Issue using Wifi Pod and Giga Hub: defaulting to single SSID and WPA3 encryption

[peppy]

I thought I'd share my experience in trying to connect a wifi pod to a Giga Hub modem given my specific set-up in the hope that it can save someone in a similar situation some time and trouble.

I ordered a wifi pod the other day with the hope of having better coverage in some areas of our house where the signal can be weak and somewhat inconsistent, even if usable all told. The pod was delivered earlier and I was expecting a quick, plug and play experience consistent with installing additional nodes for a mesh router. Was I ever wrong. 🙂

I currently have my Giga Hub set-up to broadcast separate SSIDs for the three wifi frequencies, as recommended by a Bell tech that had come to my home to replace a defective modem, as having a single SSID for all the bands was resulting in some devices frequently switching between 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz frequencies resulting in connection instability and latencies. In that configuration I have the encryption type set to WPA2 for 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz and for the 6 GHz band, the only option is WPA3, which is neither here nor there as I don't have any wifi 6e compatible devices on my network. In our home we have about 50 devices connected to wifi.

Now, when installing the pod, the only option is to install it via the app which then resets the modem to have a single SSID across all bands along with the encryption type set to WPA3. As a result, a significant number of the devices on my network were unable to connect as they only support WPA / WPA2 and not WPA3, which is a problem. A conversation with Tech Support agent confirmed that with the pod, no separate SSID naming by band or configuration of encryption type to WPA2 is possible.

My only solution then was to remove the pod, go back to being able to connect all of my devices, and live with some coverage challenges, which I may look to address by connecting up a second wifi router to my modem with a different SSID.

The pod is now being returned mere hours after it was delivered.

[dks]

I find that really interesting. I have a Giga Hub modem and the 4 smaller (older?) pods. I have had them for two years and been very, very satisfied. I have 22 devices connected, wired and wireless. All wireless connections are WPA/WPA2. WPA3 is only for 6 Ghz. I have no such devices, either. I have found no reason to separate the WiFi nets. The device negotiates it's fastest speed using the most appropriate protocol. Unless there is compelling reason I have yet to find for using separate SSID's, one SSID does work well. Sorry it didn't work out for you. 

[peppy]

Thanks for your reply and very interesting as well. I had tried the pod with one SSID as well but the problem was that there was no way to set the encryption type on the Giga Hub with that set-up. Had it defaulted to WPA2, as seems to have been your case, then it wouldn't have been an issue.

I wanted to love the pod but it didn't love me back. 😊

[dks]

That's even more curious. I wonder if the firmware version on the Giga Hub might matter? I am using 1.15.1. The most recent is 1.15.2, I believe.  Did the Bell techs offer updated Giga Hub firmware? And were the Plume pods the small ones in a set of four?  

[peppy]

That's a good thought. I just checked and my Giga Hub is still on firmware version 1.14.1, and no, none of the Bell techs that I spoke to or chatted with offered to update the firmware.

It was effectively "it is what it is and if that's the issue that you're having, then the pod won't work for you so return it." I definitely got the sense that the techs that I interacted with were a bit out of their depth and weren't quite sure how to proceed to attempt to resolve the issue.

I only received a single Plume pod and it was about the size of the palm of an adult hand.

[dks]

Interesting. I have four. 

[BellPatricia]

Hey there @peppy, thanks for your post and welcome to the Bell Community.

Just wanted to jump in here and add that when setting up your Wi-Fi pod you need to ensure Whole Home Wi-Fi is turned ON in your modem GUI. 

Let the Community know how everything goes 🙂

- Patricia

[peppy]

Thanks for chiming in @BellPatricia and although I made no mention of it in my posts, I did turn on Whole Home Wi-Fi in the GUI when setting up my Wi-Fi pod. The modem would not otherwise connect up to the pod without Whole Home Wi-Fi turned on.

[Starick1957]

I just go Fibe 1.5 and the Gigahub 4000, I had to split the channels into 2.4 & 5 Ghz as most smart home devices (Nest Hello doorbell camera, Alexa, Roborock smart vaccum, etc) only work with 2.4 channel.

Will Bell pods work with this setup?

[old geek]

can a pod be installed on a split network. Does whole home need to be active first?

I have a location where devices keep switching(lose connection, then re connecting) we keep losing connection while streaming a zoom meeting ( from pc running chrome) via ultrachromecast to local tv.

My network is set up for 2.4ghz and 5.0Ghz.

[unknown234]

YUP same situation here I have 50+ devices. Using the HH4000 w pod i actually had very few issues. At times I noticed mine and wife phone  S20 ultra + s22 ultra would test 50-60mbps. Wifi off and on jump them back up to 500mbps +. Switched to Gigahub w pod speeds on phones drop below 1mbps brutal. Seperating the channels seem to be the solution but like you said you can't use the pod if you do so. Horrible design i now need to invest on seperate AP or entire mesh system.

[Vanadiel · Accepted solution]

Separate wired AP will be the best investment you ever made, trust me. It will require some knowledge, but nothing crazy and it will have much more advanced capabilities compared to any ISP offering.

I never once regretted getting a dedicated AP for all my wireless needs, and it's not tied to any provider so everything stays working should you use more than 1 provider.

[Filch]

Sorry, AP?

[Vanadiel]

AP = Access Point. I use this one.  This is a Unifi device so it requires Unifi to configure and monitor as it does not have it's own configuration page.

So unless you have a Unifi Gateway, which is not cheap, this will be a better product for you.

[Filch]

The Express is described as a gateway. Is it a gateway or a router? No too clear here on this: does this gateway connect to my Giga Hub? Also not clear is it ONLY uses WiFi 6. I will do a bit more reading.