EE SmartWifi Discs not working with Virgin Hub 3

[GF10]

Hi Guys

I have 2 EE Smartwifi discs which now belong to me.

I am trying to get these connected to the Virgin Media Hub 3 - but not working. I am being passed between EE and Virgin!

As this is my own equipment for home wifi, surely I should be able to connect to any new broadband router - What do i need to do?

Who are these manufactured by?

Is there any block EE insert into their discs so they only work with EE? 

Thanks in advance!

[Mustrum]

Hi @GF10 

You don't say how you are trying to do this, or what is not working. So back to basics, have you tried this?

Alternatively, follow the steps below to connect using an Ethernet cable. There’s one in your router box and in your disc box. 

1. Plug one end of the Ethernet cable into a yellow port on the back of the router and the other end to the disc
2. The light on the WiFi disc will start flashing blue and will turn solid blue after a couple of minutes You can now unplug the cable. The light will change to flashing red and will go back to solid blue in a few seconds
3. Unplug the disc from the mains. You can now go and plug this in at your preferred location.

[GF10]

Thanks.

I have connected the Ethernet cable between the disc and hub 3 - there is no yellow port on hub though. I have tried all 4 Ethernet ports.

The light sequence on disc is working, but ends up with red constant light.

On the Virgin connect app, I can see the disc appear, but obviously not connecting and not offering wifi.

Should I be doing something else?

Sent from my iPhone

[Mustrum]

I doubt the Virgin app will help. The EE discs are meant to work with the EE app.hence the suggestion of a manual setup.

Is there a reset button on the discs?

[Chris_B]

@GF10   the smart Wi-Fi disks are for a mesh network and I’m sure the virgin hub isn’t a mesh router.  These disks are not Wi-Fi repeaters and don’t work in the same way. 

You need to get a mesh router and run your virgin hub in modem mode then then link up the mesh router and then

the smart disk.     There is also no guarantee that you’re smart disks will be compatible with whatever mesh router you acquire.  

[XRaySpeX]

@Chris_B : The EE Smart WiFi Discs are a Mesh router system in themselves. There is no such thing as a "mesh router" other than a Mesh system itself. The EE Smart Hub or Router are not "mesh routers".

[XRaySpeX]

Unlike the BT Whole Home Wi-Fi the EE Smart WiFi Discs are not intended to work with any ISP.

See EE Smart WiFi Disc :

You need to have an EE Smart Router for this product to function.

[GF10]

Thanks for the various comments.

EE provide these discs with rental and then state that at the end of term, the equipment belongs to customer. 

Are EE allowed to restrict use of this customer equipment with other routers? If so, what a waste of good quality product and not environmentally friendly at all.

Surely, this is not actually produced by EE, but is EE badged and potentially manufactured by same manufacturers that make other discs available for direct sale?

As I am now with Virgin, do I discard these now?

I am a little lost on router in "modem" mode - how do I do this?

Is there a simple set of instructions anywhere that I can follow to ensure that I have tried everything before discarding these discs?

Thanks

[Chris_B]

@GF10  Because something is not compatible with something else it doesn’t mean it’s being restricted from working with it it’s just not compatible and to make it work with all routers will probably put the cost up of the disk as more electronics will be needed to go inside it. 

 These are being sold on eBay for reuse if you choose to discard then that’s your choice. 

[GF10]

Thanks for the response. Resale is good option if no way to reuse myself. 

What would I need to look for in the description of replacement wifi extenders to ensure they will work with Virgin and all other providers? To future proof, I want to put in my wifi extenders around the home and change broadband suppliers as required to maintain best value for myself. 

Any recommendations from experience?

thanks