"Strongest" Wireless ADSL modem / router for home use?
I'd like some thoughts please. I have a BT HomeHub 3, and to my mind, it's rubbish. There are 4 or 5 other BT HomeHub 3's in the very local vacinity, and I have to reboot mine at least once a day (although usually more often) in order for my wireless devices to connect.
I have tried turning off the smart wireless and choosing random channels myself, but nothing helps.
So, I want to buy a new wireless ADSL modem / router that will work on my BT broadband service. It MUST be able to drown out any other local signals, PLUS it must support Dynamic DNS services.
Suggestions please (with links to the products if possible)?
I have tried turning off the smart wireless and choosing random channels myself, but nothing helps.
So, I want to buy a new wireless ADSL modem / router that will work on my BT broadband service. It MUST be able to drown out any other local signals, PLUS it must support Dynamic DNS services.
Suggestions please (with links to the products if possible)?
ASKER
Yes - the device has been replaced. I had 3 x BT HomeHub 2's before this. I upgraded to this because I was advised by BT that it would solve the problem.
I have the security completely switched off, because I have a dedicated Watchguard firewall appliance in place.
It's only really been since the other HomeHub 3's started appearing that the problem has got this bad. I have 18 devices that use Wi-fi in the house - including laptops, phones, consoles, internet radios etc, but there are NEVER on all at once - at most there would be 9 or 10 on at any one time - however, even with that said, the problem isn't specific to the amount of concurrently connected devices.
I was looking at the Netgear N600 ADSL2+ Modem and router (DGND3700) - this was suggested through the product chooser on the Netgear website, but I wonder if there are any other devices (not necessarily from Netgear) that would bhe more suited.
I have the security completely switched off, because I have a dedicated Watchguard firewall appliance in place.
It's only really been since the other HomeHub 3's started appearing that the problem has got this bad. I have 18 devices that use Wi-fi in the house - including laptops, phones, consoles, internet radios etc, but there are NEVER on all at once - at most there would be 9 or 10 on at any one time - however, even with that said, the problem isn't specific to the amount of concurrently connected devices.
I was looking at the Netgear N600 ADSL2+ Modem and router (DGND3700) - this was suggested through the product chooser on the Netgear website, but I wonder if there are any other devices (not necessarily from Netgear) that would bhe more suited.
ASKER
Something else I just noticed, which seems a bit odd to me, is that using inSSIDer, the Max speed of my HomeHub 3 is 54Mbps, where as other HomeHub 3's, the max speed is 144Mbps.
The firewall won't stop devices registering on the router wirelessly will it. They may not get to the internet but your router will have to handle the connections and this will slow things down.
Speed is a config setting or a device limitation. Is the firmware fully updated?
Speed is a config setting or a device limitation. Is the firmware fully updated?
ASKER
No, but I do have WPA2 set up on it, so no devices will be able to connect without the key. That aside, I live in a very small village - no more than a couple of hundred people. There are only 12 houses in my road, and the majority of residents are (to be as polite as possible) old, and it is highly unlikely that they would try to connect to my router.
As for the firmware, it is the current release, and the HomeHub firmware upgrades take place without user intervention.
Back to the speed issue, even if I set the device to work with 'N' only, the speed for this router still only shows a maximum rate of 54Mbps with inSSIDer...
As for the firmware, it is the current release, and the HomeHub firmware upgrades take place without user intervention.
Back to the speed issue, even if I set the device to work with 'N' only, the speed for this router still only shows a maximum rate of 54Mbps with inSSIDer...
I have been through this issue so many times I cannot even count them. We do IT for many, many business, large and small and every single one of the smaller business has been through this.
In short, in my personal opinion, the Wifi on every single home grade DSL router is utterly garbage. And I believe it's in the implementation, not the hardware. For example, a LinkSys WRT54G Wifi Router will generally need to be reset in a noisy environment quite frequently because the Wifi simply disappears. However if you flash the same router with the community made ROMS from DD-WRT the same hardware will become amazingly stable.
Anyway, in short, if you're in a wifi rich (noisy) environment, then every single home DSL router I have ever seen (and we sell about 50 a month) will do exactly what yours does. They *all* suck. Every single one of them.
We now instruct all our customers to by Unifi Wireless devices and run DSL over the router and turn it's Wifi off - then use the Unifi for Wifi. I can honestly say that in every single instance where we've done this the client has gone from about 5 modem resets a week to zero drop outs in several months.
Additionally, I do not work for Unifi or have any financial or otherwise arrangement with them. We buy direct from their website, the same as anyone else. We just use them because they work very, very well. They're scalable as well.
URL: http://www.ubnt.com/unifi
In short, in my personal opinion, the Wifi on every single home grade DSL router is utterly garbage. And I believe it's in the implementation, not the hardware. For example, a LinkSys WRT54G Wifi Router will generally need to be reset in a noisy environment quite frequently because the Wifi simply disappears. However if you flash the same router with the community made ROMS from DD-WRT the same hardware will become amazingly stable.
Anyway, in short, if you're in a wifi rich (noisy) environment, then every single home DSL router I have ever seen (and we sell about 50 a month) will do exactly what yours does. They *all* suck. Every single one of them.
We now instruct all our customers to by Unifi Wireless devices and run DSL over the router and turn it's Wifi off - then use the Unifi for Wifi. I can honestly say that in every single instance where we've done this the client has gone from about 5 modem resets a week to zero drop outs in several months.
Additionally, I do not work for Unifi or have any financial or otherwise arrangement with them. We buy direct from their website, the same as anyone else. We just use them because they work very, very well. They're scalable as well.
URL: http://www.ubnt.com/unifi
ASKER
It looks good, but do they sell to the UK? The only sales offices seesm to be US or Canada based...
They have outlets around the World. The UK has:
802 Global
United Kingdom
+44 (0)8450 666 802
4Gon Solutions
PO Box 2124
Chelmsford
CM1 3UP
United Kingdom
+44 (0)1245 808 295
and some others in Europe.
http://www.ubnt.com/purchase/europe
802 Global
United Kingdom
+44 (0)8450 666 802
4Gon Solutions
PO Box 2124
Chelmsford
CM1 3UP
United Kingdom
+44 (0)1245 808 295
and some others in Europe.
http://www.ubnt.com/purchase/europe
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ASKER
I've had 3 BT Home Hub 3's, and they've all exhibited the same problem. I've now "downgraded" to a Home Hub 2.0, and I'm no longer having any problems.
I guess you have had the unit replaced in case there is an inherent fault with it?
All the security is switched on with a 'changed' default password preventing the local 'Call of Duty Online' fanbase from using your router in addition to yourself?
I use the Netgear products myself (www.netgear.com) although my dg384 is long in the tooth now. That said, 9 devices permanently connected ranging from phones to four computers plus, when I switch it on, streaming TV. Has a hiccough now and then due to the amount of bandwidth we consume but reboot it once a month just because I am a creature of habit.