[SOLVED] Uk Virgin wifi terrible - looking for router recommendations

[M3LL3TT]

Hi currently using a virgin hub 3 and the wifi range and speeds are terrible (apparently a known issue with that Modem/router). Have had multiple phones calls/complaints to virgin but at no success.

So now looking for a router to provide a better wifi connection across the house and putting the virgin hub 3 into modem mode.

Budget is up to £150 GBP.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[bill001g]

So many people believe that the ISP routers are garbage mostly without any real proof just a bunch of opinions in forums. Lately the ISP devices uses the same radio chipsets as the major router vendors. None of them actually make wifi chipset they pretty much all buy them from the same 2-3 companies. That routers uses the same radio chips as one of the revisions of the well respected tplink archer c7. So in theory it should have very similar wifi coverage. The CPU of course is very different because of the modem.

Likely your problem is a combination of the house you live in and the end devices you are attempting to use. Some houses absorb a lot of signal and many end devices have low power transmitters.

In general all routers transmit the data the same distance since this is a function of radio power which is regulated by the government. The speed you get is based on the data encoding and routers with similar numbers should get similar ratings.

Now why some routers work different than other routers in particular houses has to many variables to predict. This is the problem with wifi test/reviews. The environment they are tested in makes much more difference than the very slight differences you find between routers from the major manufactures.

 

[gggplaya]

Yes, routers will transmit with the same amount of power due to FCC and equivalent regulations in your country. But not all router radio's are the same. Routers with better transceivers and radio componentry will have a lower noise floor and receive high bandwidth uploads, as well as maintain a better connection with your client device.

The Virgin Hub 3 is based on the Arris TG2492S and is known to be a poor design.

For range and bandwidth, I prefer ASUS's higher end offerings. They don't disappoint in wifi performance.

 

[bniknafs9]

Xiaomi Gigabit router / access point considering your budget

 

[Flayed]

I have a virgin router set to modem mode connected to an Asus RT-AC86U. This is mainly because of where the virgin cable comes into the house, right at one end behind a fireplace which really kills the wifi signal.

The one time I called virgin tech support they almost seemed upset I had their router in modem mode 😛

Anyway, the Asus router seems pretty good to me, no issues really, and because it is the other side of the fireplace the wifi signal is great