Essential Digital Home Phone

[djsgrant]

Things I don’t know: hundreds of stuff. 
Things I do know: you can’t connect a BT Essential Digital Home Phone to my 3rd part router. 
I have FTTP 300 and have swapped out my BT Hub for an Asus RT-AC86U. Very happy with that decision by the way. Is there any way I can use one of my old BT Hubs as an extender (or whatever) so I can get use of the free handset?
Only looking for one of two answers guys - No, don’t be so stupid or Yes, this is what to do. 

Thanks in advance. 

[imjolly]

only the SH2 will work and needs to be connected direct to internet The hub is a dect base station

[ljmcc94]

Hi,

I'm just trying to understand this.

If I purchase a tp link wifi 6 cable router then I just connect that to the openreach modem and use the BT credentials?

Also when I move over to FTTP/Digital Voice then will my connection still work?

Will my tp link router still work with the modem via lan cable? (I don't want to or won't be using any landline) or do I have to plug/use the landline to gain Internet access?

Thank you!

[Wezza1]

That's why they do it so you can't used 3rd party routers and why should you, You are paying BT every month to connect to there routers all about making money, Next it will be 6GHZ and nowt will connect !

[Keith_Beddoe]

Provided you do not want any phone service, it will work.

[licquorice]

@ljmcc94 If you don't require voice service on your line, you can just have broadband without DV if you wish. There is a small reduction in cost (£5/m) if you decide not to have voice capability. If you don't use it, the change to DV will have no impact on the ability to use a third party router.

[stereohaven]

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@imjollywrote:

only the SH2 will work and needs to be connected direct to internet The hub is a dect base station

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This is the important bit, very few routers have a built in DECT base station, but people assume the phones work off the WiFi, which they don't. 

The only other router I have seen work with DECT phones directly (but I haven't tested with the actual BT phones), are the FRITZ!Box ones used by another ISP who shall not be named.

You can buy a separate DECT base station to build in a link between the BT Essential Phones and your router of choice, but I don't know whether or not BT have locked the phones so they can only be used with a Smart Hub. 

More and more large ISPs prevent use of third party kit to make it easier to provide support to the majority, who don't use their own router. 

[licquorice]

@stereohaven  regardless of whether any third party routers have built in DECT base stations, Digital Voice can only be used with the BT Smart Hub 2, there are NO alternatives.