Hello,
I should probably start by apologising for posting - I don't really do this sort of thing on forums - I usually lurk, find out the answer I need and then wander off without any comment.
I've spent some time frustrating myself over some issues I've experienced with Plusnet and I wanted to share my experiences (I'm not presuming to offer any advice here or worse; anything that starts with IMHO).
I'll start about 4 years ago where I kept experiencing poor broadband speed, that got resolved by replacing the router though an underlying fault was never really found - I guess as the new router solved the problem it was a router problem.
Then about 2 years ago I was getting a lot of dropped WiFi signal and speed issues (probably by the signal issues) which was frustrating and I tried the usual fixes mentioned elsewhere on these forums and direct from the Plusnet support team. It sort of fixed it and I lived with the residual annoyance. Too much other stuff going on in life that trying to fix this problem was more pain than the pain it was causing.
However, over the past two years I've increased the amount of Smart Devices in my home - plugs and 3 Alexa devices. Last week I'd had enough of dropped connection or hanging on phones and cut outs from time to time on alexa and did some research.
It was clear from what I'd read and the testing I had done at home and the changes that were being suggested on the these forums that there was a very very good chance that the One Hub just wasn't up to to the job I was asking of it. I'd done enough speed testing to be happy it was not a "to the socket" problem - it was inside my house, not outside. I concluded that I needed a better WiFi quality of service.
I did my research on the web and a bit on here and bought myself a new ADSL/VDSL modem WiFi router - a TP-Link AC1600 (Archer VR600 v2). It was about £85 from Amazon. I installed it last night and it was very straightforward thanks to the set-up wizard. The advanced settings are very advanced so I kept clear of those, and made sure that any other changes I made I fully checked so I knew which one to roll back if anything stopped working. I had considered getting a WiFi router and keeping Plusnet hub as the modem but decided I didn't need the device clutter. I am very, very pleased with it so far - I even see an improved response on website browsing on my phone! I did however spend about 2 hours reconfiguring every smart device in my house.........but I was able to do much of that on my phone with a glass of wine nearby. The only draw back I can see is that it keeps the 2.4GHz and 5GHz networks separate so depending how old some devices are I need to change networks on my phone to use them - ChromeCast being the obvious one. However as I've named the 2.4GHz "Galactica" and the 5GHz "Base Star" I can amuse myself, even if briefly and in a rather sad way, by "jumping".
I then thought about what I had just spent in terms of my monthly Plusnet spend (I've about 12 months left on my current contract). I've just done the equivalent of adding another ~£7 a month for the next 12 months to my Plusnet bill - to make their technology work (well, delivering their fibre service from out of the socket on the wall) for my needs. That is actually a lot of money. Some people will not be able to afford that.
I'll say now all my experiences with Plusnet staff have been superb.
But here's the crux - are you listening Plusnet?
Delivering fast connection speeds to the wall socket in a house is one thing - but as is being shown on these forums (especially now with people homeworking due to COVID) delivery high Quality of Service to the devices inside that home is another. The One Hub router is a problem for some people and the only serious solution seems to be to buy one's own.
I keep seeing/hearing adverts where the narrative from broadband providers is changing from fast speed to quality of service messages. Is the Plusnet One Hub up to the job of keeping the competition at bay and your customers ever increasing demands on it?
I'll repeat and expand - all my experiences with Plusnet staff have been superb - but are they being hamstrung by poor quality of service of the router?
I hope that there may be something useful in this post. If there isn't I hope at least my prose style has been worth it. 😉
[Notes:
I've used router, hub, One Hub, Hub one interchangeably because I can't be bothered to google the right name for the white thing with the annoying blue light that Plusnet send out in the post.
The way I have amortised the new router over the remaining months of my plusnet contract isn't really valid - as I would not expect to change the new router for many years but it does serve as a useful financial scenario.
I might not mean "amortise" - I'm a simple chemist not an accountant.]
