What is the new Virgin box?

A friend has just rung me to say that Virgin have upgraded them - to what I don't currently know, presumably faster, and have sent a new box that they have to install.

Not being on Virgin I knoweth not what this box might be though presumably it's some sort of cable hub, I gather it has build in wireless as she was told that the old wireless router could be switched off as it was no longer needed.

I've asked her to let me have a look at the manuals to see what it's all about. Pending that I thought I'd ask here what this new box would be and if there are any installation issues?

Given that they have a laptop and two printers wireless connected would it be better to keep the existing wireless router/access point or to use the new Virgin box? The latter would mean resetting all the relevant network ids.

Forgive the ramble, I'm just trying to understand what's what so I can pop over and help them.

At a guess, they've been sent a Superhub because their old gear wasn't DOCSIS 3 capable. If so, the router functions on this device are regarded as flaky by many - you may be better setting the Superhub into modem mode and connecting the old cable router to it.

Ah, thanks for that. I know they have a modem behind the TV somewhere which is (somehow) connected to the router upstairs.

Yes, it is a Superhub. I've now got the instruction booklets.

Given the various devices they have wireless connected to their existing router it would be a real pain to change them all, especially given you comment about the flaky router functions on the Superhub.

So presumably to use modem mode, would need to plug the existing cable (hopefully an Ethernet cable) to the router into the Superhub, but what needs doing to the Superhub to set to modem mode?

[Edit for typo]

Edited by cheshire_man (Tue 22-Jan-13 10:12:54)

Here's a link that details setting the Superhub in modem mode.

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

Thank you kindly sir. I've printed the page and will use it when I go round to set up the Superhub for them.