EE Router is hiding from my Manhattan T3-r PVR

[flyhighest]

I've just moved from PlusNet to EE as part of the former's migration away from landline provision.

Initially I successfully paired everything to the new Router (TVx1, phonex2, PVRx1, computersx2 - one ethernet the rest wi-fi).

But after a few days, whilst watching TV, a PVR message flashed up saying 'disconnected from wi-fi'. I was unable to reestablish the connection - the EE router no longer appeared on the PVR as an available network. The EE router knew of its existence because it said that the PVR had been disconnected for five days (by the time I found that it said such things), so the EE router did know of its existence. Why is the EE router hiding from the PVR?  

An EE article suggested setting up a Compatible WiFi network. Didthat - didn't make any difference.
An EE article suggested switching off 5GHz for that Compatible network. Did that (while the PVR was on) and somehow the PVR re-connected by itself but it used the main Network. But everything else effectively stopped - a message appeared on the phone saying something about a spotty connection. 
So I switched 5GHz back on. The PVR continued connected. Put PVR on standby and back on again - and it reconnected - but will the router throw it off the network again? 

I hesitate to try switching the PVR off at the mains to see if it'll reconnect, because of a buggy router. What do I do or can I do to make the PVR properly and permanently visible again?

[jak26]

Moving mid-contract PN to EE might seem to be the easiest option to retain a phone number but once the contract ends you're faced with whatever renewal deals are available - plus having DV seems to be an add-on with EE.. Even the new customer prices I've seen mentioned are higher than what's available if you do it yourself and click through a comparison site - like £25.99 for 900. Although PN have often offered better rates if phoning retentions the the best deals are always switching towards the end of contract and it's an easy process these days.

No doubt for some the phone number is important - but there's the option to port it to a VOIP service as a long term solution so no need to tie it to ISP choice any more - and for many others dropping the landline and just having a mobile is enough - for quite a small price there are deals including calls which can be expensive on ISP packages.

There still seems to be so much confusion about the switch to digital for home phone, landlines arent really being dropped and existing copper aren't really being replaced by fibre - even though it makes a lot of sense to choose a fibre deal on renewal if available. The PN Hub 2 has the phone socket but they decided not to implement the infrastructure needed for DV - likely affecting a lot of people. 

Similarly for email, its nice to have an extra address but it's really unwise to rely on ISP email as a main email - it's easy to get an outlook (Hotmail) or gmail address - again something that will then work long term.

It's nice to get a WiFi 7 router - but presumably it's to be returned when leaving - but I'm surprised when people assume they're going to get full package speed over WIFI throughout the house from just one ISP router - so another long term solution that helps to avoid issues when switching ISP, is to put in some ethernet cable and use another router as an Access Point - one that's known to work with all your devices.

[flyhighest]

In  regard to my original question, I'm surprised you're surprised that people (namely, me) assume they should get satisfactory coverage throughout a house. On the contrary, when I've had routers sitting in exactly the same position for the past near 15 years, always providing perfectly satisfactory performance, I jolly well do anticipate, indeed expect, the latest most-whizzy most-technically-advanced 2026 router to be more than better than one from 2011 - especially when I was informed earlier that my 2021 PVR is old hat having been obsoleted by the latest technology of wi-fi magic.

Regarding email, many people these days don't seem to understand that many other people started using email before such modern things like hotmail and gmail were invented. I, for one, had email in 1976 (it wasn't called that then). And I had enough trouble moving from freeserve email to plusnet email after about five years that moving from plusnet elsewhere after 15 years is too hard to contemplate.

Same thing with phones. I'm more than exasperated at being advised I don't need a landline - I'm actually rather annoyed at being so patronised. After 50 years of the same number, with many contacts elderly and in all parts of the world, give at least a modicum of thought of the effort involved informing everyone, especially those who may not be able to cope. Regarding your comments re DV being an add-on and Voip being an option, yes DV is an add-on - but at £2 to receive calls (and payg available for outgoing if needed) it's worth it. So my phone number of half a century is retained and I can use my mobilephone (pretty well literally forced upon me by all sorts of organisations) for free outgoings. Oh! And mobile reception in most of our house is so unfit for purpose that the landline is essential for that reason alone.

Yes there is much confusion about the digital switchover. I think you're a bit confused! I have no option but renew with fibre. Our local exchange is on its last legs kit-wise so any change is FTTC or nothing - and there is no FTTP in our part of the village - thank goodness because the upcoming FTTC migration to FTTP is another nightmare ready to loom over the horizon, hopefully when I'm past caring. 

That's my last word! My solution is to revert / regress / call it what you will to ethernet for the PVR. A pox on new technology that cannot cope with still-extant 5 year old technology.

[flyhighest]

I am truly aware of the Jan 2027 switchoff. By using PlusNet's offer to move to EE and following PlusNet's offloading of their email to a third party (for free, pro tem), I have managed to preserve my phone number and my email - at an immediate cost saving of £2pm but at a prior cost of £2pm premium had I gone with PlusNet's Fibre rather than continue with non-fibre. If I had renewed with PlusNet's offer of Fibre that was cheaper a year ago, I would have I would have instantly lost my email and either instantly lost my landline or paid £7+ for VOIP (thus more than wiping out the aforesaid saving).

The Irishman's answer that "I wouldn't start from here" has long been bankrupt. 

JimM11, you really have been helpful in clarifying the situation I found myself in. As a result, I have a no-cost workaround (I refuse to call it a solution!). Now waiting for my son to turn up to crawl under my desk and heave around furniture downstairs to do the necessary pluggery.

[JimM11]

@flyhighest If your mobile phone supports wifi calling, would try switching it on, for me when i switched the mobiles to EE after that found EE had the poorest 4G/5G signal in my area, even though the checker's were saying great for everything/everywhere, and without wifi calling that worked 99% off the time, the mobiles would have been as good as two brick's, have since moved them back to O2 which for me is at least acceptable and also works fine wifi calling as well....

Not to cloud the issue, but wireless securities is a Hardware Chip and a Software at the same time, so i alone have bias a couple off devices that can/have WPA3 and more on WPA2 only, it's like 3/20 ratio, so WPA3-T the transition mode between operation's is SWITCHED OFF and WPA2-PSK is the only one allowed for operation! The PVR is not obsoleted in any way but with the age off the device manufacture at 2019/2021 onwards, will be a WPA2 operation, so it just may not play nice on a WPA3-T mode off operation, also NO two hubs are alike, your old PN was a stripped back BT with all the bells and whistles removed from it, and your new EE is pant's compared to that! 

I also have my own Sat/Pvr module connected on Tp-Link powerline, but it is all for operation and stability nothing else.