Bruce123 Posted February 17, 2015 Posted February 17, 2015 I have just signed-up for BT Infinity (38Mbit unlimited), and so far I am happy with it. Getting downloads of about 33Mbit and uploads of 10Mbit. I have been automatically opted-in to the BT-WiFi network, where the customer (me) agrees to share a part of their bandwidth with other BT broadband customers (presumably who also opted-in). They connect to "BTWifi-with-FON" (being broadcast as an additional SSID) and authenticate on the captive portal using their BT username/password. I am happy enough to allow this as I can then borrow bandwidth from the 1,000s customers when I am out (without using up my mobile data which is currently 2GB). But I think BT need to be a lot more open about this. BT are also broadcasting a 3rd SSID from my Hub called "BTWifi-x", which is an 802.1x authenticated wireless network. After a little bit of research I have discovered that the purpose of this is to allow users to automatically connect/authenticate (rather than using the captive portal, which can be a real pain) to these wireless networks. The authentication relies on a digital certificate on the client device to authenticate the device as belonging to an eligible BT broadband customer. Great I thought, I would download the App/certificate to my Android and I can auto connect/authenticate to these wireless networks, without having to faff around with entering username/password. The only problem is that according to a forum post from BT, the App only works with the iPhone. There exists a BT WiFi App for Android but it doesn't allow the 802.1x auto connection/authentication. According to the posting, they looked at developing an App for Android found there was a lack of consistency in the way Android devices handle certificates and hence they have no plans to develop a version for Android. Has anyone heard about this? I have issues with BT's lack of openness about the BT WiFi community (sharing broadband, the auto opt-in, security, the purpose of the BTWifi-X network, who is eligible to use it). But also, if the issue with Android is trying to support older versions, then why not develop an App for newer versions of Android (e.g. 4.4 or above), as I assume the inconsistency stems from differences in older versions of Android. Are there any BT Infinity customers out there. Any thoughts? Bruce.
robjduk Posted February 17, 2015 Posted February 17, 2015 I think you should buy your own router (methods of getting your key are only a bing away) and grant BT little to no access to it. To me, BT are on the same level as Capita and RM.
Bruce123 Posted February 17, 2015 Author Posted February 17, 2015 I think you should buy your own router (methods of getting your key are only a bing away) and grant BT little to no access to it. To me, BT are on the same level as Capita and RM. I did wonder about this and fortunately, I notice from the forums that BT do allow you to plug-in your own router, which prevents all these shenanigans with broadcasting additional SSIDs to share (although BT describe this as you will losing these features). Having said this, the Hub or whatever you call it seems very customization. You seem to be able to modify most things (including turning off the additional SSIDs). It looks like a lot of thought has gone into it. Now, if only I could turn off that blue LED... Thanks, Bruce.
Arthur Posted February 17, 2015 Posted February 17, 2015 if the issue with Android is trying to support older versions, then why not develop an app for newer versions of Android (e.g. 4.4 or above) Surely all BT need to do is provide the certificate? Why would you need an app to do something that is already supported by Android? Are there any BT Infinity customers out there. When I get fibre broadband next month I am going out of my way to avoid BT.
rich_tech Posted February 17, 2015 Posted February 17, 2015 When I get fibre broadband next month I am going out of my way to avoid BT. From what I have seen of some alternatives, the equipment they offer on the fibre can be cheap/terrible - parents ADSL router is some awful Technicolor box with their plus.net connection, range is worse than the old Belkin ADSL router my sister used to have and thats saying something with a Belkin device
Arthur Posted February 17, 2015 Posted February 17, 2015 From what I have seen of some alternatives, the equipment they offer on the fibre can be cheap/terrible Like you say, most ISP-supplied devices are complete and utter rubbish so I have always purchased my own routers. Even when I had dial-up I bought my own 56K modems. I currently have an Asus RT-N66U router which is still fairly decent, along with a Draytek Vigor 120 ADSL modem, so I was thinking of buying a BT Openreach ECI/r or unlocked Huawei EchoLife HG612 3B fibre modem from eBay. This would allow me to upgrade the router at a later date without changing the modem. Perhaps to an Asus RT-AC3200?
Chris_Jones Posted February 18, 2015 Posted February 18, 2015 Well BT were supposed to get me on Infinity last week, so far they have managed to give me a phone line and send me an email that I have infinity - just no actual broadband! BT no longer supply a seperate VDSL modem and Router - its all built into the Hub 5 so if you are providing your own kit you will need to source a VDSL Modem.
mthomas08 Posted February 18, 2015 Posted February 18, 2015 I must the only one that told them to go ahead, plug it in and do what you want. As long as I get what I pay for - who cares? I have had no issues internet wise since going back to when Virgin Media was Telewest and blueyonder?..
fiza Posted February 18, 2015 Posted February 18, 2015 I had BT Infinity installed a couple of months ago. The internet speeds are good but the wifi coverage around the house is terrible. I had Sky before and never dropped connections but this Hub box drops connections all the time. Sometimes I will look at my S3 and it hasn't even picked up the wireless. My wifes Iphone 5s does the same. She is on 5GB Data as part of her contract and normally doesn't get anywhere near that but since we have had the Hub installed she has gone near her 5GB limit several times as the phone switches to 3G/4G as the wireless hasn't kicked in.
Bruce123 Posted February 18, 2015 Author Posted February 18, 2015 Surely all BT need to do is provide the certificate? Why would you need an app to do something that is already supported by Android? I had the same thought. I think the issue may be more to do with how to download the cert to the Android device and install it (through the browser). If you build an App which authenticates you by your username/password and then requests a cert from the server (which it generates on the fly), then in principle, it can handle the download and installation of the cert. If I do the same but by visiting a webpage instead, how will Android handle the download of the cert? Will it identify it as a certificate (through the extension) and allow you to install it into the certificate store? I don't know, I've not tested it, just speculating. But I would be happy to try it as it would be so convenient to be able to auto-connect/disconnect to BT-WiFi as I'm and about... Also, I am not sure if the App may be needed as a VPN client... (who knows *shrug*). BT need to be a lot more open about the opt-in to BT WiFi Community (and not just include it in the small print that realistically that nobody reads), I bet most BT broadband customers aren't even aware they are sharing their broadband (and they can connect to anyone else's). Thanks, Bruce. 1
Bruce123 Posted February 18, 2015 Author Posted February 18, 2015 Or that anyone with a debit card or paypal account and pay to use your broadband. Wouldn't it be better if you can take a share of this money? Bruce.
jmak Posted February 18, 2015 Posted February 18, 2015 Or that anyone with a debit card or paypal account and pay to use your broadband. Wouldn't it be better if you can take a share of this money? Bruce. I think the deal is quite good - I reckon most users will get more free data than they give away - how often will your WiFi be the strongest signal available to random people compared to how often you pick up a BT hotspot when you're out? Even in my house I pick up several other BT fon signals, so essentially it's only going to be people visiting me who can access it. You can easily opt out though - I've turned wireless broadcast off on the hub and connected my own APs around the house. The hub 5 seems pretty stable and it connects at close to the advertised speed most of the time. Not convinced I like BT having management of my router and access to devices on my network. Also not very configurable - I really want to use a different DNS and filtering provider, but that's not an option. Plenty of routers out there with a built in VDSL modem. I've got a draytek 2850, but haven't managed to get a stable connection yet - I'm sure I'll get there though. Should you go BT? I don't think they're particularly good or bad, so depends on the price. If your house is old enough to have solid internal walls, you'll probably want an alternative to the router offered by any of the networks.
rad Posted February 18, 2015 Posted February 18, 2015 I too have infinity, not being that bothered I have it set up like the majority of bt users. The access to free BT wifi out and about is brilliant, I can often pick up a BT signal, the best was in Wales in the middle of no where, little phone signal yet I was connected to someone wifi.... It's like the old days when you hunted for a wifi with no password
mavhc Posted May 7, 2017 Posted May 7, 2017 https://neilalexander.eu/articles/2017/2/27/bt-wifi has how to get the cert 1
Bruce123 Posted May 7, 2017 Author Posted May 7, 2017 I haven't tested yet on my Android 7 phone, but it gets a big thumbs up from me (assuming it works).
Blue_Cookeh Posted May 7, 2017 Posted May 7, 2017 Had BT Infinity since I moved in to my current place (employee broadband originally... those were the days :'() and it's been rock solid, I get a consistent 80 down, 20 up. We were using the HomeHub 5 for a long time but eventually I bit the bullet and swapped it out. Bought a cheapo BT Openreach modem from eBay for a tenner and put in an AC router I had lying around with DD-WRT on it. That thing has been solid as a rock! I think it's uptime is into 100 odd days now without losing a connection. The BTWiFi-X stuff is indeed used for certificate authentication to the public, but it's also used for corporate customers too. BT sold a software product to public and private sector called MobileXpress which made heavy use of the BTWiFi-X SSID to provide connectivity.
mavhc Posted May 8, 2017 Posted May 8, 2017 Just installed BT Wi-fi app on an ipad, I don't see the "Install connection profile" option, does anyone else?
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