[SOLVED] Suggested device to extend Wi-Fi but keep same SSID?

[King Mustard]

Our ISP is BT Broadband and we use their BT Smart Hub (sometimes called the Home Hub 6), which was released in 2016.

The router (only just) struggles to reach every part of the home.

We had a similar issue at a different house seven years ago. We had signal in a specific room but it was very poor, so we got a device that extended the router's Wi-Fi signal. However, the device created a separate SSID and, since the connection to the router was very poor but not zero, we had to keep manually connecting to the new SSID when we were in this specific room as no phone would automatically switch, then connect back to the router's SSID when we left the room. It was very frustrating.

Is there a better solution, these days?

We can not replace the router.

We are hoping to buy a device that extends the signal (we don't need to extend it by much - so maybe a £50 upper limit? ) but that (hopefully) retains the SSID so that phones do not stick to the barely-working signal.

 

[kanewolf]

Our ISP is BT Broadband and we use their BT Smart Hub (sometimes called the Home Hub 6), which was released in 2016.

The router (only just) struggles to reach every part of the home.

We had a similar issue at a different house seven years ago. We had signal in a specific room but it was very poor, so we got a device that extended the router's Wi-Fi signal. However, the device created a separate SSID and, since the connection to the router was very poor but not zero, we had to keep manually connecting to the new SSID when we were in this specific room as no phone would automatically switch, then connect back to the router's SSID when we left the room. It was very frustrating.

Is there a better solution, these days?

We can not replace the router.

We are hoping to buy a device that extends the signal (we don't need to extend it by much - so maybe a £50 upper limit? ) but that (hopefully) retains the SSID so that phones do not stick to the barely-working signal.

Roaming between WIFI sources is a function of the device. Unless you have WIFI access points that allow you to tune the transmit power, you can get in a situation where the device won't roam. There is nothing the WIFI source can do.
Do you have any ethernet cabling or coax cabling between where your router is now and the problem areas ? That is the best answer. Have a wired network back to your primary router with a second (or third) WIFI source. You can give them the same SSID and password, but it is up to the device to decide to switch. That is why is often better to create unique SSIDs and manually change. That lets the smart human make the choice instead of the dumb device.