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Google to end support for OnHub routers in 2022

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Re: Google to end support for OnHub routers in 2022

#81
post #73
post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I probably will. The OnHub has performed substantially better than the other consumer wireless routers I've used, and after 5 years it's due to be replaced anyway. Might as well take the discount.

Make sure you check out some of the other "pro-sumer" lines first. I moved from a flaky consumer router which dropped Wifi all the time to a Ubiquiti which has been rock solid. I'm not recommending Ubiquiti specifically given recent events but just using it as an example of a prosumer brand, even a few years old now and it still gets firmware updates, where as my old consumer router would be lucky to get any updates…

>Re: Ubiquiti

Investigators say they were able to tie the downloads to Sharp and his work-issued laptop because his Internet connection briefly failed on several occasions while he was downloading the Ubiquiti data. Those outages were enough to prevent Sharp’s Surfshark VPN connection from functioning properly [0]

Yeah, surfashark takes an extra few minutes to load after you start your machine. Maybe he got over eager. I wonder if he has a good lawsuit case for this "Your honor, I was trying to do crime but the failure of the defendant's product resulted in a life-ruining indictment"

[0] https://krebsonsecurity.com/2021/12/ubiquiti-developer-charg...

Re: Google to end support for OnHub routers in 2022

#82
post #24

Abstractly bogus, but on a rational analysis my TP-Link OnHub has already lasted wayyyyyyy longer than any other access point I've ever owned. Its predecessor, an ASUS RT-N66U, lasted barely two years.

Imagine how much longer it could've laster if Google wasn't about to remotely brick it.

Re: Google to end support for OnHub routers in 2022

#83
post #17

What utter BS! > "After that, your router will still work, but it will not receive any new software features or security updates, and performance cannot be guaranteed. You will not be able to use any Google Home app features to do things like update network settings, add devices, or run speed tests. And Google Assistant commands like “Hey Google, pause my Wi-Fi” will also not be available." [0] It'll work, but you wo…

Speaking of BS

> Since OnHub routers were introduced 6 years ago, a lot has changed. In 2022, support for these older devices will end.

Given the devices were over spec'ed to allow for future expansion I highly doubt they're outdated already.

Re: Google to end support for OnHub routers in 2022

#84
post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I probably will. The OnHub has performed substantially better than the other consumer wireless routers I've used, and after 5 years it's due to be replaced anyway. Might as well take the discount.

> after 5 years it's due to be replaced anyway Are people really replacing their home network infrastructure every 5 years?

I use the same Linksys WRT54GL since around 2006 and it never drops the connection. I flashed dd-wrt on it back more than a decade ago and it "just works".

Re: Google to end support for OnHub routers in 2022

#85
post #66

> Looking at that, I'm wondering who is stupid enough to buy a new device from them like this. It is like 'bite me once, bite me again please.'. 'eh, we just self destroyed your device, because, fuck you, but here is a coupon to buy a new one from us that we will also kill in a few years' ...

I probably will. The OnHub has performed substantially better than the other consumer wireless routers I've used, and after 5 years it's due to be replaced anyway. Might as well take the discount.

Is five years enough?

For you maybe.

I think it is nothing like enough. My guitar amplifier is about twenty years old.

My house is thirty and will probably make it to 300 (climate catastrophes wiling)

I do not buy Google products, if I did I would stop.

Re: Google to end support for OnHub routers in 2022

#87
post #46
post #25

In case anyone wants it, here's how to root a TP-Link OnHub. They're essentially glorified chromebooks, with some magic sauce on them. https://www.exploitee.rs/index.php/Rooting_The_Google_OnHub Dis: Googler, not near Nest/Home

A quick search suggest there's no WRT firmware for the device. That's a pity, OnHub has 1G ram and I can imaging a lot of creative usages if WRT firmware is available.

If anyone is reading this and has an OnHub they want to donate, just hit up the OpenWRT dev mailing list and offer it to existing devs. The OnHub is an ipq806x device and should be easy to support.

Re: Google to end support for OnHub routers in 2022

#88
It's a meme now that Google doesn't support anything long term and breaks compatibility etc. all the time. Why? Because that's what's incentivized for the engineers and managers. You climb the career ladder by releasing new stuff. Supporting old stuff is a dead end careerwise. If that's the culture, this is what you get. On the whole, it does seem to work out well for them!

Re: Google to end support for OnHub routers in 2022

#89
post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How scummy, not even a banner saying that support is ending.

Let's all buy one and join a class action.

Your beef would be with the retailer, not with Google. It is the retailer who makes the implied warranty of suitability for purpose, not the manufacturer (who also, in this case, is not Google).

Re: Google to end support for OnHub routers in 2022

#90
post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I dunno, I'd have to do a TCO analysis; if they give you 40% off, and you just assume it'll die after X years but be fully supported for that time and then you upgrade to a faster unit with next-gen wifi or whatever, it could still work out to be a good deal. Like... not my cup of tea (TCO is even nicer when the unit's lifespan is indefinite), but it's a plausible tradeoff.

>and then you upgrade to a faster unit with next-gen wifi or whatever Do people actually need next-gen wifi? My impression is that 99.9+% of people would be well served by a mid-range 802.11ac router (eg. AC1750[1]) from years ago, because the most bandwidth intensive thing they do is watch 4k netflix (~25 Mb/s). [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IEEE_802.11ac-2013

is Bandwidth the only factor?

What about 30-50 smart home devices? Every bulb or switch, water sensors, etc. Some of modern equipment is load balancing old legacy stuff better, no?

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