Powerline WiFi

[99scouser]

Trying to add a TP link powerline WIFI extender to a BT HUB, I can connect to the powerline WIFI settings OK but if I try and change the TP link WIFI to my HUB Wifi settings ( using the HUB Wifi button ) I can see the BT SSID on my phone but I can't connect, is this because the HUB is locked to BT WIFI discs?

[licquorice]

No

[licquorice]

Powerline WiFi extender doesn't make sense. Either it is a powerline adapter or a WiFi extender, which is it?

[99scouser]

That's the name on the TP link box, "powerline Wi-Fi extender"   , extends Ethernet and Wifi over powerlines.

AV1300/AC1200

[licquorice]

So there are 2 units, not just a single WiFi extender.

Why give it the same network name as the hub? It is better to give it a different name so you know which device you are connected to. If you think it will give seamless roaming if you give it the same name, it won't.

[99scouser]

Thank you, no I am  not expecting mobile phone type roaming for WiFIi calling,  I just want to have a single SSID.  I have read that BT locks down their SSID ( and that seems to be the result from trying)  so you have to use BT disks to to get a single network wide SSID.

[WSH]

Not so.

You are not clear about what you mean by a "BT Hub" but assuming that's a Smart Hub 2, what they do lock down is which channels you can select, (for good reason), and the ability to separate the 2.4 and 5GHz bands with two separate SSIDs.

[licquorice]

A single SSID is not a particularly good idea in anything but a mesh situation. You gain nothing by giving powerline adapters the same SSID as the hub. Devices will switch between sources if they have discrete SSIDs in exactly the same way if they had the same SSID.

The difference being that you know which you are connected to.

I have the hub and 3 powerline WiFi sources all with different SSIDs.

[99scouser]

Thank you,  I will try using the different SSIDs and see how that goes. 

Thanks for your help.

[99scouser]

Do you know how how mobile phone wifi contends with switching between nodes, do phones pick up the best signal quickly or do they have to drop off before switching to the next wifi node?