Recently, I’ve been experiencing speed problem with my BT Infinity 2 service – I’ve been getting transfer rates of around 7Mbs when I should have been getting up to 76. During a chat with one of their support technicians, he let slip that the Home Hub 5 doesn’t support Infinity 2 properly. More on that later…..
…. First we need some background on the issue.
BT Infinity slows down
For the last couple of days we’ve notice that our internet connection was very slow, so yesterday evening I bit the bullet and started a BT help desk chat. This is the first thing that irks me with BT: their countdown “You should be answered in 2:32” simply doesn’t work. The wait time goes up and down like a fiddlers elbow before finally giving up and effectively saying “you’ll be answered eventually.” After I’d finally managed to get a technician on the line, he spent a while doing whatever it is he does, before telling me the the problem was I don’t have Infinity 2 and so I am limited to 12.5 Mbs. I sent over a screen shot of the bill, proving that I do, and was told “You’ll need to take it up with Billing.” The technician then ended the chat before I could seek more information.
I started another chat with another technician and again had the chat terminated. By now, I was feeling more than a little determined, so I started a third chat. Third time is a charm! After a total of two and a half hours, the third technician told me “You need to take it up with billing, but they are now closed for the day. I can get them to call you tomorrow.” Great, I thought, I’ll get to the bottom of it tomorrow, so we arranged for a call at 8:30 am.
Tomorrow never comes
This morning, I dragged the dog around the field at break-neck pace so that I could be at my desk for 8:30, but it was in vain: no one called. By 9:00, I’d had enough of waiting so I called the Billing Department directly. After explaining the issue, they claimed that they didn’t know that they were supposed to call me, but they did confirm that I am indeed an Infinity 2 customer. The chap on the phone then proceeded to “run some checks” and, after a while, told me that he had “reset the line” and that I shouldn’t use the internet for an hour to let it “stabilise.”
I left it alone for two hours, before running another speed check. Rather unsurprisingly, it didn’t make any difference. The connection was still slow.
The saga of Pushp, from BT
Given that we’d made zero progress, I started another chat session with Pushp, a BT technician, again explaining the problems I’d encountered. During the conversation, he said some rather strange things. First of all, he’d only accept the speed test results from BT’s own service. He discounted the results from Speedtest.net (Ookla) and Broadbandspeedchecker.co.uk. because they were third party sites and might be limited by their own bandwidth. I pointed out that I was also experiencing slow responses from YouTube and attempting downloads from various different websites were yielding a pitiful 54Kb/s transfer rate. Still, he was convinced that this was everyone else’s fault and that BT were fine.
During the chat, he got me to set the hub so that the channels were fixed, rather than self-sensing. It was then that he dropped the bombshell: only Smarthub 6’s support Infinity 2 correctly. As you’ll see from the transcript below, he said:
Simon, You need a new smart hub 6, which can support Infinity 2 properly. you are using a very old hub, It could also cause the slow speed Issue.Pushp, BT Service Technician
As soon as I replied by saying “That implies that former hubs don’t support it properly” my phone rang; it was Pushp calling. He said that I needed to close the chat window “as it had been open for an hour and ten minutes.” As soon as I said that I’d done it, he terminated the call. It was clear to me that Pushp was attempting to hide any evidence of his conversation and his admission that HomeHub 5’s don’t work correctly. Unfortunately for him, he didn’t tell me to take a copy of the transcript before ending the chat.
At the moment, I am no further forward. I still have terribly slow internet. Time to look for an alternative supplier……
Pushp: Hello. I’m Pushp.Thanks for that information, I’ll check it and get back to you in a moment.
 Pushp: I’m sorry our service hasn’t been up to scratch. Give me a minute and I’ll check what’s going on.
 Pushp: Can you just confirm a few bits of information so I can look into your account please?
• Are you the account holder?
• Your full name?
• Your account number?
 Simon Coates: The account holder is XXXXXXXX, Account number XXXXXXXXXXX
 Pushp: Thank you
 Pushp: I need you to check the current speed as of now.
 Pushp: You can test the speed of your broadband here – http://speedtest.btwholesale.com
 Simon Coates: Yesterday evening I reported a slow broadband connection. After two and a half hours, I was told that the problem was that I don’t have BT Infinity and am limited to 12.5 Mbs. I pointed out that I do have Infinity and have had it since the service was introduced. At that point I was told I needed to talk to Billing and the service technician would arrange for them to call me at 8:30 this morning.
By 9:00 I hadn’t had a call, so I called billing directly. They were unaware that they were supposed to call me. They also confirmed that I am an Infinity 2 subscriber and that I should be getting the service. The technician claimed to have tried “resetting the line” and that I shouldn’t attempt to use the Internet for an hour “to let the line stabilise.” Two hours later, the speed problem still exists.
 Pushp: Thanks for that information.
 Pushp: Allow me a moment.
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 Pushp: This is not a BT link. I would need you to check with BT link once please.
 Pushp: You can test the speed of your broadband here – http://speedtest.btwholesale.com
 Pushp: Simon, you are on Infinity 2 plan and your minimum speed should be 63 Mbps.
 Pushp: Let me get this Issue fixed right away.
 Simon Coates: It reports 43.19 Mps. Speedtest.net reports 9.94, Broadbandspeedchecker.net reports 11.07
 Pushp: It is still slow.
 Pushp: I would only recommend the BT link to run the test as it is direct connected to the exchange.
 Pushp: Let me get this fixed right away.
 Simon Coates: It was one of your colleagues last night that recommended speedtest.net
 Pushp: I’m going to run the complete test of your broadband line from the Exchange to your hub, It will take 5 to 7 minutes, I would request you to stay with me.
 Pushp: Which BT home hub you are using?
 Simon Coates: Homehub 4. Type A
 Pushp: Thank you
 Pushp: May I know how do you connect to Internet at home, through cable or wireless?
 Simon Coates: Currently, wireless, but have tried wired too
 Pushp: Okay.
 Pushp: Is your hub and phone line is directly connected to the one main Master socket through the Micro filter?
 Simon Coates: No micro filter as the master socket has two sockets.
 Pushp: Please go this link and tell me what type of master socket you have www.bt.com/help/socket
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 Pushp: Thank you
 Pushp: Hub is in top and phone line in bottom. Is tha right_
 Simon Coates: Yes
 Pushp: Okay.
 Pushp: I need you to factory reset the hub now.
 Pushp: You’ll find the “Reset” pinhole button on the back of your Hub, Using a paper clip press the button and hold for 20 seconds. Your Hub lights will go out and your Hub will restart.
 Pushp: This chat will not be disconnected, I’ll be waiting here, when you come back online.
 Simon Coates: I did that with your colleague this morning
 Pushp: Okay.
 Pushp: 1.Open the Hub Manager by going to http://bthomehub.home or 192.168.1.254 in your web browser
 Simon Coates: Ok
 Simon Coates: Sorry, it is Hub 5
 Pushp: Okay.
 Pushp: Go to the hub manager with same link.
 We’ve lost the connection between you and BT Chat. Please give us a moment to try to connect you again.
 We’ll keep trying to reconnect you in the next 480 seconds.
 We’ll keep trying to reconnect you in the next 360 seconds.
 We’ll keep trying to reconnect you in the next 240 seconds.
 Connection resumed.
 Pushp: Click on Settings and Enter the admin password. Unless you’ve previously changed it, you’ll find the default password on your Hub settings card on the back of your Hub.
 Pushp: Are you still there?
 Simon Coates: I am back. Hub decided to reboot itself
 Pushp: Okay, does it happens often_
 Simon Coates: At the settings page and have logged it
 Simon Coates: *in
 Pushp: Click on the “Advanced Settings” tab, then click Continue to Advanced Settings
 Pushp: Click on the “Wireless” tab
 Simon Coates: Done
 Pushp: Go to the 2.4GHz page and select a channel from the drop down menu next to “Wireless , select the channel 1
 Pushp: Click Apply to confirm the change. Then wait 60 seconds for your computer to automatically discover the new settings. There’s no need to change any settings on your computer
 Pushp: Go to the 5GHz page and select a channel from the drop down menu next to “Wireless Channel” select the channel 36
 Simon Coates: Done
 Pushp: Now, save the settings and restart the hub from the power button.
 We’ve lost the connection between you and BT Chat. Please give us a moment to try to connect you again.
 We’ll keep trying to reconnect you in the next 480 seconds.
 We’ll keep trying to reconnect you in the next 360 seconds.
 Connection resumed.
 Simon Coates: Done
 Pushp: Now, I need you to run the speed test again.
 Pushp: You can test the speed of your broadband here – http://speedtest.btwholesale.com
 Simon Coates: Speedtest.net reports 5.72
 Pushp: Use Bt link please.
 Simon Coates: BT: 62.01, Speedtest.net: 5.72, Broadbandspeedchecker.co.uk: 7.67
 Pushp: That is great.
 Pushp: Simon, I would like to advise you something.
 Simon Coates: Why is there such a great difference between BT and the other standard speed checkers?
 Pushp: the other website is not connected to our exchange so it is not giving you the correct speed. The speed result you get on these website are basically as per their own server, which are not connected with BT at all.
 Pushp: I would never recommend to use the third party website.
 Simon Coates: Perhaps you need to explain that to your colleagues
 Pushp: As per BT link you are now, getting the full speed.
 Pushp: Sure, I´ll do that.
 Simon Coates: They recommended Speettest.net
 Pushp: I´m so sorry about that, might be he was a new advisor.
 Pushp: I´m telling you as per my experience.
 Simon Coates: It is also interesting that the two independent sites give very similar results
 Pushp: I told you it is totally depends on their own sever, sometime they might show you the speed up to 300 Mbps, Happened with me, when I was helping a customer.
 Pushp: He used speed.net and got high speed result.
 Pushp: I can assure you now. there is no fault on the line and only needed to set up the channel correctly.
 Pushp: Are you happy I have fully resolved your query today?
 Simon Coates: No.
 Simon Coates: I am still getting slow downloads.
 Pushp: Okay.
 Simon Coates: Attempting to download a file from DaVinci Resolve – 543mb file is due to take around 30 minutes.
 Simon Coates: I am certain that were I to select a file from a different site, it would also be slow
 Pushp: You can try now,
 Pushp: It would not take that long any more.
 Simon Coates: Bt Speed test is now dropped to 56
 Pushp: The hub takes 12 to 24 hours to get settled and It will give you the best available speed. If you check after 5 minute, It will increase again.
 Simon Coates: A 28mb download from Sandisk’s website is taking over 10 minutes
 Simon Coates: I am currently getting 45KB/Sec
 Pushp: Simon, Ive already told you can not help with third party website at all.
 Pushp: They are not related to BT, so I can not even comment on that.
 Pushp: I can only help with the BT speed test link.
 Pushp: No other speed test website.
 Simon Coates: That is nonsense. It proves that the issue is within your network.
 Pushp: No It does not.
 Simon Coates: It appears that any connection I make to ANY WEBSITE is slow
 Pushp: In that case I would advise you to check your device, It may also cause you the slow speed Issue.
 Pushp: When was the last time you updated your device_
 Simon Coates: Which of the three devices I have tried today?
 Pushp: When was the last time you updated all of your three device and cleaned the Internet browser_
 Simon Coates: I have tried an iMac, an iPad and a Windows 10 machine = all the same results
 Pushp: 01:52:51 PM [00:53:40]
When was the last time you updated all of your three device and cleaned the Internet browser_
 Simon Coates: Also, why was I advised last night that the issue was with my account and that I am limited to 12.5mb
 Simon Coates: That 28mb download is still going – 17mb recieved
 Pushp: I´ve fixed your Issue, you are getting full speed now. I´ve already apologized on the behalf of the advisor who gave you Incorrect Information.
 Simon Coates: Why did three advisers give bad information?
 Simon Coates: I have now cleared the cache on my iPad (and restarted it) but Youtube videos refuse to play without stuttering
 Pushp: What is the speed you are getting on BT website now_
 Simon Coates: 45.48
 Pushp: Okay,
 Pushp: Does your hub keep rebooting Itself often_
 Simon Coates: Not that I am aware of – except earlier when I was talking with you
 Pushp: Simon, You need a new smart hub 6, which can support Infinity 2 properly. you are using a very old hub, It could also cause the slow speed Issue.
 Simon Coates: Ok. How do I go about getting one?
 Pushp: Your contract is over, so what I can advise you to renew the contract and you can also opt for the faster speed plan which is now available for you up to 80 Mbps. Once you renew the contract, you can get the new smart hub worth of £50.00 for free of cost.
 Simon Coates: That’s not really acceptable. You’ve admitted that the hub I have doesn’t support Infinity 2 properly – it is a service I am still paying for to the tune of £60 per month – and I cannot use what I am paying for.
 Simon Coates: I might just as well switch to Virgin who will provide a faster connection
 Pushp: You don´t understand what I said.
 Simon Coates: “You need a new smart hub 6, which can support Infinity 2 properly”
 Simon Coates: That implies that former hubs do not support it properly