Router choice

Some elderly friends who are on Virgin tell me there 10+ year old router is dropping connection fairly regularly. They accept that it's not unreasonable for it to start to fail given its age.

They're not heavy users, mainly browsing, emails, downloads, and the like; certainly no gaming. They use wireless for their laptop, iPad, iPhone, and Ethernet for the desktop PC.

Just wondering what is a reasonable choice of router for them. What's the good, the bad, and the ugly of cable routers?

Edit: I'm now confused. Turns out they have a Linksys WRT54G broadband router. Itlooks as if the Virgin box supplies an Ethernet cable that goes through the house to the Linksys 'Internet' port.

So what sort of router is needed for replacement? DSL or Cable? I guess the latter, just don't need modem capability.

Edited by cheshire_man (Wed 11-Jan-17 17:27:40)

Any router with an ethernet WAN port would do, £29.99 for an Asus dual-band 802.11ac device on Amazon currently http://amzn.to/2iH8lH2

Easiest to just call Virginmedia and get the superhub. Chances are they will provide it for free.
It is possible their old modem is failing.

This rules out both.

Probably ethernet plugs into back of TV decoder or there is a standalone cable modem near tv box to save running coax across house to PC. I agree that calling VM and getting superhub is best for this user as that way VM can fully support. Any other router won't be supported.

So the Ethernet cable that, i think, currently runs from the TV and Virgin kit downstairs to the upstairs room with the old router and the desktop PC, would be used to connect the Superhub downstairs direct to the desktop PC. No need for a separate router.

Is that a correct understanding?

This is what you'll do:

http://help.virginmedia.com/system/selfservice.contr...

This may be a really silly question.

The downstairs Virgin box - which I seem to recall them mentioning it was upgraded not too long ago - must have an Ethernet socket as there's a cable that runs from that to the upstairs TP Link router's Internet port.

Could it be that the TP Link is unnecessary and that cable could be directly connected to the PC, and the wireless devices connect to the Virgin box?

Probably a router with wireless but at 10 years old will be a very old and slow type of wireless - so a new Virgin Media hub

Plus might find the range of the wireless signal is not great too

So there is a modem downstairs, which links to the upstairs router via ethernet?
10 Years ago they used to supply a modem, and then you would use an ethernet port to the modem, and connect in a router, thereby having 2 devices.

E.g. Here:

http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/...

The modem on the left would connect, then an ethernet cable to the router (on the right).

Now, both devices are replaced by the one device, which goes wherever the old modem is (not the router).

So the superhub will go where the modem is and replace both the existing modem and the tplink device.

Most people have the modem and router side by side, I am tipping the homeowner at some point has installed their own ethernet cable to move the router.

You would have to get virginmedia to come out if you want the modem location moving or just get a wireless adapter for the desktop.

If you say that a modem is downstairs and the wi-fi router is upstairs, you might want to keep it that way - if you were to replace the two with the new Superhub, it will have an impact on wi-fi coverage throughout a house. Since you mention they're an elderly couple, it's best not to cause them such disruption
If it turns out it's the modem that's faulty, I have a spare VM Cisco modem sitting at home so I can give it away. And it's not 10 years old - manufactured in 2010

In reply to a post by MrSaffron:

Probably a router with wireless but at 10 years old will be a very old and slow type of wireless - so a new Virgin Media hub

Plus might find the range of the wireless signal is not great too

I said I thought t had been replaced not too long ago, Best guess is less than 2 years so is going to be a fairly recent Virgin box. I've emailed them to ask for details of that box.

In reply to a post by Mml:

If you say that a modem is downstairs and the wi-fi router is upstairs, you might want to keep it that way - if you were to replace the two with the new Superhub, it will have an impact on wi-fi coverage throughout a house. Since you mention they're an elderly couple, it's best not to cause them such disruption
If it turns out it's the modem that's faulty, I have a spare VM Cisco modem sitting at home so I can give it away. And it's not 10 years old - manufactured in 2010

They're elderly but most definitely not senile. In reality much of their wireless usage is downstairs so having the WiFi originating downstairs may be an advantage.

In reply to a post by cheshire_man:

I thought t had been replaced not too long ago, Best guess is less than 2 years so is going to be a fairly recent Virgin box.

The recent Virgin Superhubs have this "modem" mode where the wi-fi is disabled and only one Ethernet port works. So if you go into settings and return the Superhub into its normal mode (or just do a reset through a pinhole), you then can test how good is its wi-fi, and do away with Linksys

In reply to a post by cheshire_man:

In reality much of their wireless usage is downstairs so having the WiFi originating downstairs may be an advantage.

Except you said they also had something using Ethernet upstairs. See if the cable that's currently feeding the Linksys can reach that device.

In reply to a post by Mml:

Except you said they also had something using Ethernet upstairs. See if the cable that's currently feeding the Linksys can reach that device.

Oh yes, the Linksys is next to the (upstairs) desktop PC.

Now know it's a Virgin Superhub 2. Single port feeding the upstairs LinkSys router's Internet port.

They don't want any changes to the Superhub and are happy to buy a replacement for the LinkSys. Probably go for the Asus you suggested earlier. It's perfectly adequate for their needs.

Thank you.