Those awful Sky Routers

Chr15_2

I have one of those Sky Routers that has no external aerial. My signal is pretty poor unless you are standing close to it. I have tried re positioning it and also changing the channel but doesn't make a great deal of difference.

I wonder if anyone else here has had the same issue. I am told that you can't use any other router so am a bit stuffed. I am also considering some of these wireless wall plug signal enhancers but wonder if any experts out there had a cheaper solution first?

GunJack

you must have the Sagem one then?? The netgears and D-Links shoukd be okay from my experience....ask sky to change it citing poor wifi

Lucero_2

You can use any router you like, it's just against Sky's T&Cs.

I have Sky BB and use my trusty DrayTek Vigon router.

PM me if you want details

buglawton

The default free Virgin modem/ WiFi router is also a bit pants, I had the installer immediately disable it's inbuilt WiFi, then connect & test my trusty Netgear Rangemax before he left. A proper signal this time.

GunJack

Lucero wrote: »

You can use any router you like, it's just against Sky's T&Cs.

...and you can extract the ISP username/password that sky pre-install and then have locked down within the firmware. Yes, there are ways to extract/calculate this from each of the models, but it's a faff. This won't help when sky move over to MER authentication, unless you find out how to spoof the MAC address of the router they send you into your own router.......

wba31

If you use your own router with Sky, i was under the impression that you then simply do not qualify for their support should you have a problem. at my parents house that pathetic sky router (the grey one?) is in the box in the cupboard and in it's place stands the fantastic and reliable belkin router...
Should my parents have any problems i will re set up the sky router and if the problem is the line then call them out, if it's the belkin router you have a lifetime guarantee, so i send them the faulty router and get a replacement

GunJack

wba31 wrote: »

If you use your own router with Sky, i was under the impression that you then simply do not qualify for their support should you have a problem.

The T&C's are more explicit than that. You break them by just using another router other than the supplied one. This is partly why they lock down the username/pword within the firmware. The other reason is that the routers have been set up for "future services", probably direct connection to the sky box for stuff like streaming and other stuff.


It was certainly enough of a reason for me not to go to sky for my bb

CoolHotCold

The issue with SKY is they don't provide or give you the details for setting up a 3rd party router, so you're pretty much locked in to what they provide.


You can extract the details from the sky router, but it's cumbersome and not very customer friendly and will overwhelm most people, SKY are also going to be changing/in the process to a MAC based authentication system which means you will need to spoof the MAC address of the SKY router with a router that allows MER authentication (Yet more of a hassle and restricts choice even more for those willing to use 3rd party routers)

prowla

Sky say they may disconnect you of you use another router.
I guess they save on support costs by just allowing their own customized ones.
I have one set up for just in case (and the procedure to get the connection login details is a bit of a faff).

john87_2

Try to position the router as high as possible.

Use inssider to monitor your wireles signal (free)
http://www.metageek.net/products/inssider/

Or your could try connecting a wireless access point to the router. That would allow you to keep the sky router if that is required by sky.

Lucero_2

GunJack wrote: »

...and you can extract the ISP username/password that sky pre-install and then have locked down within the firmware. Yes, there are ways to extract/calculate this from each of the models, but it's a faff. This won't help when sky move over to MER authentication, unless you find out how to spoof the MAC address of the router they send you into your own router.......

1). It's literally a one click process on a website
2). You mean, it's a pain to type the mac address from the Sky router into your own, new router, (available on almost any decent router) like this:


Yes, totally annoying