topic Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA) in Broadband & Landline

EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

Jez54 — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 11:47:52 GMT

EE Smart Hub SH20A / Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA / Serial number: +112133+194200****R

I was just sent this hub by EE. This is what it says on the nameplate on the bottom of the hub. Apologies for substituting **** in the serial number, for security reasons.

Can anyone please tell me if this is the latest version of the EE Smart Hub, or perhaps an earlier version? The 2020 version? I was not expecting it to be a Smart Hub Plus, but I was expecting it to be the latest version of the Smart Hub.

I've seen other posts on here talk about SH(2023) as being the latest version of this hub. Please can someone tell me what it actually says on the nameplate of the SH(2023) for its Model Name, Product No. and Serial number? Thank you.

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

XRaySpeX — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 12:02:17 GMT

That's the Smart Hub (2023), an early, 1st version. It has 1 Gig WAN & LANs and WiFi5. It has a DSL modem. It is EE's badge-engineered version of the BT Smart Hub 2.

It has been superseded by 2 or even 3 versions of the Smart Hub Plus with 2.5 Gig WAN & 1 Gig LANs and WiFi6. They have a DSL modem except the latest of these.

Even more recently there is the Smart Hub Pro with 2.5 Gig WAN & LANs and WiFi7. It has no DSL modem.

Which EE BB plan are you on including its speed?

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

Jez54 — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 12:00:18 GMT

And then, when I connect to this "new" EE Smart Hub SH20A using 192.168.1 254 it just says "Hub Manager" at the top right of the screen, and not "EE Smart Hub Manager", which I've seen other posts refer to on here? In every respect this hub manager screen and its menu system is identical to my "old" BT Smart Hub 2, including the total inability of either the BT Smart Hub 2 or the EE Smart Hub SH20A to run a Broadband Test / Speed Test, either from the EE app or from the 192.168.1.254 hub manager screen.

The ability to run speed tests from the hub manager or the EE app was the main reason for insisting that EE provide me with a new EE router after switching from my previous BT contract, as I've only been getting under 50 Mb/s (using Ookla, from my phone or laptop) rather than the 150 Mb/s that I'm (supposedly) now paying for.

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

Jez54 — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 12:06:51 GMT

Thanks, XRaySpeX

I wasn't expecting a Smart Hub Plus (any version) because I don't need or want to pay for a 300 Mb/s contract (or more). As two elderly pensioners, who have extremely low online needs (streaming TV on an Amazon Firestick is the most strenuous activity!!) it was more important to downgrade my price from £32 for BT's 50 Mb/s offering to £29.99 for EE's 150 Mb/s offering during their Black Friday Sale!! Very very sad, I know, but that's just what happens when Rachel Reeves takes away your Winter Fuel Allowance!!

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

XRaySpeX — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 12:10:45 GMT

Is that on Full Fibre (FTTP) or DSL (FTTC)?

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

Jez54 — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 12:30:48 GMT

I'm on Full Fibre to the Property. The people we bought the house from in 2021 said it was installed in our village much earlier than other villages or towns around here (we live in the Scottish Southern Uplands) as a freebie community benefit (a.k.a. "bribe") a few years ago by the windfarm developers. So the hub says it will do 1000 Mb/s WAN & LAN, which I believe is correct.

When I do a speed test from the EE app, I get a red triangle / exclamation mark symbol saying "Speed test didn't work. Our fault. Try again or come back later when we've fixed things". Needless to say, no matter how many times I try again, or come back later, it still doesn't work.

And when I go to the hub manager on 192.168.1.254 and click the "Broadband performance test" button on the home page, then "Test my speed" on the next page, I get sent to a BT webpage headed "Fix a problem with broadband and Wi-Fi". On that BT webpage, when I click "Test your broadband" I get taken first to the MyBT login page, where if I put in my BT login credentials (or EE credentials, as I've kept then the same) I then get a webpage with URL bt.com/exp/engineer-booking which says "Sorry, we ran into trouble checking your service" please text us for help or call us on 0800 800 150. Clicking the "text us" link takes me to a webpage with URL bt.com/exp/engineer-booking/text-us which says "Text HELP followed by your landline number to 61998". And of course, since joining EE, I don't have a landline any longer, so that doesn't work!!

I'm just trying to learn from wiser people than myself what options I may have, before I give EE a call.

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

JimM11 — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 13:06:23 GMT

@Jez54 The EE router you have been sent is the replacement and equivalent to the BT Smarthub2 if that is what you had from BT, it will do the job you need. Link below will let you look at and compare if you click on it.

https://ee.co.uk/help/broadband/getting-started/compare-our-range-of-broadband-hubs

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

Jez54 — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 13:08:38 GMT

Sorry, I thought I had replied, but what I wrote appears to have been mislaid or taken down. I'll try again.

I have Full Fibre To The Property. The hub says 1000 Mb/s LAN / WAN which I believe to be correct. The gigabit FTTP was installed to our village very early as a freebie community benefit (aka bribe) by the nearby windfarm developers, many years before the rollout of FTTP to other not-so-lucky rural villages here in the Scottish Southern Uplands, many of whom are still waiting.

When I try to do a speed test from the EE app, I get a red triangle with exclamation mark symbol, saying "Speed test didn't work. Our fault. Try again or come back later when we've fixed things". No matter how many times I try again or come back later, I get the same failure.

When I access the hub on 192.168.1.254 and click the "Broadband performance test" button on the home page, then the "Test my speed" button on the next page, I get taken to BT webpage (URL https://www.bt.com/help/broadband/fix-a-problem/broadband-and-wi-fi ) where I click the link "Test your broadband". The next BT webpage is the standard MyBT login page, and after entering my BT credentials (or EE credentials, as I've kept them the same) I get taken to a webpage (URL https://www.bt.com/exp/engineer-booking ) saying "Sorry, we ran into trouble checking your service. Please text us for help or call us on 0800 800 150". Clicking the "text us" link brings up (URL https://www.bt.com/exp/engineer-booking/text-us ) saying "Text Help followed by your landline number to 61998". But of course, in the process of switching to EE for the cheapest possible service, I no longer have a landline! The perils of being such a cheapskate!!!

I'm trying to find out as much as possible before a callback from EE on Monday morning, when the person who arranged to send me the EE Smart Hub will be calling back to find out how I've got on with getting the new hub set up.

While I was bullying EE into sending me "their" hub (because I could not get my old BT Smart Hub 2 to connect to the EE app) I was blissfully unaware that the EE and BT hubs were exactly the same under the skin. I've only discovered that since coming on here to try to find out why I'm still unable to do a speedtest, despite now having an EE branded hub to go with the EE app!

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

Jez54 — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 13:17:49 GMT

I don't know what is happening here. I've now replied to your question twice, XRaySpeX, but both those messages have disappeared, been censored or been taken down. I'll write less, and see if it gets through.

It is FTTP, with 1000 Mb/s WAN & LAN.

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

JimM11 — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 13:23:44 GMT

@Jez54 You said previous "£32 for BT's 50 Mb/s offering to £29.99 for EE's 150 Mb/s offering during their Black Friday Sale!!" So were is the post now FTTP is ok if that is what you mean, 1Gb/s is the line speed that is possible or even faster, but have you settled on the FF 150 package and being upgrade to it shortly by EE?

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

Jez54 — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 13:25:44 GMT

Thanks, JimN11, until I came on here looking for answers to why I'm still having trouble getting a speed test, either from my "new" EE hub or from the EE app, I had no idea that the BT Smart Hub 2 and the EE Smart Hub S20A were the same. But it figure I guess.

I changed from BT's 50 Mb/s to EE's 150 Mb/s not because I wanted the extra speed but because it was a little cheaper. But I've not been able to see the 150 Mb/s speed at all using Ookla from my phone or laptop. EE say their app lets you test from the hub, rather than over the LAN wifi, so I installed the EE app, but couldnt get it to connect to my BT Smart Hub 2. So I contacted EE and bullied them into sending me an EE branded hub that would communicate with the EE app. That was hard work, because they didn't want to send me a hub, saying I needed to upgrade to 300 Mb/s to get a new hub (I now realise they meant a Smart Hub Plus). But eventually they agreed and send me this Smart Hub SH20A. Which does connect to the app, but which still refuses to do a speed test either through the app or using the Broadband test button when I connect using 192.168.1.254

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

JimM11 — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 13:39:52 GMT

@Jez54 To start with the EE app will more than likely have an issue, the MyBT app that you used will still be the method to connect to that router, The speed test just use fast.com little bit awkward to work out, but first reading you see may indicate the speed to the router, as you have older tech it just does not work like you think. Have you been upgraded to a FF system to your home?

Cannot say about the (2003) router but on the EE + the web interface speed test DOES NOT work, for sure....

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

Jez54 — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 13:35:30 GMT

When I try to do a speed test using the app, I get a red triangle with exclamation mark symbol, saying "Speed test didn't work. Our fault. Try again or come back later when we've fixed things". No matter how many times I try again, or come back later, it still refuses to do a speed test.

When I try using the hub on 192.168.1.254 and click the "Broadband performance test" button, then the "Test my speed" button on the next page, I get taken first to a BT webpage "Fix a problem with broadband and Wi-Fi". When I click the "Test your broadband" button first I get the usual MyBT login page, then a BT page "Sorry we ran into trouble checking your service". The "text us" link on that page suggested "Text Help followed by your landline number to 61998" but of course since switching to EE, I no longer have a landline!!

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

Jez54 — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 13:42:15 GMT

What I'm trying to do is to establish whether the 50 Mb/s maximum that Ookla is still telling me, since upgrading to EE's 150 Mb/s service, is because I'm using the Ookla app on my phone or my laptop across the LAN wi-fi, or whether I'm not getting the contracted 150 Mb/s to the hub. Hence wanting to run a speed test either direct from the hub itself, or via the EE app (which claims it provides test results both across the LAN and direct from the hub on the WAN).

I'm trying to gather information prior to the call back from EE scheduled for Monday morning, when the person who eventually agreed to send me the hub said she would call back to make sure everything is now OK. Which it isn't, so far.

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

JimM11 — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 13:49:30 GMT

@Jez54 We are going round in circles here, Has OR been to your property and upgraded the old copper line, to the new FF installation? If you are not sure, take a picture of what the router is connected too attach with the camera, we can work that out! Have a look see at my attached for you as to what you should see.

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

XRaySpeX — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 14:01:54 GMT

Try a speedtest, preferably wired using an Ethernet cable supplied with the router, here http://www.thinkbroadband.com/speedtest.html . Click on the "Results Page" button at the bottom of the graph you first see and then copy to here just the "Link to this result:" link that you see below the next main graph.

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

Jez54 — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 14:03:12 GMT

I've said (several times) that there is FTTP to the property, which was here when we bought the house in 2021.

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

Jez54 — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 14:05:05 GMT

Thanks, XRaySpecX, I'll try that link. I'll try to connect an ethernet cable to the back of the router, but it's a little hard as I've to climb a stepladder, and I'm no longer as young as I was!!

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

XRaySpeX — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 14:11:00 GMT

@JimM11 : OP has already said he's on FTTP with 150 Meg plan.

@Jez54 : If you're on the FF 150 plan you'll get 150 Meg from any reasonable speedtest. even over WiFi

Re: EE Smart Hub SH20A (Product No. GRV9517UAC34 2-A-SA)

Jez54 — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 14:14:37 GMT

Using the Thinkbroadband test I get 53.2 up / 29.8 down. (Thanks, XRaySpeX, for that link, its far better than using Ookla).

That's using my laptop across the wi-fi. I'll bring the stepladder in from the garage later, to try with ethernet!!

So that's just the same as when I was on BT's 50 Mb/s plan, no improvement at all.