BT launch home hub 3 but ends broadband talk for new users.

The new HH 3 hub launches this month. The new hub is only 10 cm tall and 18cm wide. The hub is compatible with ADSL and BT Infinity so won�t need changing when upgrading to infinity. On the downside the hub won�t have any Broadband Talk or Dect capability. Also the power lead can�t be disconnected from the hub so for people who like to fit the cable down small gaps to the power point this will be an issue. This will be the only hub offered at the end of the month.

Hmm what does it offer over old one as currently getting issues with mine where it seems to stop responding and resets itself nearly everyday!! I have read that there is a some fixes which work which means forcing b&g wifi rather than using N type. Kind of defeats the purpose! Anyway will maybe hold off and see if I can get it replaced with new type!

In reply to a post by peegreen2:

The new HH 3 hub launches this month. The new hub is only 10 cm tall and 18cm wide. The hub is compatible with ADSL and BT Infinity so won�t need changing when upgrading to infinity. On the downside the hub won�t have any Broadband Talk or Dect capability. Also the power lead can�t be disconnected from the hub so for people who like to fit the cable down small gaps to the power point this will be an issue. This will be the only hub offered at the end of the month.

Are you sure about the power lead, seems unlikely.

Have you got a link for this?

It is being sold as the power cable will be pre-installed. I have taken that to mean that it can't be disconnected but as I haven't seen one I might be wrong.

Extra's over the 2.0 hub include:
Upgraded processor and chipset
Smart wireless
Gig Ethernet WAN
Gig Ethernet LAN
WPS push button support
Automatic power save after 5 minutes of no use of LAN or wireless

Edited by deleted (Thu 06-Jan-11 18:16:33)

well reading over on the BT forums it would appear the current hub is a pig in a poke, so will wait and see if my current test proves to be right in that the wireless N on the Homehub 2 is broke!

Do you know at what point the new hubs get sent out.

I'm having infinity installed on 18th. Hub is expected to be delivered on the 14th so will likely be dispatched next week.

Sounds like pros/cons --the GbE would be useful though & save me buying another box for local routing (it's of no value for wan/wlan for me)- I have GBe cabled to around 8 locations so far.

Launch date is Jan 28th

Edited by deleted (Fri 07-Jan-11 18:11:30)

you will get a hh2

Thanks, BT did tell me it would be a HH2 as HH3 not yet being sent out.

I'm not sure I'm especially bothered either way
- GbE on HH3 would be nice - since I already use some GbE at home, but there wouldn't be enough ports for the room the router's in, so I'd get another GbE switch anyway for internal use -- and since internet is < 40Mbps no worries there
- better WLAN would be good, though not sure on difference

Meanwhile the internal dect station on the HH2 could be useful - though for VoIP I already have a standalone ATA.

I am slightly concerned about reliability, our network tends to stress anything, but if it does cause issues I'll take it up with BT anyway regardless of which hub.

So whilst I could delay my infinity install I don't see I'm loosing anything really

well I`m gonna try and push for my HH2 to get replaced with a HH3, phoned up support a week or so ago with the problems with this hub resetting itself on a daily basis. Its started doing it again almost everyday. Was told if it happened again they would replace.

As you may spot in my other posts, the HH2 wireless is abysmal - I have a problem open with them and have suggested same thing.

If they can provide a fix, great - the HH2 is otherwise ok, but I do expect it to work...also have said am happy if they want to try debug code, or ask me to capture more info.

But some progress needs to be made

In reply to a post by MrGrumpy:

well I`m gonna try and push for my HH2 to get replaced with a HH3, phoned up support a week or so ago with the problems with this hub resetting itself on a daily basis. Its started doing it again almost everyday. Was told if it happened again they would replace.

I have the same problem as well. I'm also going to try and get my HH 2 replaced. I don't need the DECT or IP talk capability of the HH 2 so a HH 3 would be fine for me given that it has a better chip-set in it and hopefully better firmware.

well phoned and arranged replacement but its HH2 they are sending out, shall see how that goes? Don`t hold out much hope tbh.

Think the new HH 3 is due to ship on the 29th January but can't get anybody in BT Retail to confirm this.

Hub 3 now available via BT.com on all new orders!!

Hub 3

Edited by nelix01 (Sat 29-Jan-11 11:46:25)

In reply to a post by nelix01:

Hub 3 now available via BT.com on all new orders!!

Hub 3

Yuk,

so they have done away with the voice over Ip service, they may as well because to be honest it was awful, I don't know anyone who use Bt that uses the service anyway.

I see they still insist on keeping fon enabled as standard on their hubs. That should be a opt in, not a opt out.

It looks like a Cisco unit, but I could be wrong.

Still won't make their broadband any better will it?

As for the home hub 2 wireless being naff, my next door neighbour got a home hub 2 and my laptop picks up the signal from it pretty strong, in fact it is stronger than my other neighbours Belkin and that is closer.

* I have a HH3 on it's way suposedly after raising my wireless issues with BT - will be interesting to see if the HH3 > HH2. I expect so
* When my HH2/new infinity install arrived FON was DISABLED by default, I had to go in and sign up -- but I think it may be tied to the *account* not router, so if you've already signed up, a new router would have fon ready and working

the issue with the HH2 wireless is not strength, the hub just seems to have a high failure rate or just does not stay up for any length of time before it resets. I should clarify this by saying its an infinity connection.

In reply to a post by planetf1:

* I have a HH3 on it's way suposedly after raising my wireless issues with BT - will be interesting to see if the HH3 > HH2. I expect so
* When my HH2/new infinity install arrived FON was DISABLED by default, I had to go in and sign up -- but I think it may be tied to the *account* not router, so if you've already signed up, a new router would have fon ready and working

so far my replacement appears to be holding up ok, 2 days and counting lol. Scrap that just checked again connection dropped sometime yesterday but new IP given??

Dont forget this though...


Power save mode

Turn off your Hub automatically when not in use.


Was this the reason ?

nope not as far as I can see, how often do Bt issue Ip addys? Seems awful short so can only assume the connections dropped or the router has reset?? Its a pity the modem has no stats to look at.

Will our existing Homhub phones work with this new router then?

In reply to a post by MrGrumpy:

Its a pity the modem has no stats to look at.

Stats give you evidence with which to challenge brush-offs.

No, it doesnt support Broadband Talk.

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

In reply to a post by MrGrumpy:

Its a pity the modem has no stats to look at.

Stats give you evidence with which to challenge brush-offs.

well they are not daft anyway I know if the same symptoms come up with this Hub re router resetting on its own. No probs with the hardware until a few months in, might have to buy my own equipment at this rate

The power cable is definitely removable. Someone said earlier it wasnt. It's also quote long.

In reply to a post by planetf1:

* I have a HH3 on it's way suposedly after raising my wireless issues with BT - will be interesting to see if the HH3 > HH2. I expect so
* When my HH2/new infinity install arrived FON was DISABLED by default, I had to go in and sign up -- but I think it may be tied to the *account* not router, so if you've already signed up, a new router would have fon ready and working

Bt said they was going to enable Fon as default on their home hubs, I wonder if they changed their mind.

In reply to a post by MrGrumpy:

the issue with the HH2 wireless is not strength, the hub just seems to have a high failure rate or just does not stay up for any length of time before it resets. I should clarify this by saying its an infinity connection.

I was called to my nextdoor neighbours last week, their broadband stopped working, I had to turn the HH2 off and on and all was fine.

It have been on for months, since I installed it. they don't use wireless mind you, I did disable it at one point and then their daughter used her laptop there and had to re-enable it.

I had to do that with the Bebox when I was with Bethere as well, every now and then I would have to power of and on the router. However whats differant about the HH2 I had was it would just lose wireless daily and then procede to reset itself without any intervention from me!!

I've had no problems with the Hub 3 wireless in the 2 months I've been using it..Seems pretty decent to me.

One stupid thing is that they supply it with a little key thing you remove on the top to get the network key.. but its not a USB.. surely they could have made that a little USB thing that automatically configures the connection on clients.. that would have been awesome!

you have had a Home Hub 3 for last 2 months?

I've been trialling one since November. The wireless is noticably better than that of the Hub 2.0; I personally think that this will be a big step up from previous iterations of the Homehub, however I've never had any problems with any of the rest of the Hubs so I can't really say anything bad about them.

I had terrible issues with the HH2 in the 2 weeks following infinity install to the current date. Specifically wireless failing after anything from minutes to hours.

I did a lot of tests/PD myself, and got very constructive, helpful comments from BT - bottom line they've sent me a HH3 which should arrive tomorrow to see if that resolves the issues

well so far this one has not started doing the resets so fingers crossed or I will see if I can get a HH3 if more reliable.

with regards to your comment about the removable tag containing the wireless key...are you aware that on home hub 3 you dont have to use the wireless key jus press the wireles configuration button on the side, it will prompt you to do so when trying to connect to the hub

i have to say my hub 2.0 A was the best investment i made for my longline has been superb the bb talk i use alot and works well, the wirless network has been brilliant very strong can use it in my loft conversion so effectiivley goes up 3 floors there are now no wirless not spots in my house when there used to be. Most importantly on my long line the hub has prooved to be a very stable router and very rarly dropping the connection, where as on my work line with a cisco on it simmilar line stats this drops at least twice a day.

In reply to a post by pennywise1987:

I've been trialling one since November. The wireless is noticably better than that of the Hub 2.0; I personally think that this will be a big step up from previous iterations of the Homehub, however I've never had any problems with any of the rest of the Hubs so I can't really say anything bad about them.

It is very small, what is it like heat wise? I had a small router/modem a few years back and the heat that came from it you could have cooked a egg.
I also heard that Linksys routers which are also small gets pretty warm.

the one good thing about the old 1.5 BT HH was that ti never got hot, I don't know about version 2.

that is the good thing about my speedtouch, because the case is pretty larger, there is plenty of air holes and space for air to move around. It is ok making things smaller, but heat build up is normally a problem and that is why things fail

In reply to a post by geordiekris:

i have to say my hub 2.0 A was the best investment i made for my longline has been superb the bb talk i use alot and works well

This. My only grumble was the phone handsets, which were pretty unreliable (need resetting often)

I can only imagine the BBT has been removed as it wasn't making any money - being able to have several calls running at once was a great idea, and the audio quality is better than my analogue line.

In reply to a post by nelix01:

No, it doesnt support Broadband Talk.

OK so if I get a new HH3 which does not support BB talk will I be able to get a normal phone service through the hub phones?

No. the new version has no DECT or VOIP capability. Nothing.

In reply to a post by shtu:

I can only imagine the BBT has been removed as it wasn't making any money - being able to have several calls running at once was a great idea, and the audio quality is better than my analogue line.

Never worked that good to be honest, if I use it, people use to find it very loud, to use the service I had to put the phone on the arm of my chair and use handsfree, that was when Bt gave me the bandwidth to use it.


apart from one person and me, everyone else I know that is on or have been on Bt broadband keeps their phone in the box and have never used it.

In reply to a post by geordiekris:

i have to say my hub 2.0 A was the best investment i made for my longline has been superb the bb talk i use alot and works well, the wirless network has been brilliant very strong can use it in my loft conversion so effectiivley goes up 3 floors there are now no wirless not spots in my house when there used to be. Most importantly on my long line the hub has prooved to be a very stable router and very rarly dropping the connection, where as on my work line with a cisco on it simmilar line stats this drops at least twice a day.

The HH 1.5 was pretty good on long lines, but then it was a Speedtouch and they are or was good on long lines, I don't know who made the HH2, it did not look like a speedtouch to me.

If you want to continue using VOIP you could get something like a Linksys SPA3102 (£40) gateway.

Supports analogue fallback, clid, number plans - very configurable (though awkward to setup)

Then a provider such as poivy (10 EUR + tax= free calls for 90 days us/europe/uk - non mobile)

In reply to a post by planetf1:

* I have a HH3 on it's way suposedly after raising my wireless issues with BT - will be interesting to see if the HH3 > HH2. I expect so
* When my HH2/new infinity install arrived FON was DISABLED by default, I had to go in and sign up -- but I think it may be tied to the *account* not router, so if you've already signed up, a new router would have fon ready and working

FONE is tied to the "account" not the router as far as I am aware.

Edited by deleted (Sun 06-Feb-11 17:25:01)

signed up for bt broadband last friday as they offered me too good a bundle to refuse - part of the deal was a free homehub as with all bt packages which is being dispatched tomorrow or thursday for receipt friday - bt sales were unable to tell me if it wil be hh2 or hh3 i get - has anyone migrated to bt last few weeks and, if so, which hh was supplied

New line & Infinity installed this morning. I was sent the HH2, which arrived on Thursday of last week.

Ermmmmmmm I have the Home Hub 3 and you are wrong on the one thing
as the power cord can be removed from the hub

And it gives good stats

Edited by deleted (Thu 03-Mar-11 08:03:33)

In reply to a post by highet:

signed up for bt broadband last friday as they offered me too good a bundle to refuse - part of the deal was a free homehub as with all bt packages which is being dispatched tomorrow or thursday for receipt friday - bt sales were unable to tell me if it wil be hh2 or hh3 i get - has anyone migrated to bt last few weeks and, if so, which hh was supplied

I signed up yesterday and was told I'd be getting the brand new version, supposedly!

It really depends, some are getting 3s and others are getting 2s. However I'm bit concerned of users reporting the 3 and lack of information on your line stats, or I should say you cant get any info.

Signed up on 18th and was originally promised HH3 and activation on Monday 28th February.

Then there was a problem with the line and I was told that delivery/activation would be delayed until Friday 4th March.

As they were telling me this, a Post Office van pulled up with my HH3 but activation didn't take place until 4th March (as promised).

I understand ALL deliveries after 28th February will be HH3 - hope this helps?

I had fibre broadband installed on Feb 17th, ordered on 3rd Feb and I got a HH3. I believe BT change all their web pages to show HH3 rather than HH2 towards the end of January

Hi, Bit late for a reply, I know, but having just got Infinity with HH3, the power lead assuredly does unplug.
Cheers, Les.

I know this is an old thread, but I was wondering if there is a way to use a HH2 with the VOIP phone on a new BT service.

I want to use the BB Talk facility that I used to have and I am aware that it will not work on the HH3. Any work arounds if I have all of the right eqpt.?

Cheers

Or any other ideas of how to get a VOIP or cordless phone working with the HH3 for cheap basically I need a phone upstairs and only have one socket in the house(downstairs)

If you don't choose to go the BT Infinity route, there's no reason why you cannot keep using your current HH2/voip set up.

OK, so you cannot use the BB Talk product with an HH3. If you mean you want a second handset on the VOIP service on your current HH2, then that's easy. Buy a second one.