Yesterday my mother and one of our neighbor friends went up to the clubhouse to talk with the point of contact for Hotwire.
The community is getting a representative twice a week to sit and answer any and all questions. So yesterday was the day that my mother and her friend decided to go up and get some answers, since both our units now have "everything" "we need".
Technically, we don't have everything, given the fact our laundry room connections look like someone haphazardly slapped everything on the wall and called it art (not including our bulletin board) and we can't get the remote to work still. Our friend is having issues with her inputs, her connection to watch things (she has audio but no video), and a little list of other challenges (including problems with a Fire Stick).
So up they went, and they were the only ones up there. They aired their grievances, got some answers (but not much), and before you know it, the representative said he'd send someone to our unit to fix the mess on the wall since she showed him the picture and he too agreed that is 100% not acceptable.
It took 2 install supervisors and some techs to say it was ugly and inappropriate of an install, but they didn't do anything to fix it. Yet my mother goes to the clubhouse to get other answers, and someone makes a phone call to say it has to be fixed.
Weird chain of command.
Well, 2pm a tech shows up at our house and starts fiddling away. He takes everything apart and moves it around. Says we don't need the Eero box in the laundry room as it won't be able to do it's full magic from there, since we have a tendency to close that door. The spray can't go through the wall. He thinks it should go in the guest room, which never gets closed unless people are staying over (and who's been here recently? No one).
Except the tech said it makes more sense that the box goes into the guest room, and since we already have the phone line (from the Comcast box), it’s all the more reason to have the booster in that position.
Which, when my mom told me this, I told her that’s why I kept questioning it. It doesn’t make sense for the booster to go in the laundry room. All the hookups we need are in the guest room, and if the original sales guy said we can put everything where ever we want, why the tech thought it was okay to put it almost in the garage, is questionable. *** She agreed because what else can she say?
So in the guest room the Eero went, and the tech reattaches the modem to the wall in the laundry room, in a much better position. Plus, he added invisible wire to the bottom floor box and ran it along the floor and up the wall, so you don't see the connections.
He actually did a pretty good job.
This is how it should have been, originally. Or close to it.
I mean, if you're going to have to have a line of boxes added to what's already there, at least make it as neat looking as possible. With all the wires wound up tight, some shorter, some in other places, it really does look like the tech took pride in what he did. They are going to send one of their contractors out to patch the nail holes and repaint the spots, as everything they attach to the wall is both double sided velcro and nailed in.
When he was finished with that, he checked all the TVs. Everything worked for the time he was here and he tried to sync the living room remote. Tried his damndest and couldn't do it.
One of the suggestions he made was he could turn off the Bluetooth on the TiVo box and on the remote, and rig it so there would be no conflict. If he shuts that off, then you can't speak in to the remote and tell it what channel you want.
My mother said she wants to be able to use the microphone since there's no paper guide and she can't sit there all day trying to figure out what channel the basic numbers are that she wants (if she wants ABC, it's a different number than what we had, so she'd have to scroll on the guide until she found it. With the voice remote, she can say "Channel ABC"). So he left it as it is.
But why does it use Bluetooth? Did the XFinity remote do that? I'll have to check at some point.
The things Hotwire is choosing to supply in their technology is questionable.
- They're using TiVo, which is over 20 years old of a product, for television watching.
- They're using Bluetooth capable remotes (why?) which are not compatible with a lot of television sets. Or soundbars (more on that)
- They're using a Nokia gateway that is attaching to an Eero.
- They seem to have to use an Eero system to get full Wi-Fi coverage. Yet the tech told my mother she really only needs one and he doesn't understand why we have two. She told him the community got everyone two, so that's what she wants. He said we don't need it, and most of the places in the community don't either. He doesn't understand it. He also said you have to have an active phone line to plug into this Eero or it won't work properly.*
I don't know why they don't tell you anything during install, and it makes sense now since some people were saying they had to download the eero app to use everything but don't know what they're doing. But, those who have their phone jacks covered up because they don't have landlines, are screwed since you need something to connect to the Wi-Fi extender. So the techs need to go mining for wires within walls.
What a mess.
It feels like nothing makes sense with this company. As a whole, we weren't prepared for the challenges coming out of this. It's almost like the company is 6 months old and we are the guinea pigs, rather than them being 20 years old (which explains the reliance on TiVo). One of the main board members who fought for us to use Hotwire, doesn't want to hear people's complaints. He thinks we just have to work out the glitches since it's new for us. Once everything is up and running and the community can see the wonders that can happen with Hotwire, we will all be eating our words.
Yeah, having the wireless equivalent to Dish Network is amazing.
Having one free phone call for help and paying for any other calls is the best.
Knowing there's no brick and mortar store to return equipment in case of failure or moving is so cool, I can't wait to see how that goes.
If the box breaks for any reason (lightning strike, since we are in the lightning capital of the US, for example), you have to wait for a tech to come out and replace the box.... at a charge.
Knowing if power goes out or something happens, you're out of service for days after it gets resolved - super!
Not being able to reach customer service all the time? Yippee!
There is a massive thread and various conversations on a private Facebook Page as well as the Next Door app, regarding Hotwire. Everyone has reading reviews about the company and sharing the links and their own thoughts / problems. It's not good. This isn't a safe bet. We were better with Comcast, for it being a sucky monopoly. At least they attempted to stay on the up and up with everything out there and didn't cause this much construction problems or connection issues. Comcast might be shitty in a lot of places, but they've got decades of being around and being in homes - our Comcast origin story was the use of Bell Atlantic → Continental Cable → Media One → Comcast Cable. One bought out the other until Comcast threw its weight over everyone.
I aged myself. Damnit.
But with every iteration, every decade we had something, the owner of the red C and the rainbow peacock has always tried to stay with the times and upgrade. Hotwire feels like we're going backwards.
Anyway, the soundbar problem:
A few of our friends have a full Dolby Surround Sound set up in their houses. They've invested some nice money into making their TV rooms sound like you're in the picture with the actors. All it takes is one remote that's tied to the TV to get everything working and you've got yourself planted in the middle of an action movie of a thriller.
Hotwire is the horror movie in this situation, in case you haven't noticed.
With this new program, they're having to use multiple remotes. Just like everyone else. If the surround sound boxes use more than one remote, well, they're using every single remote in the house. Because even the up to date 2020-2022 devices aren't syncing with the Hotwire materials.
People are pissed.
I don't know anything about soundbars since we don't have any, but what people tell me, they're nice. Makes me want to turn into the Maxell guy.
Yes, I just aged myself. Again.
So people who have the things that make it go to 11, don't want to get hooked up if they aren't already. They're worried, they're scared. They are all over 60, so they don't want to get started on learning 100 different remotes just to use one (especially when they got used to one). It's insane.
What's insane is I've been writing this for over an hour and I've got to get ready for work now. If I hear anything else, I'll make another post.
Until then, stay sane.
Cheers;
Already have your eeros or are just looking for what you'll need to get started? You can find all the requirements below:
What you'll need
- Supported iOS or Android device with a data connection (cellular data or WiFi)
- iOS or Android device with Bluetooth 4.0 BLE
- iOS requirements:
- Device running iOS 14 or later
- Android requirements:
- Device running Android 7 or later (tablets included)
- eero App from App Store (iOS) or Google Play (Android)
- An active internet connection from an Internet Service Provider (ISP)
- A modem (or a device with an upstream connection to your ISP)
- A local phone number (for activating and signing into your account
But they don't tell you any of this in the install or in any conversations with the techs.
eero has been tested for compatibility with most major Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in the United States, Canada, UK, EU (France, England, Germany, Italy & Spain), and Australia.
To date, no U.S. or Canadian ISP has been confirmed incompatible with eero. As long as you can connect your gateway eero to a modem or upstream device with an Ethernet cord, you should be able to set up and use eero. If you don’t currently have an ISP, please see this article.
- Examples of ISPs in the U.S. include, but are not limited to, Comcast Xfinity, AT&T, Time Warner Cable, CenturyLink, Charter, Verizon Fios, Cox, Google Fiber, RCN, Blue Ridge, and Frontier.
- Examples of ISPs in Canada include, but are not limited to, Rogers, Bell Aliant, Eastlink, Shaw, Cogeco, Bell Canada, Videotron, Telus, and TekSavvy.
To use eero, you will need to have a download speed of at least 1 Mbps – this is the minimum suggested speed for eero to function properly.
Please see below for specific configurations for certain ISPs.
Advanced configurations
Since we live in a world with a great deal of variety, some ISPs also may require particular configurations. Here are a few specifics for some common providers::
Verizon FiOS: eeros work well with Verizon FiOS Internet-only service. If you want to control your FiOS TV from within your eero network, there are some additional configuration steps you'll have to take. You can review those steps here.
AT&T’s U-verse: eeros work well with AT&T U-verse service. To set up your eero network just follow the setup instructions in the eero app. After your eero network is configured, we recommend disabling WiFi on the AT&T U-verse router. See our detailed U-verse instructions here.
DSL: Your eeros will work with DSL. If your DSL provider requires PPPoE, you should set up your eeros behind your existing router. (This configuration is called 'double NATing.' See our steps on how to do this here.) After you set up your network, you can log into your existing router and disable WiFi to prevent multiple SSIDs. If you’re not sure how to do this, please contact your ISP for assistance.
Comcast: There are a few ways to set up eero’s while using Comcast/ Xfinity. You can set up your eeros behind your existing router, in either double NAT or bridged mode (if using either of these methods, it’s recommended to disable the wifi broadcast on the Xfinity gateway, unless you are also subscribed to Xfinity’s TV service). Alternatively, you can bridge your Xfinity gateway, and only use eero for all of your devices (if you choose to do this, only the Gateway eero can be connected to the Xfinity gateway with an ethernet cable).
Google Fiber: Google Fiber requires customers to use their Network Box as the primary network router. To use your eeros in a Double NAT configuration, please refer to Google Fiber’s support page for helpful tips on connecting your personal router to the Network Box.
Webpass: Some ISPs, like Webpass, don't require their users to have a modem. In these instances, users should skip the modem instructions in the eero app and instead plug their gateway eero into the Ethernet jack on their wall.
*** People in the houses are getting their Nokia & one Eero installed in the garage because they have the Grey Fox box there. Which doesn’t help anything because Wi-Fi can’t go thru cement at full strength. Which invalidates the booster.
Figure that one out.
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Thanks for sharing!