The BT Home Hub 4, BT Hub 5, BT Smart Hub 2, and BT Smart Hub 3 are dual‑band. This means they use two Wi-Fi frequency bands for your devices to connect: 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz.
By default, these hubs use the same network name (also known as the SSID) for both bands. When a typical 5GHz‑capable device connects to this single network name, it will automatically switch between 2.4GHz and 5GHz.
However, some devices do not handle a single network name for both frequencies well. As a result:
- The device may not connect wirelessly to the hub.
- It may not connect to the 5GHz frequency, even in the same room.
- The Wi-Fi signal may be intermittent.
- The Wi-Fi connection may be very slow.
Devices known to have problems include:
- Some Apple devices, including the iPhone 5 and Apple TV.
- Some Android mobiles.
- Some Xbox consoles.
How to fix the issue
For some devices, you can fix this by using different network names (SSIDs) for the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands.
To set this up:
- Open your web browser on a device connected to the Hub and go to bthomehub.home. This opens Hub Manager.
- Select Advanced Settings
- Enter your Hub admin password when prompted. Unless you've changed it, the default password is on your hub settings card.
- Select Continue to Advanced Settings.
- Select Wireless.
- Select 5GHz.
- Change Sync with 2.4GHz to No.
- Change the Wireless SSID to a new name. We recommend adding 5GHz to the end of the existing SSID so you can easily tell them apart.
- Select Apply to save your changes.
After a few minutes, you should see two hub network names in your device’s list of available Wi-Fi networks. Your devices will continue to connect automatically to the original SSID, which is the 2.4GHz network.
If you want an existing dual‑band device to use 5GHz only, connect it manually to the renamed 5GHz SSID.
Things to note
While 5GHz can offer faster wireless speeds than 2.4GHz, it has a shorter range. To get the best performance, you may need to keep your device closer to your hub than you would with the 2.4GHz network.