looking for tip end performance for gaming and alike.

[#4]

Hi @Bareskillz, I'm sorry for the issues that you are having with your WiFi. Could you please answer the following questions so we can pass this on to our products team to help them with their investigations:

1. Exactly how does the problem masquerade itself, what are the symptoms?
 

2. When did the problem start?
 

3. What firmware version are you running and when was it last updated?
 

4. What devices do you have on their network and how are they connected, eg. wired or wireless?
 

5. How is your network configured i.e. any Powerline adapters, additional switches, attached storage or or wi-fi access points in use?
 

6. What devices does the problem affect and what software/firmware versions are they running (if known). This will help us try and replicate the issue in a lab environment.
 

7. Are the 2.4GHz/5GHz radios separated or merged (they're merged by default). If separated, which radio is affected (or is it both)?
 

8. Has you tried factory resetting?
 

9. Would you be willing to downgrade firmware if we need to in order to help diagnose the issue. Bear in mind this will wipe all of the settings back to factory defaults, and we may need to upgrade/downgrade a second time to further prove that it's the firmware that's the cause of the issue.

10. Would you be willing to facilitate a home visit so that hardware engineers can carry out further diagnosis of the problem? (note that any visit would be to capture further wi-fi diagnostics, and not to necessarily 'fix' anything).

[#5]

Moderator's Note(s)

Thread moved from Fibre Broadband to My Router.

[#6]

@Bareskillz 

A Smarthub 6 can be bought for around £20 on Ebay. It's your choice whether you think avoiding a load of hassle is worth it.

[#7]

 
1. Exactly how does the problem masquerade itself, what are the symptoms?
- [ ] Unstable wifi connections
- [ ] Devices disconnecting
- [ ] Slow loading we content
 
2. When did the problem start?

Not certain. Quite a few weeks, it has gotten progressively worse
 
3. What firmware version are you running and when was it last updated?

Software version 4.7.5.1.83.8.263 Last updated 27/03/19

 
4. What devices do you have on their network and how are they connected, eg. wired or wireless?

Mix or wired and wires less. iPhones, Amazon echoes, google home
 
5. How is your network configured i.e. any Powerline adapters, additional switches, attached storage or or wi-fi access points in use?

None
 
6. What devices does the problem affect and what software/firmware versions are they running (if known). This will help us try and replicate the issue in a lab environment.

iPhones, amazon echo and google home all current system software versions
 
7. Are the 2.4GHz/5GHz radios separated or merged (they're merged by default). If separated, which radio is affected (or is it both)?

Currently separated.  
Have tried all configurations.


8. Has you tried factory resetting?

Yes. Same issue recurring
 
9. Would you be willing to downgrade firmware if we need to in order to help diagnose the issue. Bear in mind this will wipe all of the settings back to factory defaults, and we may need to upgrade/downgrade a second time to further prove that it's the firmware that's the cause of the issue.

Yes
 
10. Would you be willing to facilitate a home visit so that hardware engineers can carry out further diagnosis of the problem? (note that any visit would be to capture further wi-fi diagnostics, and not to necessarily 'fix' anything).

Yes If absolutely necessary

[#8]

Hello @Bareskillz,

Thank you for getting back to us with the requested details, I really appreciate it. We have passed the details on to our products team to help with there investigation and really appreciate your assistance. 

[#9]

Thank you. Are you able to advise when I might hear back.

I’m certainly interested to see if a rollback of the firmware will resolve this issue. I accept that the router will reset to default and note that this is fine should your team wish to do this

[#10]

Thanks for getting back to us @Bareskillz 

I can see we've added this to the ongoing investigation however I'm afraid I can't guarantee a timeframe when this will be resolved or if you'll definitely be contacted with regards to this.

Having said that if you're still having issues with the 5GHz frequency switched off then you don't appear to be affected by the same issues we're investigating. As far as I'm aware people find the issue fixed by not using 5GHz.

Given the age of your router it may be worth trying another one, if you're wanting a replacement from us I'd recommend calling our customer options team on 0800 013 2632 to discuss this as we may need to recontract you to send one out for free.