This topic

Router update

wdf73 — Fri, 21 Nov 2025 22:57:38 GMT

Why in 2025 has BT not upgraded routers from WIFI 5 (2018), all my devices are now a minimum of WIFI 6 and would benefit from an upgrade. We are told BT and EE are together now as one company and EE are now rolling out WIFI 7. BT customers are being treated abysmally in my humble opinion.

Re: Router update

WSH — Fri, 21 Nov 2025 23:03:36 GMT

See post 33 here:

https://community.bt.com/t5/BT-Fibre-broadband/BT-500-vs-900-vs-EE/m-p/2448905#M362923

Re: Router update

Kodikid — Fri, 21 Nov 2025 23:18:57 GMT

It would be simplicity itself to stick a BT logo on a EE wifi 7 router.

But the sad fact is BT don't want your custom as they would much rather you signed up to EE much like the tv and mobile.

Re: Router update

Kimberlin — Sat, 22 Nov 2025 08:49:29 GMT

@wdf73

Yup, just buy yourself your own router and have done with it, that’ll save you having to moan about why BT won’t supply you with a WiFi6 router. Not a satisfactory response I guess for some, but until BT can be bothered to replace in tech terms something born of the second decade in this century, you’re stuck with it.

Re: Router update

licquorice — Sat, 22 Nov 2025 08:53:26 GMT

@wdf73 You clearly have no concept of how businesses work. Why would a company spend an absolute fortune replacing something that is perfectly adequate for 95% of it's customer base just to please the other 5%?

Re: Router update

Kimberlin — Sat, 22 Nov 2025 09:06:07 GMT

@licquorice

I don’t disagree with what you say.

But of course when it comes to the routers themselves, I’m guessing that the thousands of routers returned to BT annually from customers who have moved on, an absolute fortune in terms of those returned routers ends up in WEEE waste anyway. Of course all of this has to be factored in in the provision of broadband services. It costs money to turn those routers into a broken down state for recycling and I suspect ISP customers are paying for that.

Re: Router update

gg30340 — Sat, 22 Nov 2025 10:16:39 GMT

@Kimberlin

The returned BT Hubs are checked and tested then reused. Only faulty ones get broken down.

https://www.bt.com/help/tv/how-to-return-and-recycle-your-bt-broadband-hub-and-bt-tv-box-fo

As has been pointed out the vast majority of ISP customers want a package that is complete and ready to use without having to buy extra equipment to make it work.

Any one such as yourself are free to buy and use their own router if that is what they want.

Edit: I meant to add that nobody has mentioned that while wifi 6&7 are better for higher speeds etc they are poorer at penetration of walls and can struggle even with a single brick wall so it may be something to consider regarding the constructon of your property when you are buying a new wifi 6/7 router.

Re: Router update

Kimberlin — Sat, 22 Nov 2025 10:16:10 GMT

@licquorice

Undoubtedly the reason why I have zero problems with WiFi in my home, it’s a recent new build with dab and dot plasterboard walls throughout so WiFi penetration isn’t an issue.

The vast majority of ISP customers will never purchase their own router because why should they? it’s extra cost they wouldn’t want. I bought my own because it suits my needs better than an ISP router as I have more control over its settings. In the 4.5 years I’ve lived in my current house, I’ve had zero problems with either of the two 3rd party routers I have used (I retired my previous Netgear router because they stopped supporting it). It’s all down to choice at the end of the day.

Re: Router update

WSH — Sat, 22 Nov 2025 11:27:39 GMT

A good point, but in recent years the insulation rules oblige the plasterboard used to be foil backed. Not exactly conducive to RF transmission.

How old is the house?

Re: Router update

Kimberlin — Sat, 22 Nov 2025 11:36:20 GMT

@WSH

My house was built in 2021. I had an electrician fit a shaver socket in my bathroom and when he cut the plasterboard to install a fastfix double plasterboard box for the shaver unit, I don’t recall seeing any foil on the piece he cut out. It might have been foil covered but I don’t recall it as such.

As I say, zero problems in my house with WiFi of any description, there never has been and I’ve only got two devices that are wired directly into my enormous ugly gaming router. I have altered a number of settings within the router itself because of course my router allows me to do so.

Re: Router update

gg30340 — Sat, 22 Nov 2025 12:01:14 GMT

Foil backed plaster board is generally only used to cover outside facing walls as a vapour barrier to prevent moisture passing through and causing condensation.

It is also sometimes used on ceilings such as bathrooms where excess moisture may be a problem and cause condensation in unheated attic spaces.

Due to it being more expensive than normal plasterboard it is generally not used on internal stud walls where there is no need for a vapour barrier.

BT Smart Hub 2

Quesada — Sat, 22 Nov 2025 15:02:33 GMT

As BT have recently shelved their plans to migrate their Broadband customers to EE, are there plans to upgrade the existing Smart Hub 2, as the technology is now 7 years old.

Re: BT Smart Hub 2

gg30340 — Sat, 22 Nov 2025 17:55:12 GMT

@Quesada

Ask BT. Nobody on here can answer that.

Re: BT Smart Hub 2

Quesada — Sun, 23 Nov 2025 10:48:18 GMT

@gg30340

I have attempted to address this issue with BT but as you are already aware, my original complaint was placed in "deadlock" in September 2023. Since then BT have continued to refuse to communicate with me.

The fact is that I glean more information from this platform and it was only recently, that I discovered that BT had shelved their plans to migrate their Broadband customers to EE.

As their own Smart Hub 2 technology predates "Full Fibre" by a good 4 years, I also assumed that BT must have thought this process through.

More to the point and as EE are owned by BT and are part of the same corporate family, I assumed that it would make financial sense, to make use of the their superior router, to resolve the issue, even if it means having to have it rebranded.

As such and as it impacts all of BT's customers, I am surprised that this is not already a topic of conversation, upon this platform.

Re: BT Smart Hub 2

gg30340 — Sun, 23 Nov 2025 11:00:25 GMT

@Quesada

Due to your repeated misguided comments regarding myself and others in your previous posts I have no interest in anything you care to post on that or any other related problems you may have.

Re: BT Smart Hub 2

Kimberlin — Sun, 23 Nov 2025 11:23:42 GMT

@Quesada

Why don’t you just send a letter of complaint to the CEO of BT and let them know of your angst relating to the SH2 hub? You’ll get precisely nowhere I’d imagine. As has been stated more than once, if you’re unhappy with BT’s current router offering, go out and buy your own. You’ve already been told that migration directly to EE won’t get you a EE router, you’ll be stuck with the SH2.

It’ll be interesting to find out if as a BT customer, you can switch to EE via One Touch Switching thus essentially becoming a brand new EE customer and whether that method will automatically get you a new EE router. I highly suspect however that between BT and EE, they’ve looked at that and the answer would be ‘No’. However, not a single Moderator on this forum has piped up (as far as I know) to confirm that.

Re: BT Smart Hub 2

Quesada — Sun, 23 Nov 2025 11:26:13 GMT

@gg30340 @Peter_W

With respect, then why bother to make any comment at all, particularly as your targeted abuse, is allegedly now being monitored.

Re: BT Smart Hub 2

gg30340 — Sun, 23 Nov 2025 11:54:34 GMT

@Quesada

I commented on your question on this thread regarding the SH2 for the benefit of other forum members and I will continue to do so as and when I see fit.

Re: BT Smart Hub 2

gg30340 — Sun, 23 Nov 2025 12:05:41 GMT

@Kimberlin

@Kimberlinwrote:
It’ll be interesting to find out if as a BT customer, you can switch to EE via One Touch Switching thus essentially becoming a brand new EE customer and whether that method will automatically get you a new EE router. I highly suspect however that between BT and EE, they’ve looked at that and the answer would be ‘No’. However, not a single Moderator on this forum has piped up (as far as I know) to confirm that.

As you are aware, I have asked the moderators to clarify that and as soon as they respond I will update my post on the thread where I informed you I was contacting the moderators.

Re: BT Smart Hub 2

iniltous — Sun, 23 Nov 2025 12:20:57 GMT

I’ve asked many times of people who complain that their WiFi experience is hampered by not having the a router providing the latest and ‘fastest’ WiFi standards , what’s the exact problem ….what WiFi only device exists that ‘needs’ those improved speeds to operate satisfactorily , it definitely isn’t streaming video or audio , and downloading massive files where the extra speed may reduce the download time tend not to be portable devices …so genuinely asking, what is it specifically that is being affected ?