What are Whole Home Wi-Fi pods and how do I use them?

Whole Home Wi-Fi pods are additional Wi-Fi access points that are placed throughout your home. They work together with our Home Hub 3000 or 2000 modems to create a seamless, powerful Wi-Fi network in every room.

You can choose between two different types of Wi-Fi pods depending on your Internet speed.

• Wi-Fi Pod – Recommended for customers who subscribe to Internet speeds above 150 Mbps.
• Wi-Fi Pod Mini –Recommended for those who subscribe to speeds below 150 Mbps.

Both types of pods offer extended, mesh Wi-Fi coverage throughout your home.

How to install Whole Home Wi-Fi pods

You can use the Bell Wi-Fi app to install your pods if you subscribe to the Whole Home Wi-Fi service from Bell and have a Home Hub 3000 or 2000. To do so:

1. Search for Bell Wi-Fi in the app store for your mobile device.
2. Download and install the app.
3. Log in to the app one of two ways:
• Best - Log in with your MyBell username and password. This gives you access to all features of the app and lets you log in without having to be connected to your home Wi-Fi network.
• Easiest - Automatically log in to the app when you are connected to your home Wi-Fi network. This will limit your access to features like setting Internet blocks or accessing user profiles

1. The first time you log in to the app, select Install pods. Or, if you’ve used the app before, select Menu and then Set up new pods.
2. Review the installation tips.
3. Plug in the pods around your home. The empty hexagons indicate how many pods you can plug in.
4. Keep your mobile device near your pods as you plug them in. The Bell Wi-Fi app will confirm when they are connected.

Follow these installation tips for best performance:

1. Space the pods evenly

   Your pods work as a team, so they need to be close enough to communicate with one another. Try to space them evenly, no more than 5 to 7 metres apart for Wi-Fi Pod Minis and 10 to 14 metres apart for Wi-Fi Pods.

2. Install pods on interior walls

   Ideally, place the pods along the interior walls separating the rooms rather than exterior walls. If you have both Wi-Fi Pod Minis and Wi-Fi Pods, use the Wi-Fi Pods in the centre of your home and spread the Wi-Fi Pod Minis outward to the furthest rooms. For best performance, check that your Wi-Fi Pods connect to the modem without connecting through a Wi-Fi Pod Mini first.

3. Keep the pods in the open

   Wi-Fi signals travel through the air and generally weaken over distance, but their strength can also be affected by:

   • Building materials: Concrete or metal make it harder for the Wi-Fi signal to move freely, ultimately slowing down your Internet speed.
   • Appliances: Certain appliances, like microwaves or even baby monitors, can interfere with the Wi-Fi signal, possibly slowing down your speed.
   • Ventilation: Pods should not be covered by furniture or placed in an electrical cabinet, where they can overheat and impact performance.
4. Wait 24 hours for best performance

   Bell Whole Home Wi-Fi continuously optimizes your network based on when and where your devices access the Internet in your home. This helps ensure they always get the strongest signal. After installing pods, or any time you unplug them, it may take up to 24 hours for the pods to complete the optimization process.

Good to know:

• Your device may not always connect to the pod that is closest to it. The network will determine the best connection based on a variety of factors, such as interference and traffic.
• While Bell Whole Home Wi-Fi determines the best connection, sometimes devices need some help connecting. Turning your device’s Wi-Fi off and back on may solve performance issues.
• If your pods have a poor connection to the modem, try moving them to different locations to see if this improves performance.

Naming your Whole Home Wi-Fi pods

Naming your pods can help easily identify them in the app.

• Open the Bell Wi-Fi app and log in with your MyBell username and password.
• On the home screen, touch Menu (iOS) or Menu > Pods (Android).
• Touch the pod you want to name or rename.
• Touch the pod icon or name of the pod to edit. Tip: Identify the pod by its blinking LED.
• Touch the checkmark to save your changes.

Checking pod connection quality

The Bell Wi-Fi app monitors your network to give you a connection quality rating for each Wi-Fi pod, and to show you when there is a problem. Your pods work as a team – if one pod has poor connection quality, any other pods connected to it will be affected. You will get the best performance when all pods have excellent connection quality.

To view pod connection quality:

1. Open the Bell Wi-Fi app and log in with your MyBell username and password.
2. On the home screen, touch Menu (iOS) or Menu > Pods (Android).
3. Select the pod you want to troubleshoot. The connection quality rating will appear under the pod name, along with what channel it’s on and which pod or modem it’s connected to.
• Excellent – All applications should run perfectly.
• Good – All applications should run without any major impairments. You may see some buffering for high-speed applications, like 4K video streaming.
• Fair – Not ideal for real-time applications or high throughput applications, like 4K video streaming. Try moving your pod closer to your modem or away from anything that might be causing interference.
• Poor – Your pod is not communicating well with the network. Real-time applications such as video calling or streaming may suffer. Try moving your pod closer to your modem or away from anything that might be causing interference.

For more information on how to improve your Wi-Fi speed, visit the Optimize my Wi-Fi speed page.

I’m having issues connecting my Sonos speakers

Avoid having your Sonos speakers create their own network loop.

• Wire one Sonos speaker directly to one of your pods.
• Connect the remainder of the speakers wirelessly.
• Keep your Sonos speakers three feet away from a pod to avoid interference issues.

My speed is slow when connected to my pod

The speed your pods are capable of providing will vary depending on which Whole Home Wi-Fi pods you have:

• Wi-Fi pod – Provides average speeds of 300 Mbps in the optimal setup
• Wi-Fi Pod mini – Provides average speeds of 150 Mbps in the optimal setup

You can check if your pods are using the optimal setup by checking their connection quality rating in the Bell Wi-Fi app. To do so:

• Open the Bell Wi-Fi app and log in with your MyBell username and password.
• On the home screen, touch Menu (iOS) or Menu > Pods (Android).
• Select the pod you want to troubleshoot. The connection quality rating will appear under the pod name, along with what channel it's on and which pod or modem it's connected to.

If your pod has Fair or Poor ratings, it means it is having trouble communicating with your network. This could be caused by the channel the pod is on, the distance from the modem, or interference around the pod. To improve the quality rating, try:

• Moving the pod closer to the network or away from interference. The recommended distance between your pod and the network varies by type of pod:
• Wi-Fi Pod mini – No more than 7 metres from the modem or another pod
• Wi-Fi pod – No more than 14 metres from the modem or another pod
• Rebooting your pod – This will reconnect the pod to the network and let it choose the best channel.
• Rebooting your modem - This will reconnect the pod to the network and let it choose the best channel.

Try moving your pod closer to the modem, away from anything that might be causing interference, or connecting the pod to the network via Ethernet.

You can also review our installation tips to improve your pod setup, or visit the Optimize my Wi-Fi Speed page for more information about what affects Wi-Fi speeds.

My pod is offline

If your pod won't connect to the network, try:

• Rebooting your modem.
• Connecting the pod via Ethernet.
• Deleting and reconnecting the pod to your network:
1. Open the Bell Wi-Fi app and log in with your MyBell username and password.
2. On the home screen, touch Menu (iOS) or Menu > Pods (Android).
3. Touch the ellipses beside the pod you want to reconnect and select Delete this pod.
4. With the pod plugged into a power outlet, touch Set up new pods and wait for the pod to connect to your network again. This should bring the pod back online.

My device doesn't connect to the pod it's closest to

Your device may not always connect to the pod that is closest to it. The network will determine the best connection based on a variety of factors, such as interference and traffic. While Bell Whole Home Wi-Fi determines the best connection, sometimes devices need some help connecting. Turning your device's Wi-Fi off and back on or rebooting your modem may solve performance issues.