What is tp-link onemesh

[#1]

I was just about to take the plunge and get a mesh network.

As I wanted to ditch my hub1 I need a modem/router with extra nodes making up a mesh or a modem and nodes. TP-LINK do the VR2100 (mesh enabled modem/router) plus RE300 to form what they call a Onemesh. Their Deco products are advertised as mesh. The problem with the Deco is 2 fold. Firstly I still need a modem and I want to ditch the hub1 which I could use just as a modem. Secondly where I want set up the extra nodes, although there are sockets there is nowhere to stand the satallites. Hence the attraction of the RE300 devices.

I cannot find what the difference is between a tp-link mesh and tp-link onemesh.

Anyone know?

[#2]

you can get mesh networks that don't need to replace the router and you can continue using the hub one as a modem / router.
Any particular reason you want to replace the hub one?

[#3]

Firstly 30 odd pages of problems with the hub1 says a lot. I know it's to do with the WiFi but once trust is lost, it's lost. That's how the human psyche works in my case.

Secondly I want to extend the range of the WiFi in a better way than I have at the moment. I have BT hotspots which clone the SSID so only 1 network is seen but they are slow. And for some reason sometimes the WiFi failes, client disassociate and they then reconnect. So problems there.

Also by having 1 device as a modem/router it reduces the number of power supplies cables etc

But I still want to know what the difference is between a mesh network and a Onemesh.

I have seen 1 review which alludes to the idea that it's not a true mesh. Thing is I don't trust reviews. I once private labled 35mm film. It was actually Fuji film purchased in bulk which I repackaged. It had no identification. I had a rival who also did the same. A reviewer found my film better than the rival. Hence I don't trust reviews.

[#4]

I don't know if you can replace the Hub One with any old modem. I know you can use BT ones, because I have a Business Hub that has replaced my Hub One. £11 - eBay!

I have set this to modem mode, so it just acts as a modem. No wi fi or routing. To this I have connected a TP-Link Deco M4. There are three of them. I now have wi fi throughout the house at maximum rate. It's the same everywhere - about 60 down, 20 up.

I did test with the Hub One working as a router, but with the wi fi off, and the results were the same. If I were doing this again, I wouldn't bother with the BT router - I'd just turn off the wi fi on the Hub One and connect the TP-Link in, getting an IP address from the Hub One. I know this is "double natting", which is frowned on, but to be honest I see no difference.

[#5]

@Nubber99 thanks for your and other comments.

I have been lucky enough to have been given a bt hub 5 so I can try both the hub1 and bt hub in modem mode only.

As for the mesh, I have decided against using tplink oneMesh, there are certain limitations and will be going for a decor when financed permits.

[#6]

One of my house mates recently invested in a Linksys mesh system (fairly pricey at £300) but the results were outstanding although I’m sure cheaper mesh options would’ve done the job.

Gone from barely any wireless signal upstairs to full signal including in the garden (I’ve got a house with thick brick walls, having tried the Hub One, a TP link and a ZyXEL to no improvement). 

The Hub One won’t work in bridge mode so if you want a mesh to do the PPP, you’ll need to buy a separate modem to go behind the mesh. Any VDSL compatible modem should work, you may be able to turn off the router in your BT Hub.

Alternatively, I’d personally keep the Hub One in place, switch off its Wi-Fi and set up the mesh as a wireless access point (That’s pretty much the setup I have and it works great)

[#7]

@briston  As far as I am aware the BT hub 5 and PlusNet Hub 1 cannot be configured to operate in modem only mode with the normal firmware, So how do you intend to try this? I believe a modem only function may be available if you can install Openwrt on the routers which are basically the same in terms of hardware but it is not a simple job. See this thread for more info....

https://community.plus.net/t5/Tech-Help-Software-Hardware-etc/Running-OpenWRT-on-the-Plusnet-Hub-One... 

I know it's a typo but what décor are you going for?😁

[#8]

@Anoush thank you for your input. And you have demonstrated a problem.

It took me too many emails to tp-link to establish the difference between a oneMesh system which they promote like their vr2100 router and re300 nodes and a mesh like their deco devices. I finally found out. Hence I will not be going for a oneMesh.

Sadly it has taken too many messages to Plusnet to get the information about what is going wrong at my property. This includes a previously undiagnosed problem with my incoming line, twice!

At least my training as an electronics engineer in the TV broadcast industry gave me the ability to research so I have learnt a bit about how various things with the internet works. However when Plusnet say that due to internal reasons they cannot say too much but we are solving the problem. Really?

Now I have to understand what I lose by the hub1 not working in bridge mode. I now have to decide if I want my mesh to 'do the PPP'. I don't know so I'll have to understand that. And what do I lose out on if I turn off the wireless on my hub1 and set up the mesh as a wireless access point as against a separate modem and mesh. Of course that begs the question how do I know if I can turn off to the modem off on 'any VDSL' modem when you say I cannot do this on the hub1.

The internet and dissemination of the service is not a consumer product yet but it's also frustratingly difficult to get information and is full of tla's. Even a tla is a 3 letter acronym.

[#9]

@RealAleMadrid thank you for your input. I was replying to another comment and so did not know about yours. Most of your comments can be answered by my response I have previously given regarding I now know I cannot use the hub1, probably, for a mesh.

I was thinking, now, of going for a deco 5.

In simple terms I suppose, if I want a mesh, what do I need? Is the deco 5 any good. What VDSL modem will do the job?

[#10]

PPP stands for Point to Point Protocol. It’s a fancy term for what a router does, authenticates to the internet and routes traffic.

I don’t see the benefit of over-complicating things by getting a VDSL(fibre) modem or trying to ‘hack’ a combined modem-router to only be a modem so you can use the mesh as a router. The simplest way is to use the mesh as a wireless access point, letting either the Hub One or the BT Hub you have now be the modem-router. 

[#11]

Completely agree with Anoush. Turn off the wifi on the Hub-One and use the TP-Link as an access point. There's no discenable advantage in getting another modem to act just as a router. I've tried both, and I can't find any differences. We also have a similar setup at work with a Hub-One and a pfsense firewall/dhcp server and it works perfectly well.

[#12]

Thanks all.

I'm considering getting Decor and adding as many units as needed to achieve good coverage. Using the hub1 then as a modem, turning off the wireless