A few weeks after its presentation, the new version of the Freebox Pop server is offered to old subscribers, and not just to new ones. But to benefit from it, you will have to pay migration fees and be patient.
At the end of January 2024, Free created an event by presenting its latest Internet box: the Freebox Ultra. A high-end model, available in two versions, with or without a streaming service pack. which immediately established itself as the most complete box in terms of technologies and services available to date in France (see our article). But the operator still had a few surprises in store, including a new version of the Freebox Pop which presents several interesting improvements.
Freebox Pop 2024: Wi-Fi 7 for the fiber version
At the end of March, the day after Free’s announcement of the partnership with Qiara for its remote monitoring solution (see our article), Free has discreetly formalized a new version of the Freebox Pop server box. without changing its name, but adding welcome improvements.
The first, and most attractive, concerns the transition from Wi-Fi 6 to Wi-Fi 7, the latest wireless communication interface standard. However, if Pop joins Ultra in this area, the two boxes are not equivalent in this area. Indeed, unlike its big sister, the Freebox Pop 2024 does not manage the new 6 GHz frequency band and must make do with the classic 2.4 and 5 GHz. Performance will therefore be less good than with the Freebox Ultra, but still higher than that of the “classic” Pop because the 5 GHz channel of Wi-Fi 7 uses a bandwidth of 320 MHz and a 4096QAM type modulation then that Wi-Fi 6 is limited to 160 MHz and 1024QAM. In principle, the Wi-Fi speed of the new Pop should be doubled.
No improvement however on the fiber side, the maximum speeds remain lower than those of the operator’s high-end box: up to 5 Gbit/s in reception and 700 Mbit/s in sending for Pop, where the Freebox Ultra promises symmetrical speeds of up to 8 Gbit/s. No problem, no frustration, the 5 Gbit/s downstream is already more than sufficient for daily use, even in the case of intensive family use, with several 4K video streams.
Another welcome new feature, a physical on-off switch appears on the Pop’s case, which allows it to be turned off or restarted more quickly. Finally, a hanging system for wall mounting is added to the lower part of the box, in order to be able to connect the box as close as possible to the optical termination socket (PTO) of its housing.
On the other hand, this 2024 version of the Freebox Pop confirms the inexorable, and forced, advance of the operator towards all fiber optics, with the regrettable disappearance of the ADSL socket. Like the Freebox Ultra, this new model is therefore reserved only for subscribers with optical fiber in their home. If this technology is obviously the natural and desirable evolution of wired telecommunications networks in France, its deployment for all users is still far from being completed, notwithstanding the latest figures from operators and Arcep, which only give a macroscopic vision and completely avoid a large number of particular situations. And contrary to popular belief, residents of rural, isolated or difficult-to-access areas are not the only ones to be deprived of this technology, many homes in very dense urban areas are not yet connected, either due to lack of interest from operators for certain popular cities, or by refusal of owners to have optical fiber installed in their building, to the detriment of their tenants.
Fortunately, the operator is not abandoning its private fiber optic customers in the open countryside, and continues to market the “classic” Freebox Pop equipped with an ADSL input but lacking the improvements of the new model and in particular Wi-Fi 7, which is not really a problem in itself, the good old copper network is in any case not capable of providing sufficient speeds to take advantage of the potential of the new wireless protocol standard.
Other good news is that if the Freebox Pop 2024 was at its launch reserved for new customers – a great tradition among operators who often tend to neglect their loyal customers – it is now also available to old subscribers who request it. Of course, and as explained previously, only fiber subscribers can benefit from it. but, above all, they will have to pay an exchange fee of 49 euros to replace the old server with the new model. A particularly high price for a gain perhaps not so interesting immediately, devices compatible with Wi-Fi 7 are just starting to arrive on the market and are still rare in homes. Above all, they will have to be patient because, given the high demand, the exchange time can reach three months. Clearly, those who make the request in mid-April will be able to wait until mid-July to receive the new box.
And so as not to neglect its other faithful, Free is now also offering Freebox Revolution and Freebox mini 4K subscribers the opportunity to upgrade to the Freebox Pop with Wi-Fi 7! Obviously, this migration is only possible for subscribers with access to fiber. And here again, you have to pay 49 euros in fees to change your offer.
Freebox Player: a new TV box for the Freebox Ultra
During the Freebox Ultra presentation conference, one element caught some observers’ attention: the absence of a TV box dedicated to the new box. For the moment, subscribers who turn to the new Freebox Ultra offer will have to “settle” for the Pop Player, i.e. the TV box included in the Freebox Pop offer. In an interview granted to the Univers Freebox sitethe boss of Free returns to this notable absence and explains it in particular by the evolution of the viewing habits of subscribers, who now use their smartphone or connected television more to access video content.
The need to renew the Freebox TV box was therefore not urgent and the teams therefore focused instead on the development of the new Freebox Ultra Server. Nevertheless, Xavier Niel confirms that a new Player is indeed under development, with a desired release for spring 2024, but specifying that the project seems to have fallen far behind schedule and will certainly be postponed further into the year.