Shaw disabled 160mhz WiFi bandwidth. Limiting the WiFi speed to 433mbps for 1Gbps customers

[mgbruce]

I am a Fibre+ Gig customer.

Had a support chat this evening after a long time of slower than expected bandwidth over WiFi. I spent 2 hours online with chat support and got no where so thought the forum may get something changed with Shaw's cloud managed router solution they are forcing on everyone. The support tech called it "Mesh Agent". And no, I do not use the "Pods". 

I had previously enabled 160mhz Wi-Fi bandwidth on the bluecurve modem which allowed me to reach 1.2Gbps over wireless. Shaw rolled out an "update" that now disables the 160mhz option and I can no longer adjust settings on the BlueCurve gateway itself. I have to use the app or web interface which allows me to adjust the SSID name and that's it.

As a result the wireless bandwidth available on the bluecurve modem is 80mhz, which has a maximum network throughput of 433Mbps. 160mhz, which I used to be able to use, has a maximum throughput of 1733mbps. But now it's greyed out on the bluecurve modem settings page with a friendly notice saying that Shaw manages it for my own good.

In short, I pay for a 1Gbps plan. I was able to get 1.2Gbps over Wi-Fi using the BlueCurve modem. Happy customer. Then Shaw blocked me from adjusting settings on the modem itself and reset the Wi-Fi bandwidth to 80mhz (433Mbps). Because they know best.

The solution is to pay out of pocket for a WiFi router that supports 160mhz throughput and set the BlueCurve into bridge mode.

Just a heads up to any Fibre+ Gig customers. You will never be able to get 1Gbps over Wi-Fi since Shaw rolled out the "Mesh Agent" to their modems.

[rstra]

Do you have the XB6 or XB7?

[mgbruce]

XB6

[rstra]

I thought 160 MHz was for wifi 6, so it would only be available on the XB7. Since you had it set on your XB6 previously, I may be wrong.

[mgbruce]

160mhz is available on the XB6. And it worked great. But now it's greyed out with the notice that settings can only be modified via the web or app, and you cannot set your channel or bandwidth in the web or app. Not sure why Shaw would do this.

[rickatk]

@mgbruceInteresting what you are describing. I can even find the greyed our settings you are referring to, but it has been a while since venturing into that area of the setup pages. I would suggest Shaw is placing tighter controls for consistency and to promote reliable to its consumer platform. I have never achieved the speeds you quoted on my Gigabit service. Further I haven’t noticed any performance changes lately.

[BvrHunter]

I had the XB6 with gigabit service. Up until August 11th, I was achieving speeds of 970+ on ethernet and 600+ on wireless. Something happened after the 11th, because my gigabit service is now a tenth of the speed (ethernet) on downloads and 200 ish on WiFi. Up speed is a constant 105+. 

So they made me an offer to upgrade to the XB7. Guess what it didn't resolve my issue. Actually if anything it made my connection even slower. Especially if I attach my laptop to 1 of the other ethernet ports, it kills the modem connection to the point that I can't even load the gateway page.

Tech was here yesterday. his phone tool thing showed a throughput of 1189 on WiFi. So obviously he blamed my hardware. I'm going yup like my phone (Galaxy S9), my laptop MSI Titan Pro and my Desktop (Decent homebuilt system) all crapped out at the exact same time. Tech suggested I get a new ethernet card because "the one on your mobo is causing the issue".

If that were the case explain to me how I can fit a mobo ethernet port onto my laptop or cellphone???

Lastly found out this evening that Shaw now OUTSOURCES their tech support to the Caribbean.

[mdk]

@BvrHunter -- how I can fit a mobo ethernet port onto my laptop

How about a USB-C 3.1 adapter that supports Gigabit Ethernet:

https://www.bestbuy.ca/en-ca/product/anker-usb-c-to-ethernet-adapter-a8341ha1-5/14967687

???

BestBuy has similar USB-to-Ethernet adapters. Some are USB2. Some are 10/100 Ethernet.

Can you carry your laptop to a friend's home, and connect to their WiFi network, to see what speeds you get with your hardware connecting to their cable-modem?

Be sure to run the laptop with AC power -- some laptops slow down when running on their battery, to increase the hours of usage, before needing to recharge the battery.

[mdk]

@BvrHunter -- Lastly found out this evening that Shaw now OUTSOURCES their tech support to the Caribbean

Really? Are you sure that it was not a scammer, claiming to be a Shaw Agent, and claiming to be in the Caribbean?

After 11 PM Pacific, I have talked to Shaw Call Centres in Northern Ontario, and in the Maritimes, but never in the Caribbean.

[BvrHunter]

The guy said he works in the Caribbean country. I was using the Shaw web chat.