EE Smart Hub Plus poor range and connection strengh compared to BT Smart Hub 2

[Monaco24]

Our BT broadband contract came to an end so we've moved fully to EE now and been sent out an EE Smart Hub Plus to replace our BT Smart Hub 2. There seems to be a considerable reduction in range with the new EE box and an unstable or poor wifi connection in parts of the house that were fine with the BT box. All in all it feels like a downgrade, has anyone else had similar issues with the EE boxes? 

I'm tempted just to send it back and stick with the older BT box but not sure if that will cause any issues down the line..

Thanks

[jon_1103]

Same here, WiFi range on the SH+ is not great at all.

I bit myself in the backside after pushing EE for the replacement SH+, which was swapped over from the previously supplied SH2. I will now purchase a WiFi mesh network because of the location of my hub, being at the front of my house, and not being able to move it and need coverage in my garden.

[ICAll]

You are not alone. I upgraded from the BT Smart Hub & Mesh to the EE Smart Hub Plus three weeks ago and despite adding 4 of the EE Smart WiFI Plus extenders around the house the signal is weak and patchy, with signal strength across the extender's poor, ranging from just 67dBM to 77dBm. Worse they occasionally drop out before re-instating themselves. At times they show that they are too close to the router before deciding that they are too far away, before returning to "normal"! I have also noted that sometimes the App says that the devices have a good signal (colour code blue) but when I check the extender it's showing an average signal (colour code orange). 

The BT arrangement that I had previously for many years never missed a beat and the performance was significantly better on all counts than the EE abomination that I have been upgraded to following my BT contract coming to an end. It's only been a few weeks since I moved over so I am hoping that they are still "bedding in". I am also in contact with EE customer services, but first impressions are not good. 

[JimM11]

@ICAll Hopefully you have kept all of your BT equipment and not returned it yet!

[jon_1103]

@ICAllI've been facing issues with the the EE Smart WiFI Plus extender too. I took a punt and purchased one from eBay as there was no way I'm committing to a 24 month contract and then paying an £10 extra a month to extend the WiFi in my house. I set it up and used it for 2 weeks but it's been more hassle than it's worth so it's going back!
Since adding the extender into our network it's caused multiple drop outs with phone calls when we're using WiFi calling on both mine and my partners phones, we've also noticed a reduction in WiFi coverage in our kitchen, which is a floor below where the extender sits. I turned the extender off for a few days and the drop outs went away but signal is still poor compared to the original EE Smart Hub.

The UI in the EE app never works either, so that's an another annoyance 🙄

I'm going to purchase an Asus router/mesh network I think as it's driving me mad.

It's just the same old story with ISP routers being not good enough! 😩

[JimM11]

@jon_1103 You may wish to look at the TV connection requirements before you jump into the fire! Asus does work with EE Router, but a lot depends on what you are doing, cannot comment on the EE Smartwifi as do not use.

[jon_1103]

Thanks for the tip @JimM11, I have already been looking at this after coming across other customers threads. As I have the Apple TV with EE I should be fine, I believe it's when you the EE TV Pro/mini boxes and using 3rd party routers without multicast is when you face issues.

[Ewan15]

I also took a Punt on a EE Smart WIFI Extender.

Mine is connected using an Ethernet cable to the EE Smart Hub.

The EE App will briefly show the Hub is good before switching to "We can't show your device status right now"

I have proved that this is happening because the app thinks the WIFI Extender is too close despite only managing a download speed of 60mbps where the EE Hub is located. My phone when tested had not switched to the strongest available signal. (Which gives a download speed of around 850mbps on Ookla)

I noticed the switching issue when I had the BT equivalent setup before I switched to EE.

I have also tried just using WIFI and the speed from the extender to the phone, when close to the extender drops to around 450mbps, which surprised me as I thought it used WIFI 6 between EE devices.( On ethernet I get around 800mbps in same scenario). Still get the Too Close error on the App, which I think is a bug.

I have noticed some intermittent internet freezes which I put down to the work remote connection, so your experience with WIFI calling is interesting.

[JimM11]

@Ewan15 If you wish to use a smartwi-fi extender, then Ethernet connected backhaul is by far the best way to connect the two devices, when wireless backhaul you rely on the signal quality of both devices, unless you can prove that the hidden ssid is working as the dedicated backhaul channel's.

[jon_1103]

@Ewan15 do you have the Smart Hub or Smart Hub Plus? If it's the former then that only supports WIFI 5, which will be why you're getting that much of a drop in data speeds.

I live in rented accommodation so I cannot run a wired backhaul. The Openreach engineer would also not install the ONT in my lounge, which is the ideal location, as I'm an end terrace and stated that fibre cables cannot be bended, so I'm trying to improve my WIFI coverage without it costing too much.

[ICAll]

Unfortunately I returned the Hub straightaway as requested but as I had purchased the mesh extenders they are mine to keep. If I have to I will purchase a replacement Hub on eBay. On a positive note EE agree that there is an issue and are sending out an engineer to fix the problem. Fingers crossed.