Overpaying for months – SKY still not providing Wi-Fi 6 modem

[Gokh]

I understand your point about real-world Wi-Fi performance and I agree that coverage and stability can vary depending on the environment.

However, where I place the router in my home is my own decision and responsibility — not something that should justify the limitations of the hardware provided by the ISP.

I’m a new customer on the Sky Ultra Max package, and my expectation is that the equipment supplied should be reasonably capable of utilizing the service I’m paying for. The current Sky SR203 router (Wi-Fi 5 / 802.11ac) effectively limits wireless performance well below what modern devices and standards can achieve.

I’m not expecting perfect gigabit speeds over Wi-Fi in every room, but there is a clear difference between normal signal degradation and being capped by older-generation hardware. A Wi-Fi 6-capable router would at least allow higher throughput under optimal conditions, which is not possible with the SR203.

Also, I’m aware that the ONT handles the modem function and that the connection is shared infrastructure — that’s not really the issue here. My point is purely about the capability of the supplied router relative to the service tier.

[TimmyBGood]

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@Gokh wrote:

I’m a new customer on the Sky Ultra Max package, and my expectation is that the equipment supplied should be reasonably capable of utilizing the service I’m paying for. 

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If you were a new customer to Sky Broadband then you should have received a Max Hub.  If you previously had a Sky Broadband product then Sky policy is that you keep the previous Hub (as long as it's an SR203) if you don't add the WiFi Max subscription supplement.

This may well not be a particularly good policy on their part, but it's what they do.

On the other hand, multiple posts to this forum suggest that the Max Hub actually performs poorer for WiFi than the Broadband Hub in some properties.

Edit: if you took up gigabit FTTP right when it first became available then it's possible the Max Hub was only going to WiFi Max subscribers.  I believe there was a period before it became the default for new customers.

[Gokh]

I am actually a new customer on the Sky Ultra Max package, which is why I’m questioning this in the first place. Based on that, I would have expected to receive the newer Max Hub rather than the older SR203.

I understand that policies can vary, but from a user perspective it doesn’t make much sense to supply a Wi-Fi 5 router with a gigabit-tier product, especially when modern devices are capable of much higher throughput over Wi-Fi.

Also, while I appreciate that real-world performance can differ depending on the property, that doesn’t really change the underlying limitation: the SR203 is still capped at 802.11ac (Wi-Fi 5), whereas a newer hub would at least allow higher potential speeds under optimal conditions.

At the end of the day, I’m just trying to make sure I’m actually able to make reasonable use of the service I’m paying for. 

My modem is also right next to my computer.

[Me134]

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@Gokh wrote:

I am actually a new customer on the Sky Ultra Max package, which is why I’m questioning this in the first place. Based on that, I would have expected to receive the newer Max Hub rather than the older SR203.

I understand that policies can vary, but from a user perspective it doesn’t make much sense to supply a Wi-Fi 5 router with a gigabit-tier product, especially when modern devices are capable of much higher throughput over Wi-Fi.

Also, while I appreciate that real-world performance can differ depending on the property, that doesn’t really change the underlying limitation: the SR203 is still capped at 802.11ac (Wi-Fi 5), whereas a newer hub would at least allow higher potential speeds under optimal conditions.

At the end of the day, I’m just trying to make sure I’m actually able to make reasonable use of the service I’m paying for. 

My modem is also right next to my computer.

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New Sky BB customer or new to the faster package? Did you already have the SR203?

I presume you mean the router is right next to your computer as the 'modem' is the ONT. If you need full speed to the computer then hardwiring is always best.

Real world performance is also affected by the device.

[Gokh]

I’m a new Sky Broadband customer, and the SR203 was supplied to me as part of the installation — it’s not something I already had.

Yes, I’m aware the ONT handles the modem function, and I’m referring to the router being placed right next to my computer.

I agree that Ethernet is the best way to achieve full gigabit speeds, and that client devices also impact performance. However, that’s not really the point I’m raising.

My concern is that the supplied router (Sky SR203) is limited to Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac), which effectively caps wireless performance well below what the service tier is capable of — regardless of placement or general Wi-Fi variability.

Even accounting for device limitations, starting from a higher-capability router (e.g. Wi-Fi 6) would provide a better baseline and allow modern devices to make more effective use of the connection.

[TimmyBGood]

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@Gokh wrote:

I’m a new Sky Broadband customer, and the SR203 was supplied to me as part of the installation — it’s not something I already had.

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When was this?  It's possible that was a mistake, unless Sky has changed its policy again.

From a marketing and PR point of view it's not ideal that Sky continues to have a  six year old router model despatched to new customers, irrespective of actual performance.

[Gokh]

I first switched to Sky in December 2025 and started using the SKY Ultrafast Max (ROI) package.

[TimmyBGood]

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@Gokh wrote:

SKY Ultrafast Max (ROI) package.

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Ah: always possible (indeed likely) that policy in the Republic is different again, and I've no idea when WiFi Max was launched there: getting regulatory approval for new telecoms hardware isn't a trivial process and it's both a much smaller market and within the EU.

[Gokh]

I understand the point about regional policy differences and regulatory timelines, but my concern is not really about rollout differences between markets.

Regardless of region, the technical limitation remains the same: the Sky SR203 is a Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac) router, and in practice it caps wireless performance well below what a gigabit-tier connection can deliver.

My point is simply that, from a user perspective, the supplied hardware becomes the bottleneck even when the underlying broadband service is fully capable.

So this is less about policy differences between countries, and more about the real-world capability of the equipment provided with a 1000 Mbps service.

[TimmyBGood]

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@Gokh wrote:

I understand the point about regional policy differences and regulatory timelines, but my concern is not really about rollout differences between markets.

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It's relevant though.  If the Max Hub hardware wasn't certified for use in that jurisdiction when you signed up for the broadband service then you couldn't have received it: national telecoms regulators get distinctly upset by that kind of thing.

If Max is now available there, you can either choose to pay the subscription supplement or attempt to persuade Sky to provide one without that additional cost: further discussion here won't be particularly fruitful.

On the wider point, Sky has always had an unfortunate tendency to lag behind its major ISP competitor in router hardware, and their most recent kit is currently only available where Sky Broadband is delivered over CityFibre infrastructure : why that's the case is known only to Sky management.

[Me134]

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@Gokh wrote:

I first switched to Sky in December 2025 and started using the SKY Ultrafast Max (ROI) package.

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I was going to ask when did you join as I've recently come back to Sky BB and got the SR213 for the 500Mbps service. You probably would be back complaining about the WiFi performance of the SR213 TBH, so I would advise your best option is a mesh system in AP mode and to disable the Sky routers WiFi. You're then future proofed to some extent if changing supplier in the future.

[Gokh]

I think the discussion is drifting a bit.

My main point here is that I should be provided with the appropriate equipment for the service I’m paying for. Suggestions like setting up a custom mesh network are beside the point.

I’m not trying to optimise beyond that — I’m simply expecting the correct baseline hardware. The Sky SR203 (Wi-Fi 5) does not align well with a gigabit-tier service.

So I’d appreciate it if we keep the discussion focused on that rather than shifting it to alternative setups.

[TimmyBGood]

@Gokh 

I've suggested your options a couple of times.  You'll need to establish whether WiFi Max is available in RoI, then go from there.

Historically Sky has been extremely reluctant to supply the Max Hub to Sky Broadband Hub users without the WiFi Max subscription supplement being added to the account, but I suspect there have been exceptions.

Any advice about broadband in the Republic is necessarily limited in this forum because the user base is so much smaller and consequently posts from residents are infrequent: it's also unfortunately quite possible that sales advisors and helpdesk staff miss the distinction and give information which is specific to the UK.

[Me134]

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@Gokh wrote:

I think the discussion is drifting a bit.

My main point here is that I should be provided with the appropriate equipment for the service I’m paying for. Suggestions like setting up a custom mesh network are beside the point.

I’m not trying to optimise beyond that — I’m simply expecting the correct baseline hardware. The Sky SR203 (Wi-Fi 5) does not align well with a gigabit-tier service.

So I’d appreciate it if we keep the discussion focused on that rather than shifting it to alternative setups.

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That's because you don't seem to like the answers I'm afraid. It appears as if the SR213 isn't available in the RoI and you do have the appropriate equipment for the service you're paying for given your region. It's even possible that the SR213 will be superceded eventually by the vastly superior Gigafast+ Hub before the RoI get the SR213.

According to AI one of the reasons you may not get it is due to your system using PPPoE rather than the DHCP-Opt61 that's used in the UK, don't know if that's 100% accurate.

[Chrisee]

@Me134 the use of PPOE in Ireland is accurate but the SR213 and WiFi Max have never been offered in Ireland presumably as @TimmyBGood posted earlier the regulatory approval process is separate from the UK. Whether it takes longer or simply Sky were not bothering for what is a small market is unknown. I have just checked Sky Ireland's  website and the SR213 is marked as UK only and WiFi Max is not offered.(change the flag from the Union Jack to the Irish flag to see the correct version)

@Gokh  Sky do not say you will, get 900Mb/s over WiFi in any material I have seen so while not knowing much about Irish consumer legislation I doubt you can argue breach of any statutory or consumer right. The service will deliver 900Mb/s over EthernetYou are free to use any WiFi solution you want either connect it behind the Sky hub in access point mode or potentially direct to the ONT.