Which router is better?

The Huawei HG658c is a fiber ready router (VDSL2), the Belkin is not. Vodafone lock it down so much that it is pretty useless except for the most basic user. Eircom likewise lock down their F1000 Fiber router, a ZyXel VMG8324-B10A. Both fiber units are capable of far greater functionality than Eircom and Vodafone want you to have, VOIP is just one example.

The Eircom box is far better imo featuring 5xGigabyte ethernet ports and excellent VDSL sync rates. I also get 300Mb wifi links. These are sold UNLOCKED on adverts.ie and are well worth it for the high sync rate, more megabytes per second makes a big difference to us gamers but your milage may differ

Paul Thomas Rowland wrote: »

...Google "Unbranding the ZyXel VMG8324-B10A"

Hello,

thank you for mentioning this. I researched and published the unbranding method for the Eircom F1000 on Kitz a few months ago and I sell the unbranded F1000 on Adverts.

Apart from unlocking VOIP and the like, the key gain is the new 039 Broadcom PHY. Many users on Kitz report very significant increases in Downstream Rate. In one case, on an 1.1km long line to the DSLAM when the PHY alone was changed, sync rates went from:

Max: Upstream rate = 2749 Kbps, Downstream rate = 33412 Kbps

to

Max: Upstream rate = 2754 Kbps, Downstream rate = 44708 Kbps

I cannot post the links here, but you can find lots of detail on the Broadband Hardware pages of Kitz.

That's 33% EXTRA download sync rate. Irish ISPs have no interest, quite the opposite imo, in providing consumers with better sync rates - they would have to offer better contracted rates and provide more backbone bandwidth.

I can tell you for a fact that O2, Vodafone, Eircom all use the older PHY and lock down their modem/routers to prevent you from enjoying the full capabilities of those devices. When consumers move on to a new ISP, their old router usually ends up in the garbage.

As the unbranding process requires tools, skill, time, etc that most people do not have, I will unbrand your F1000 for €20 plus postage. See my ad "Unbrand your Eircom F1000 Fiber Broadband" on Adverts.

@Creat, I know nothing about the Belkin.

The default wireless settings of the HG658c are correct for here. You might try changing the county to Bolivia (where permitted wifi power is higher than Ireland). Also the position and orientation of the Router will have an impact on reception. Other than that, talk to your ISP (Vodafone).