Technicolor and Net Lynk Offer New Wi-Fi 6 Routers to UK ISPs

More broadband ISPs in the UK look set to start bundling a new generation of faster Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) routers and mesh (repeater) network devices with their packages, which comes after Technicolor’s Connected Home division and Birmingham-based Net Lynk teamed-up to make a related line of products available to internet providers.

At present the vast majority of larger mainstream UK broadband ISPs have yet to ship a Wi-Fi 6 capable router, although we are expecting BT (Smart Hub 3) and others to start doing so in the very near future. The one big exception being TalkTalk, which has started to bundle Amazon’s eero 6 kit with their “Future Fibre” products (here). A couple of smaller full fibre altnet providers are also offering Wi-Fi 6 capable routers.

Part of the reason for this is that Wi-Fi 6 capable kit has only recently been fully commercialised, and the latest kit tends to always be quite expensive (providers usually bundle cheaper models). On top of that, many ISPs are still facing delays on the supply chain and R&D side (custom firmware coding), which has been disrupted by COVID-19 restrictions and shortages in the supply of global semiconductor chips.

The good news is that Technicolor has now entered the ring to offer a solution. Over the years, we’ve seen quite a few ISPs bundling Technicolor’s lower cost broadband routers alongside their packages, and they’re thus now quite a familiar name.

Giovanni Tumino, VP of Technicolor Connected Home, said:

“The past 18 months have demonstrated the critical role that internet service providers (ISPs) in the UK play in the connected lives of subscribers across the country. The Wi-fi 6 extenders and gateways from Technicolor Connected Home that Net Lynk is making available to select ISPs will meet the demand for the growing number of devices that require internet access to meet the rising needs of British consumers.”

Sadly, the announcement doesn’t include any solid detail about what devices or models they’re actually proposing to offer, although we assume that some of them will probably be similar to the Wi-Fi 6 capable and VDSL2 (FTTC) supporting Technicolor COBRA M DGA4134 that retails for c.£120 (pretty affordable given the feature set).