Kitz Forum

Broadband Related => Broadband Hardware => Topic started by: Alex Atkin UK on February 26, 2021, 03:38:13 PM

Title: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on February 26, 2021, 03:38:13 PM
First impressions of HONOR Router 3.

The UI tries to do everything for you which seemed nice at first except AP (Bridge) mode seems to disable the LAN ports and does not allowed UI access from the LAN, only when connected to the WiFi on the HONOR itself.  Its clearly leaving the firewall up on the WAN port even when in bridge mode which is silly.

I tried bypassing this by connecting LAN to LAN and got this working once, but this disabled automatic firmware updates due to no longer having a gateway and is REALLY tricky to do as the More Functions section is buggy when there is no Internet connection and I can't change the LAN IP to the same subnet as the WAN for obvious reasons.  Then again its Huawei device, maybe not being able to call home is a good thing?  ::)  You can still manually update the firmware though I haven't checked if the firmware files are readily available.

2.4Ghz by default used 40Mhz channel width, this is in breach of the regulatory requirements as there are other networks on all channels around here.
I switched it to 20Mhz and gotta admit I was impressed, it can push 100Mbit over 2.4Ghz, the nanoHD does 40-60Mbit.

5Ghz I'm getting the exact same speed of 400-450Mbit at 160Mhz (1900Mbit link rate) or 80Mhz channel width (1200Mbit link rate), a far cry from the nanoHD which peaks at 700Mbit (1200Mbit link rate) though admittedly that needs 160Mhz to do that on my laptop.  More frustratingly it wont let me choose the upper channel for 160Mhz so it clashes will all nearby networks making that mode pointless.  I can pull 50MB/s on a 40Mhz channel though, it just doesn't seem to gain much past that.

I switched to WPA2/WPA3 mode on the router, Windows is still connecting over WPA2 Personal for some reason.

[UPDATE]
It seems it doesn't like Windows iperf3, real-world speeds are VERY different.  I also checked again and iperf3 from my Galaxy S10 DOES work correctly.

Testing a file copy from my NAS I can hit 53MB/s on 40Mhz channel width and 93MB/s on 80Mhz, that's as fast as devices costing ten times what this did.
That's twice the upstream throughput (523Mbit) of the nanoHD and almost 200Mbit more downstream (800Mbit), while using half the channel width.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: meritez on February 26, 2021, 05:41:58 PM
Is it worth picking one up?
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on February 26, 2021, 07:08:40 PM
Can't say what its like as a router, but for £33.99 it was worth it to see how it performed as an Access Point.

Unsurprisingly, they are out of stock now. https://www.hihonor.com/unitedkingdom/product/honor-router-3/
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: peteS on February 26, 2021, 08:18:41 PM
Looks like they may be in stock again - I just ordered one.  As you say, for that amount, it's worth a play.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on February 26, 2021, 08:34:39 PM
The claims crack me up though:
Quote
Download a full movie for as quickly as under 10 seconds with Wi-Fi 6 Plus2. HONOR router 3 lets you reach a total networking speed of about 3000Mbps - 574Mbps on the 2.4GHz band and 2402Mbps on the 5GHz band. Which means up to three times faster Wi-Fi than previous Wi-Fi standard3.

Yeah, if you have Gigabit broadband and the movie is only in SD.  But if you're a high-end user so have Gigabit, why on earth would you watch movies in SD?

If you have Gigabit broadband, buying a budget router would seem pretty moronic to begin with.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Weaver on March 02, 2021, 12:36:21 AM
I haven’t learned these new marketing numeral terms yet - is that 802.11ax ?
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on March 02, 2021, 08:33:28 AM
I haven’t learned these new marketing numeral terms yet - is that 802.11ax ?

Correct.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: meritez on March 03, 2021, 12:05:53 PM
Looks like the limited time offer has reset to 28 days remaining, but still no stock
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Weaver on March 03, 2021, 01:56:29 PM
If I were going to use one or two of these as WAPs, I’d need multiple SSIDs, an isolated guest SSID, and all the bells and whistles in terms of SSID config.

Is it easy to set one up as just a WAP?

I could really do with getting one of these - the price is incredible.

Thanks for a really useful, helpful review btw.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on March 03, 2021, 05:45:05 PM
Its literally an option during setup, except in that mode I can only access the UI when connected to the routers SSID as it seems they forgot to turn off the firewall on the WAN port.  However its very basic so no, you can't have multiple SSIDs and from the text it sounds like Guest network is disabled in AP mode.

I managed to force the LAN IP onto my main LANs range and connected to the LAN port instead of WAN so I got UI access, but then the router can't do automatic firmware updates (manual from a local file is still an option).

The biggest drawback for me is HiLink gets disabled, so I can't use the API to query the connected clients list which is annoying.

I'm tempted to switch it back into router mode and see if I can just disable DHCP so the other options remain enabled.  Seems quite bizarre they disable so much stuff in AP mode.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: meritez on March 04, 2021, 10:24:51 AM
Mine arrived today.
Virgin Super Hub 3 is in modem mode, this is cabled in, came straight up.

Speeds are in the same area as the Mikrotik it's replaced.

I may get round to testing the other two in a wireless mesh later.

Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: meritez on March 08, 2021, 09:22:41 AM
Other things noticed, the wireless range is phenomenal, 5ghz is reaching where previous routers could not.
Also got wireless coverage 20 metres down the end of the garden.

Had to reduce the 2.4ghz to 20mhz as it was set at 40mhz out of the box, which is no good for competing wireless networks.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Newfie on March 08, 2021, 01:58:56 PM
WiFi 6 does push out the signal but don’t forget the client must also be able to respond or else it starts to slow down the network as it tried to resend multiple times.
My 120 would throw out the WiFi but I turned it down not just for clients but if you are a built up area it will create more interference for others not that many worry about that but I try to keep my WiFi within my borders as much as possible.
£30 though it’s a steal if you want to try out WiFi 6.
Does anyone know what standards it covers ie is it WiFi 6 on 2.4, full BSS, OFDMA both ways?
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: meritez on March 08, 2021, 02:22:11 PM
Attached are all the WiFi settings I have access to
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on March 08, 2021, 03:52:13 PM
Does anyone know what standards it covers ie is it WiFi 6 on 2.4, full BSS, OFDMA both ways?

Its definitely WiFi 6 on 2.4Ghz and it claims OFDMA on the website I believe, but we know that can't be trusted.  I can't see any mention of it below.
Code: [Select]
freq: 2437
        beacon interval: 100 TUs
        capability: ESS Privacy ShortPreamble ShortSlotTime RadioMeasure (0x1431)
        signal: -79.00 dBm
        last seen: 923 ms ago
        Information elements from Probe Response frame:
        SSID: USS-Discovery
        Supported rates: 1.0* 2.0* 5.5* 6.0 9.0 11.0* 12.0 18.0
        DS Parameter set: channel 6
        TPC report: TX power: 30 dBm
        ERP: <no flags>
        RSN:     * Version: 1
                 * Group cipher: CCMP
                 * Pairwise ciphers: CCMP
                 * Authentication suites: PSK SAE
                 * Capabilities: 16-PTKSA-RC 1-GTKSA-RC MFP-capable (0x008c)
        WMM:     * Parameter version 1
                 * u-APSD
                 * BE: CW 15-1023, AIFSN 3
                 * BK: CW 15-1023, AIFSN 7
                 * VI: CW 7-15, AIFSN 2, TXOP 3008 usec
                 * VO: CW 3-7, AIFSN 2, TXOP 1504 usec
        Extended supported rates: 24.0 36.0 48.0 54.0
        BSS Load:
                 * station count: 0
                 * channel utilisation: 151/255
                 * available admission capacity: 31250 [*32us]
        HT capabilities:
                Capabilities: 0x1ad
                        RX LDPC
                        HT20
                        SM Power Save disabled
                        RX HT20 SGI
                        TX STBC
                        RX STBC 1-stream
                        Max AMSDU length: 3839 bytes
                        No DSSS/CCK HT40
                Maximum RX AMPDU length 65535 bytes (exponent: 0x003)
                Minimum RX AMPDU time spacing: No restriction (0x00)
                HT TX/RX MCS rate indexes supported: 0-15
        HT operation:
                 * primary channel: 6
                 * secondary channel offset: no secondary
                 * STA channel width: 20 MHz
                 * RIFS: 0
                 * HT protection: nonmember
                 * non-GF present: 0
                 * OBSS non-GF present: 1
                 * dual beacon: 0
                 * dual CTS protection: 0
                 * STBC beacon: 0
                 * L-SIG TXOP Prot: 0
                 * PCO active: 0
                 * PCO phase: 0
        Extended capabilities:
                 * BSS Transition
                 * Operating Mode Notification
                 * Max Number Of MSDUs In A-MSDU is unlimited
        VHT capabilities:
                VHT Capabilities (0x03197992):
                        Max MPDU length: 11454
                        Supported Channel Width: neither 160 nor 80+80
                        RX LDPC
                        TX STBC
                        SU Beamformer
                        SU Beamformee
                        MU Beamformer
                        MU Beamformee
                VHT RX MCS set:
                        1 streams: MCS 0-9
                        2 streams: MCS 0-9
                        3 streams: not supported
                        4 streams: not supported
                        5 streams: not supported
                        6 streams: not supported
                        7 streams: not supported
                        8 streams: not supported
                VHT RX highest supported: 216 Mbps
                VHT TX MCS set:
                        1 streams: MCS 0-9
                        2 streams: MCS 0-9
                        3 streams: not supported
                        4 streams: not supported
                        5 streams: not supported
                        6 streams: not supported
                        7 streams: not supported
                        8 streams: not supported
                VHT TX highest supported: 216 Mbps
        VHT operation:
                 * channel width: 0 (20 or 40 MHz)
                 * center freq segment 1: 0
                 * center freq segment 2: 0
                 * VHT basic MCS set: 0xfffa
        WPS:     * Version: 1.0
                 * Wi-Fi Protected Setup State: 2 (Configured)
                 * Response Type: 3 (AP)
                 * UUID: 12345678
                 * Manufacturer: Huawei Technology Co.,Ltd
                 * Model: Wireless AP
                 * Model Number: 123
                 * Serial Number: 12345
                 * Primary Device Type: 6-0050f204-1
                 * Device name: XD20-20
                 * Config methods: PBC, Keypad
                 * RF Bands: 0x1
                 * Unknown TLV (0x1049, 6 bytes): 00 37 2a 00 01 20

5Ghz:
Code: [Select]
freq: 5500
        beacon interval: 100 TUs
        capability: ESS Privacy ShortPreamble SpectrumMgmt ShortSlotTime RadioMeasure (0x1531)
        signal: -70.00 dBm
        last seen: 674 ms ago
        Information elements from Probe Response frame:
        SSID: USS-Discovery_5G
        Supported rates: 6.0* 9.0 12.0* 18.0 24.0* 36.0 48.0 54.0
        DS Parameter set: channel 100
        Power constraint: 0 dB
        TPC report: TX power: 30 dBm
        RSN:     * Version: 1
                 * Group cipher: CCMP
                 * Pairwise ciphers: CCMP
                 * Authentication suites: PSK SAE
                 * Capabilities: 16-PTKSA-RC 1-GTKSA-RC MFP-capable (0x008c)
        WMM:     * Parameter version 1
                 * u-APSD
                 * BE: CW 15-1023, AIFSN 3
                 * BK: CW 15-1023, AIFSN 7
                 * VI: CW 7-15, AIFSN 2, TXOP 3008 usec
                 * VO: CW 3-7, AIFSN 2, TXOP 1504 usec
        BSS Load:
                 * station count: 3
                 * channel utilisation: 3/255
                 * available admission capacity: 31250 [*32us]
        HT capabilities:
                Capabilities: 0x1ef
                        RX LDPC
                        HT20/HT40
                        SM Power Save disabled
                        RX HT20 SGI
                        RX HT40 SGI
                        TX STBC
                        RX STBC 1-stream
                        Max AMSDU length: 3839 bytes
                        No DSSS/CCK HT40
                Maximum RX AMPDU length 65535 bytes (exponent: 0x003)
                Minimum RX AMPDU time spacing: No restriction (0x00)
                HT TX/RX MCS rate indexes supported: 0-15
        HT operation:
                 * primary channel: 100
                 * secondary channel offset: above
                 * STA channel width: any
                 * RIFS: 1
                 * HT protection: no
                 * non-GF present: 1
                 * OBSS non-GF present: 0
                 * dual beacon: 0
                 * dual CTS protection: 0
                 * STBC beacon: 0
                 * L-SIG TXOP Prot: 0
                 * PCO active: 0
                 * PCO phase: 0
        Extended capabilities:
                 * BSS Transition
                 * Operating Mode Notification
                 * Max Number Of MSDUs In A-MSDU is unlimited
        VHT capabilities:
                VHT Capabilities (0x039979b2):
                        Max MPDU length: 11454
                        Supported Channel Width: neither 160 nor 80+80
                        RX LDPC
                        short GI (80 MHz)
                        TX STBC
                        SU Beamformer
                        SU Beamformee
                        MU Beamformer
                        MU Beamformee
                VHT RX MCS set:
                        1 streams: MCS 0-9
                        2 streams: MCS 0-9
                        3 streams: not supported
                        4 streams: not supported
                        5 streams: not supported
                        6 streams: not supported
                        7 streams: not supported
                        8 streams: not supported
                VHT RX highest supported: 975 Mbps
                VHT TX MCS set:
                        1 streams: MCS 0-9
                        2 streams: MCS 0-9
                        3 streams: not supported
                        4 streams: not supported
                        5 streams: not supported
                        6 streams: not supported
                        7 streams: not supported
                        8 streams: not supported
                VHT TX highest supported: 975 Mbps
        VHT operation:
                 * channel width: 1 (80 MHz)
                 * center freq segment 1: 106
                 * center freq segment 2: 0
                 * VHT basic MCS set: 0xfffa
        WPS:     * Version: 1.0
                 * Wi-Fi Protected Setup State: 2 (Configured)
                 * Response Type: 3 (AP)
                 * UUID: 12345678
                 * Manufacturer: Huawei Technology Co.,Ltd
                 * Model: Wireless AP
                 * Model Number: 123
                 * Serial Number: 12345
                 * Primary Device Type: 6-0050f204-1
                 * Device name: XD20-20
                 * Config methods: PBC, Keypad
                 * RF Bands: 0x2
                 * Unknown TLV (0x1049, 6 bytes): 00 37 2a 00 01 20

In comparison the nanoHD network shows:
Code: [Select]
        freq: 5640
        beacon interval: 100 TUs
        capability: ESS Privacy (0x0011)
        signal: -69.00 dBm
        last seen: 495 ms ago
        Information elements from Probe Response frame:
        SSID: USS Defiant NX-74205
        Supported rates: 6.0* 9.0 12.0* 18.0 24.0* 36.0 48.0 54.0
        DS Parameter set: channel 128
        HT capabilities:
                Capabilities: 0x1ef
                        RX LDPC
                        HT20/HT40
                        SM Power Save disabled
                        RX HT20 SGI
                        RX HT40 SGI
                        TX STBC
                        RX STBC 1-stream
                        Max AMSDU length: 3839 bytes
                        No DSSS/CCK HT40
                Maximum RX AMPDU length 65535 bytes (exponent: 0x003)
                Minimum RX AMPDU time spacing: 4 usec (0x05)
                HT RX MCS rate indexes supported: 0-32
                HT TX MCS rate indexes are undefined
        HT operation:
                 * primary channel: 128
                 * secondary channel offset: below
                 * STA channel width: any
                 * RIFS: 0
                 * HT protection: no
                 * non-GF present: 1
                 * OBSS non-GF present: 0
                 * dual beacon: 0
                 * dual CTS protection: 0
                 * STBC beacon: 0
                 * L-SIG TXOP Prot: 0
                 * PCO active: 0
                 * PCO phase: 0
        RSN:     * Version: 1
                 * Group cipher: CCMP
                 * Pairwise ciphers: CCMP
                 * Authentication suites: PSK
                 * Capabilities: 1-PTKSA-RC 1-GTKSA-RC MFP-capable (0x0080)
        Extended capabilities:
                 * Max Number Of MSDUs In A-MSDU is unlimited
        BSS Load:
                 * station count: 1
                 * channel utilisation: 0/255
                 * available admission capacity: 31250 [*32us]
        WMM:     * Parameter version 1
                 * BE: CW 15-1023, AIFSN 3
                 * BK: CW 15-1023, AIFSN 7
                 * VI: CW 7-15, AIFSN 2, TXOP 3008 usec
                 * VO: CW 3-7, AIFSN 2, TXOP 1504 usec
        VHT capabilities:
                VHT Capabilities (0x33cb09b1):
                        Max MPDU length: 7991
                        Supported Channel Width: neither 160 nor 80+80
                        RX LDPC
                        short GI (80 MHz)
                        TX STBC
                        SU Beamformer
                        MU Beamformer
                        +HTC-VHT
                        RX antenna pattern consistency
                        TX antenna pattern consistency
                VHT RX MCS set:
                        1 streams: MCS 0-9
                        2 streams: MCS 0-9
                        3 streams: MCS 0-9
                        4 streams: MCS 0-9
                        5 streams: not supported
                        6 streams: not supported
                        7 streams: not supported
                        8 streams: not supported
                VHT RX highest supported: 1560 Mbps
                VHT TX MCS set:
                        1 streams: MCS 0-9
                        2 streams: MCS 0-9
                        3 streams: MCS 0-9
                        4 streams: MCS 0-9
                        5 streams: not supported
                        6 streams: not supported
                        7 streams: not supported
                        8 streams: not supported
                VHT TX highest supported: 1560 Mbps
        VHT operation:
                 * channel width: 1 (80 MHz)
                 * center freq segment 1: 122
                 * center freq segment 2: 0
                 * VHT basic MCS set: 0xffaa
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Newfie on March 09, 2021, 07:52:28 AM
Thanks for the info  :)
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: meritez on March 09, 2021, 11:06:10 AM
I've had to enable the backup WiFi5 for my Intel(R) Centrino(R) Ultimate-N 6300 AGN to connect to the 5ghz network, otherwise it only connects to 2.4ghz on the WiFi6 enabled SSID.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on March 09, 2021, 04:26:52 PM
I've had to enable the backup WiFi5 for my Intel(R) Centrino(R) Ultimate-N 6300 AGN to connect to the 5ghz network, otherwise it only connects to 2.4ghz on the WiFi6 enabled SSID.

That's interesting as I think they specifically say its for certain older Intel cards, which is weird.  I wonder what the actual reason is?
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Newfie on March 09, 2021, 10:49:28 PM
I've had to enable the backup WiFi5 for my Intel(R) Centrino(R) Ultimate-N 6300 AGN to connect to the 5ghz network, otherwise it only connects to 2.4ghz on the WiFi6 enabled SSID.

Does it offer PMF anywhere under its setting?
What bandwidth is your 5Ghz set to?
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: meritez on March 10, 2021, 11:33:59 AM
Does it offer PMF anywhere under its setting?
What bandwidth is your 5Ghz set to?

Not found
On my WiFI6 5ghz it's set to 80mhz
On my WiFi6 2.4gha it's set to 20mhz
On my WiFi5 5ghz it's set to 80mhz
On my WiFi5 2.4ghz it's set to 20mhz

No I do not understand why the Backup WiFi5 has enabled a 2.4ghz SSID either
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Newfie on March 11, 2021, 08:05:51 AM
Thanks for the info. Interesting Will be worth seeing what they do firmware wise over time.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: meritez on March 17, 2021, 10:24:38 PM
If I separate the bands I dont need the backup 5G wifi ssid?  :-\
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on March 22, 2021, 12:13:10 PM
Noticed an issue with the Honor Router 3 last night, download speed is better than the nanoHD, but upload speed is worse.

It trundles along at 160Mbit on the Honor and 270Mbit on the nanoHD, pretty crap for both when trying to move files to my NAS considering pulling them FROM the NAS does 750Mbit on the Honor and 660Mbit on the nanoHD.

This does seem largely to be something unique to my room/house as not seen any reviews of the nanoHD having upload issues, in fact its all people moaning about download speed being SLOWER than upload.

Tested with my laptop and phone as both have WiFi 6 hardware with 80Mhz and 2x2 MIMO support.  Tried all channels and even having them both on the same channel makes zero difference, so long as both are not being actively used at the same time.

[NOTE]
Angling the antennas down to get more line-of-sight to the laptop does seem to help and the Honor went up to 230Mbit, which makes sense as the nanoHD is on the ceiling so should have better line-of-sight.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on May 05, 2021, 10:36:16 PM
Just checked iperf3 again and it seems the Intel drivers have improved, at least on Linux.

Now getting ~800Mbit down (859Mbit peak) and 521Mbit up (671Mbit peak).  Either that or the wet weather has just killed all crosstalk.

Not going to bother testing on Windows as every single one of my clients has been borked recently, I can't even get full wired speeds any more with my 10Gbit client limited to 8.9Gbit down, 1-2Gbit up vs Linux where I get 9.2Gbit down, 9.4Gbit up.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: meritez on May 06, 2021, 08:54:57 AM
Thanks for the info. Interesting Will be worth seeing what they do firmware wise over time.

Regarding updates, I'm still on
Code: [Select]
Current version: 10.0.5.26 2021-03-05 23:47:09update
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on May 06, 2021, 09:06:54 PM
Yeah there doesn't seem to have been any firmware updates for the router yet, but then it seems pretty stable at least in bridge mode.

I just wish they would update it to REAL bridge mode, there is some sort of firewalling going as you can't access the GUI from the LAN only when connected to the routers WiFi directly.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: frodo777 on July 11, 2021, 05:52:14 PM
For the Honor Router 3:
Is there any way to have AP mode, but connected to the internet wirelessly?
I mean, I can set it up on Repeater mode, but then the SSID of the original network is replicated.
What I would like to have is:
- Connect to original router wirelessly
- Create a diffferent network, with a different SSID

I have not found any option to have this configuration up and running.
The AP mode explained in the user manual seems to assume that you are connected to the original router using an ethernet cable, which is not an option for me.
I have also tried to check if there is any OpenWRT image for this router, but to no avail.
Thanks!


Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: meritez on July 11, 2021, 10:10:12 PM
@frodo777 welcome to the Kitz forum.

Honor router 3 uses a Huawei chipset, so sadly no  openwrt will ever be possible.

The belkin rt3200 is £79.99 from Currys if you want a WiFi 6 supported openwrt device.
https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing-accessories/networking/network-routers-and-switches/routers/belkin-rt3200-uk-wifi-6-cable-fibre-router-ax-3200-dual-band-10215285-pdt.html

https://openwrt.org/toh/hwdata/belkin/belkin_rt3200

I don't think the honor supports wireless bridge plus transmitting another SSID, I could do this with a Mikrotik in two seconds, but not on the Honor.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: frodo777 on July 13, 2021, 05:04:10 PM
@meritez
Thanks a lot for the info and your kind words.
Sad to confirm what I already suspected: Transmitting a different SSID while on repeater mode is not possible and installing OpenWRT is not possible either.
Well, yeah, the thing is that I already bought the Honor Router 3, so getting a different one now is not an option for me.

Thanks!
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on July 13, 2021, 06:07:39 PM
Its basically why I wanted to write up my experience as I expected some limitations.

The most annoying one being that in Access Point mode, I can't use the LAN ports as a switch.  I can only assume the WAN port must be one interface and the other ports on a different interface to the switch chip.

Not an unusual configuration (its actually optimal for a router as if this thing was hooked into Gigabit WAN, you don't want it bottlenecking with LAN traffic due to only having a shared Gigabit link into the SoC) but kinda disappointing as the SoC should be fast enough to bridge between the two.

I usually hang onto routers but I think this one I will sell on or donate to a charity shop once I get a proper WiFi 6e Access Point.  I really want to get OpenWRT onto the Ubiquiti NanoHD but there are too many reports of bricking it right now.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: meritez on July 28, 2021, 01:33:19 PM
Found an ebay seller selling for £25 each, or 3 for £67:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/164975167584
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on July 28, 2021, 09:47:55 PM
Found an ebay seller selling for £25 each, or 3 for £67:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/164975167584

EU plug though, so may add some cost if you need an adapter.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: meritez on July 28, 2021, 10:51:00 PM
EU plug though, so may add some cost if you need an adapter.

Adapter is provided in the listing.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: RealAleMadrid on July 28, 2021, 11:06:10 PM
For that price it is very tempting just to try it but do I really need to add to my collection of routers, modems and access points of various types including a recently purchased Lancom LW-600 Wi-Fi 6 AP at a good price, don't have any Wi-Fi 6 devices though. Just thinking of future-proofing. :no:
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on July 29, 2021, 12:42:22 AM
Well it was only £30 when I bought mine direct from Huawei.  I'd expect there to be a Honor Router 4 soon for WiFi 6e support, THAT would be future proof-ish.

Bear in mind its a very locked down device with little chance of third-party firmware as Huawei make their own silicon.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Chrysalis on July 30, 2021, 02:46:16 AM
Speeds you reported seem underwhelming not much higher than my old Archer C7.

My only wifi6 capable device is my still unused new one plus 8 pro phone, my laptop is stuck on what it has due to laptops applying whitelisting for wifi cards.

I dont really need the extended range as I dont live in a large property, however I do like the look of it.

Finally I feel if I replace what I have it needs to be openwrt compatible.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on July 30, 2021, 03:39:22 AM
That's interesting as I upgraded to the nanoHD as I was having awful performance with the Archer C7.

Going from the nanoHD to the Honor I think 100Mbit improvement moving from WiFi 5 to WiFi 6 is pretty decent, it only has Gigabit ports after all so its bottlenecked regardless.  Its also well reported to not expect performance improvements on WiFi 6 to a single device, as its not aimed at getting smoother performance when running multiple clients at the same time.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Chrysalis on July 30, 2021, 08:26:44 AM
I get about 300-500 on the C7 depending on positioning and distance.

Also there is a better driver now which has added new features so it supports WPA3 etc.

However I still think the C7 is really ugly so always open for replacements. :)
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on July 30, 2021, 10:24:33 AM
The big thing for me was the nanoHD was more consistent, like you said the C7 speed varies A LOT for no obvious reason.  The Honor Router just pushed the speed that bit higher.  I have found iperf3 is not always a reliable test either, real-world performance often shows much higher speeds than it does.

I'm aware there has been a lot of work on the ath10k driver (tested on the C7 especially) on OpenWRT to tweak everything for optimum performance and get QoS working optimally, but its not rolled into stock OpenWRT yet AFAIK.

I was planning to donate my C7 to a friend on Virgin as he currently is using one my older WDR3600 which tapped out when he got 160Mbit and now he is on a faster service its bottlenecked horribly but I was hoping these improvements would be available before I did that.

Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Chrysalis on July 30, 2021, 04:56:24 PM
Its default now in openwrt 19.07 :)

I cannot remember exactly when they changed it, but they decided to change it on the basis the old driver was effectively unmaintained and the new one at least had an active dev.

21.02 I see is upcoming and this one enables the wpa3 stuff by default as well which should make it easier to configure for him.

If you do donate the C7, get the latest openwrt on it first so he gets the new driver. :)
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Alex Atkin UK on July 30, 2021, 11:25:36 PM
I'm not talking about the two different ath10k drivers, I'm talking about the people actually tuning the driver.
https://forum.openwrt.org/t/aql-and-the-ath10k-is-lovely/
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: meritez on July 31, 2021, 12:42:03 AM
I'm not talking about the two different ath10k drivers, I'm talking about the people actually tuning the driver.
https://forum.openwrt.org/t/aql-and-the-ath10k-is-lovely/

That's a great read, thanks
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Chrysalis on July 31, 2021, 07:22:46 AM
Thanks, I investigated, it seems the ath10k driver I am using which is the one enabled by default in 19.07 does have the aql feature set within the driver, however it isnt the smallbuffer driver which has to be installed manually.

Reading that thread (I havent read every post) indicates its not just the feature set, but the actual tuning which you have mentioned.  It is in the upcoming 20.x release.  So looks like will be the default moving forward.

I should clarify the speed variance is primarily dependent on what room I am in rather than small movements, I would expect walls and such to affect the signal strength.  I dont get the issue that has caused some people to need to use the smallbuffers for stability, the aqm stuff looks very interesting though so may well upgrade to 20x when its fully released.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: M888w on July 31, 2021, 05:28:54 PM
My only wifi6 capable device is my still unused new one plus 8 pro phone, my laptop is stuck on what it has due to laptops applying whitelisting for wifi cards.
All my laptops had BIOS Whitelists, now all have Intel WiFi AX201E adapter cards installed. Whitelists can be unlocked, it's just a matter of how difficult.
Most people who take the time and effort to upgrade WiFi connections is for stability rather than for speed and AX WiFi 6 Standard is best.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Chrysalis on July 31, 2021, 08:47:50 PM
All my laptops had BIOS Whitelists, now all have Intel WiFi AX201E adapter cards installed. Whitelists can be unlocked, it's just a matter of how difficult.
Most people who take the time and effort to upgrade WiFi connections is for stability rather than for speed and AX WiFi 6 Standard is best.


I did look into it for my laptop, and I felt wasnt worth it, lots of risky loops to jump through, its not as if it came with a crappy 2.4ghz card.  The wifi on it is very stable.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: Chrysalis on September 18, 2021, 01:12:53 PM
I'm not talking about the two different ath10k drivers, I'm talking about the people actually tuning the driver.
https://forum.openwrt.org/t/aql-and-the-ath10k-is-lovely/

21.02 is out now, 20.x it seems got skipped.
Title: Re: HONOR Router 3 (WiFi 6)
Post by: meritez on October 26, 2021, 09:24:53 PM
Back to £29.99 at Amazon https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B08WPN36NQ/