Which of the main providers have the least shitty hub/router?

My first contract was with Sky and it's coming to an end. It was a huge mistake. The service itself has been okay, but their hub/router is absolute anti-consumer nonsense. I can't set my own DNS server at the router level. To set some basic settings like the WIFI SSID I need to use a mobile app even though there is a web config to the router settings that are disabled. I can't even change some settings like channel width because they are completely blocked on the web config and do not exist in the app.

Unfortunately my area is not serviced by some of the seemingly newer and maybe better (?) companies that offer symmetrical fibre speeds at much better prices. YouFibre comes to mind. When I use a broadband comparison site and put in my post code I am only greeted by the major companies: Sky, Vodaphone, EE, BT, and Virgin. The only smaller (?) companies that appear are Plusnet, Fibrely, Rebel, Rise, and 4th Utility.

A few of those are out just because of pricing, such as Rebel, Rise, and 4th utility. I do not want my monthly cost (£34 for 500mbps down) to go up but even though Rebel seems like the most "techy" option they start at over £40+.

I don't mind going to another big provider because I really just want to dump Sky, as long as I get the same or better speeds at roughly the same price. I really just want the hardware to be fucking normal. A simple web configuration where I can change some basic networking settings to suit my network. I don't want any hand-holding and web filtering. Some companies are even advertising "AI powered" monitoring. Fuck me.

Hell, I have a perfectly fine working router that I wanted to use but couldn't because everything has to go through the Sky Hub and I didn't want to set it to bridge mode and have two devices running all the time just because Sky wants to snoop on my shit.

I am still reading reviews but I am finding it hard to get actual details about how the hardware is and works. I read that Plusnet is "no frills" which was listed as a con but that could be a plus for me if their set up is simple and configurable. Do any of those companies offer basic hardware or allow me to bring my own without having to go through their hub? If I am forced to go through a hub, which is the most configurable and least restrictive?

Any help would be much appreciated.