Black Discs and Smart Hub 2

[RetiredAmateur]

I am about to install a BT smart hub 2.  I have an extensive whole home discs setup (white discs) but am considering the BT black discs.  Could anyone please answer the following questions:-

1. Are all the black discs Mesh and Wifi 6 (both old and new logos)?

2. What is the difference between the 092822 and the 093591 discs?

3. Will they be an improvement on my white discs as our house is a few hundred years old and quite substantially built?

I'm new to this forum so any help would be much appreciated.

[VeteranISPUser]

Hi @RetiredAmateur   “Black Discs” is ambiguous, do you mean Complete WiFi discs or Whole Home WiFi 6 discs?

https://www.bt.com/broadband/complete-wifi

https://shop.bt.com/brands/bt/whole-home-wi-fi-6

[Keith_Beddoe]

@RetiredAmateur 

I would keep using your existing Whole Home discs if they are working fine.

The BT Complete WIFI discs are not Wi-Fi 6, neither is the Smart Hub 2.

You are unlikely to see any improvement by using the BT Complete Wi-Fi system, and you will incur ongoing costs. There is also some debate on whether they actually form a wireless mesh, and not just act as wireless repeaters.

[RetiredAmateur]

• That’s my question.  Are there two different black disc systems? One a “Complete” Wifi and another the “Whole Home” Wifi 6?

[NeilO]

Hi, @RetiredAmateur Yes there are two systems, the Complete wifi discs are provided as part of a subscription and do not have Wifi 6.  

The Black Whole home wifi 6 discs are purchased outright, will work with any broadband provider and have Wifi 6

Thanks

Neil

[RetiredAmateur]

Thanks NeilO,

That was an answer I was having difficulty finding. 

May I please ask you a couple of other questions:-

Do the Wifi 6 discs act as a mesh like my white whole home discs and do you think I would find an improvement in coverage? I have an old house with thick solid walls and a river garden where I have a summerhouse.  Currently I manage to get coverage for a camera from a disc down at the summerhouse via a disc in an upstairs window.  The connection isn't as reliable as I'd like but adequate. 

Finally, how does one tell the difference between the Complete Wifi discs and the Wifi 6 discs?  I presume they have different part numbers. I've seen 093591 and also 092822 but nowhere can I find what models they are.

Thanks you for your knowledge,

[NeilO · Accepted solution]

@RetiredAmateur no problem, yes all the whole home wifi discs are mesh systems. The main benefit of the Whole Home wifi 6 disc is the wifi 6 wireless signal however this will only work with the latest devices that have wifi 6 capability.

If it's more coverage you're looking for you might want to consider adding another wifi disc to your current set up but it needs to be the same model to be compatible. Different discs won't integrate into the same set up.

To tell the difference look at the name as they will be called either Complete wifi discs or Whole home wifi 6. If you google those part numbers you will see the first is a Whole Home premium disc and the second is a Complete wifi disc. 

For more information on the different Whole home wifi discs check out this link. 

Thanks

Neil

[RetiredAmateur]

Many thanks again.

I already have 6 discs so I think I'm on my limit.  Various things I've read insinuate that the black wifi 6 discs have better coverage than my white whole home discs.  Is this not so?

Sorry to bother you again but I've tried getting definitive answers online but I've found it impossible.

Thanks again,

[chrisjp]

I think BT has confused matters by starting to market black discs which are nevertheless Wholehome WiFi and not dependent on the Smarthub 2.
It used to be that black discs were "Complete WiFi" and only compatible with the SH2, while white discs were standalone and could be used with any router that had a spare ethernet socket.

[victorhorta]

Hi there.  Can I use just one of these discs to extend WiFi from my SmartHub2 or do I need a minimum of two - one connected to the Hub and the other in the remote location ?

Thx