No 5G reception on the new Three 5G hub NR5103e

[cj2022]

Just purchased  the Three Home Broadband and have been supplied with the new router Zyxel NR5301e with firmware v1.00 (ACBJ.000b10

However it will not connect to 5G, looking on other forums this seems to be widespread, not very good releasing a new router that does not work on their network!

Does Three ever update their firmware on supplied routers? I was going to ring the Indian HQ for guidance but thought better of it.

[Jackthelad89]

Just as an FYI, I got a router with b8 that did upgrade to b10 overnight but absolutely no change. Still no 5G connection.

[crypt0ninja]

Fingers crossed for this upcoming firmware update then 🤞

[Jackthelad89]

I'm having the same issue. Received the router yesterday and no 5G. It was on the old firmware, it has updated it over night but no change to connectivity.

Spoke to Three technical support who confirmed no issues with the network in the area but couldn't get through to the higher technical team so said they would contact me back within 72 hours.

Was previously on their 4G broadband which I never had a problem with hence me upgrading to 5G for the better speeds but seems like technical support have no idea what the problem is.

Pretty poor that something sold as a 5G router has problems connecting to 5G.

[DialupInternerd]

I'm on my second day with Zyxel NR5103E hub. What I see from the cellular WAN monitoring is fleeting connection to the n78 band but quickly dropping after 20-30 seconds. Otherwise the hub only remains connected to LTE-A bands (b1, b3 and occasionally b32 with the two former preferred). I'm line of sight and 30 meters from a 5G mast.

Module SW Version   MP1V120XS.2133.01.B1

Firmware: V1.00(ACBJ.0)b9

Access Technology  LTE-A
Band               B1,B3,n78,n78
RSSI               -80
Cell ID            2859847
Physical Cell ID   2
UL Bandwidth (MHz) 10M,100M
DL Bandwidth (MHz) 10M,15M,100M,20M
RFCN               99,1392,640548,632666

[SlyReg]

Similar issue, signed up and new router arrived yesterday - but with no SIM card so I had to call to get that sent. Sim arrived today and the device resolutely refuses to connect to 5G. Rang the help-desk and was told it was an issue with the local cell, which does not seem correct as my phone - also using 3 network connects to 5G immediately and gets good speeds. Signal strength on the router though shows full LTE signal and zero 5G - so something awry with either the SIM or the router in my opinion

[JonathanB]

Hi @SlyReg,

I'm sorry to hear you've also been experiencing this issue. I've been advised the router will normally automatically update the firmware, if not immediately then overnight. This should fix the issue accessing 5G. Are you still experiencing this problem now that you've had the router a couple of days?

JonathanB 

[SlyReg]

Hi

The hub had taken an update and was still refusing to connect to 5G but my phone was getting really good speeds on Three 5G signal so I rang Tech support who told me there was a problem with the mast and that I could send the router back to cancel contract, However as I knew my phone was working I was far from convinced so did some more research, I then took auto band select off and tied the router to some specific bands and lo and behold immediate 5G and good speeds. So its an issue with band auto select that does not appear to be resolved in the latest firmware.

[Nirron01]

I received my N5301 a week ago and like cj2022 cannot get 5g. The firmware is v10 but I don’t know if I had that or it updated overnight as mentioned by others. I also tried it at my sons address using both the SIM card and his personal unlimited Three SIM card that he gets 5g on.
‘Not sure what to do now. Is it worthwhile phoning/chatting with support?. Any settings that can be changed without “bricking” it?

[cj2022]

You could try ringing support and see where it goes, they were helpful and followed up when I had reception problems with a data plan some time ago, if your on a two year contract you need to act a within 30 days though if you cannot get a 5G signal when they state you can, you are protected by the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

I purchased a CPE Pro 3 5G router and it immediately connected to 5G  and got 705Mbps, the Zyxel with the b10 firmware would not connect to 5G, also the wifi was flaky and would not connect to my Sony products. I could have had a dud router. It is a shame Three did not use the CPE Pro 3 having issued the CPE Pro 2 previously,  I suppose down to cost. 

[Nirron01]

Was that on a 30 day money back guarantee😂. Can I ask how much you paid and where u got it. These things are expensive so not keen to buy something and still find an issue with connecting. So how do you connect to the 5g as I assume you returned the Three router/SIM card?