We recently purchased a new home so I'm looking at our broadband/wifi options.

Looks like the only provider offering 1Gbps is Spectrum via cable vs we're coming from ATT fiber.

Home is 1 story, ~2600 sq ft, built in 1979. Would like to cover whole home/driveway/back yard.

What's the best (and preferably economical) way to do this?

ill be looking to get one soon as well. I have an old ASUS AC68U from probably 10 years ago.

i have a lot of wifi 6 compatible devices now, so i figure im looking for an Netgear Orbis mesh system. I've heard eero is good, but they some how track your data? not sure im into that.

I am by no means an expert, and don't know all the specifics on what does what, but in my amateur opinion, my family and I have had amazing success with the Eero wifi mesh system. Literally 10 different people I've recommended it to have had tremendous success as well.

EDIT: to add insight into our home & lot, we live on a half acre lot and have a 3,750 sqft home with 2 stories (really 3 if you include a basement), putting different components of the system throughout the home gives strong wifi strength throughout the entire property.

It's simply a wireless network with multiple wireless access points hardwired back to a controller of some kind. A wireless "mesh" is something completely different.

Being a stickler on semantics because you don't want to walk into a store saying you are looking to install a wireless "mesh" network.

How does one do a wired backhaul if you are far away from the main gateway coming into the house? I currently have an Orbi mesh system, but my lone satellite is connected to main router wirelessly. I'm going to add one more satellite.

YouBet said:

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How does one do a wired backhaul if you are far away from the main gateway coming into the house? I currently have an Orbi mesh system, but my lone satellite is connected to main router wirelessly. I'm going to add one more satellite.

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100ft runs of cable up the wall across the attic and down to wherever your nodes are (or whatever distance you need)

YouBet said:

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How does one do a wired backhaul if you are far away from the main gateway coming into the house? I currently have an Orbi mesh system, but my lone satellite is connected to main router wirelessly. I'm going to add one more satellite.

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My Orbi does not even allow a wired backhaul so pay attention to the satellites if you want them wired.

Mesh solutions are fine if that's the only method you have. Just know that each AP in the mesh signal chain cuts the total bandwidth in half.

Hmmm no, I didn't realize that.

but I'd prefer not to have to run ethernet if I don't have to.

Sounds like I'll either have to run ethernet or have low bandwidth?

dubi said:

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Naveronski said:

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Hmmm no, I didn't realize that.

but I'd prefer not to have to run ethernet if I don't have to.

Sounds like I'll either have to run ethernet or have low bandwidth?

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I have an orbi with one satellite; when i am connected with my laptop I get 800+ mb down and my service is supposed to be 1T (never get that even if hardwired into modem).

So it does not appear to degrade my service by 50% as mentioned above.

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Same, recently installed an Eero network at my house and my speeds across the network are as fast or faster than with my previous single router setup.

That may come down to tri-band vs dual-band antennas. I'm not familiar with the Eero product.

dubi said:

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Naveronski said:

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Hmmm no, I didn't realize that.

but I'd prefer not to have to run ethernet if I don't have to.

Sounds like I'll either have to run ethernet or have low bandwidth?

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I have an orbi with one satellite; when i am connected with my laptop I get 800+ mb down and my service is supposed to be 1T (never get that even if hardwired into modem).

So Orbi mesh does not appear to degrade my service by 50% as mentioned above.

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You are probably connected to the main router…there is def degradation when connected to a wireless satellite

dubi said:

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YouBet said:

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How does one do a wired backhaul if you are far away from the main gateway coming into the house? I currently have an Orbi mesh system, but my lone satellite is connected to main router wirelessly. I'm going to add one more satellite.

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My Orbi does not even allow a wired backhaul so pay attention to the satellites if you want them wired.

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Well, mine doesn't either now that I look at it. All Ethernet ports. I can't run cable anyway.

So i was curious enough to do a test at home on the Orbi's (primary with 1 satellite).

So there was some degradation, but i calculate it to be 27% (698/946).

Wired to Orbi primary


Wired to Orbi satellite

dubi said:

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So i was curious enough to do a test at home on the Orbi's (primary with 1 satellite).

So there was some degradation, but i calculate it to be 27% (698/946).

Wired to Orbi primary


Wired to Orbi satellite

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I used to have numbers like that. Actually better.

Losing that has been the one downside of us moving. And I'm limited on what I can do where we are now.

dubi said:

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So i was curious enough to do a test at home on the Orbi's (primary with 1 satellite).

So there was some degradation, but i calculate it to be 27% (698/946).

Wired to Orbi primary


Wired to Orbi satellite

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I think when you talk about degradation of speeds we are generally referring to wirelessly connected to the wireless satellite vs the main router.

But I could be totally wrong…

Correct. A mesh network generally refers to one AP connecting to another AP's wireless signal. So that second AP is splitting it's bandwidth between connecting devices and connecting back to the other AP.

These people seem to be talking about a solution where a single AP is connecting to some kind of controller. Seems to be different.

If you are using a "current" Eero or Orbi, you most likely won't run into the bandwidth issues.

The first versions of mesh networks used their wireless radio to do the meshing. So you'd have a single radio that would be for both talking to clients (laptop, phones, streaming devices, etc...) and also talking to other mesh access points. This is where you'd lose half your bandwidth since you'd be "duplicating" all the data sent over wireless. Once from your device to the mess access point, then again from the mesh access point to the main hub/router.

Modern systems now have a dedicated radio to handle the "mesh" part of it. So you use one radio to talk with all the devices and then another radio is used to handle the backhaul network. That's fine for most users, but even with a dedicated wireless backhaul network, the main hub can only "talk" to one access point at a time. If you have multiple, the wireless bandwidth gets split so each access point now only gets 1/2. If it were wired, each access point would have a full bandwidth connection back to the router which is designed to handle multiple data streams at one time.

Short story long...mesh systems are fine for "average" home use. But as soon as you start putting anything that needs more than basic bandwidth (tv streaming, gaming, video calls) at the same time, you're going to notice performance issues.

I could be wrong but my take on a mesh system has always been that you use mesh to provide wifi where don't have a close enough ethernet drop to add a wifi access point. The mesh network passes the wireless from point to point, expanding the distance you can obtain wifi.

If you have the ethernet drops available, you don't need mesh. Just get more wifi access points.

Garrelli 5000 said:

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I could be wrong but my take on a mesh system has always been that you use mesh to provide wifi where don't have a close enough ethernet drop to add a wifi access point. The mesh network passes the wireless from point to point, expanding the distance you can obtain wifi.

If you have the ethernet drops available, you don't need mesh. Just get more wifi access points.

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Yes, that's what this is. In my mind, a mesh network is really fancy marketing for WiFi extenders. To be fair, my Orbi mesh worked better than the $30 ATT WiFi extenders I used to have in my old house. Not much, but better.

This is like the "cloud" in my mind. It's marketing. The cloud was groundbreaking stuff...if you didn't already know that all you were doing was moving your data to someone else's server from your own which companies had already been doing before the "cloud" was "invented".

I don't have ethernet drops anywhere in the house unless I drop cable/do the boxes myself.

Lathspell said:

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Mesh solutions are fine if that's the only method you have. Just know that each AP in the mesh signal chain cuts the total bandwidth in half.

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I do this in a mid 70s home. Works fine enough to stream TVs with Roku sticks.

Recently switched to att fiber, which came with their new gateway. Have Wifi off at the gateway but my Google Wifi points (pre-nest) are now nuked. All 3 of them hardwired but getting 80-120mbs over Wifi with wired delivering 900-980mbs wired.

May switch to eero

Ubiquiti.

/End of Thread.

I bit the bullet and bought the Orbi 970, then ran Ethernet to the back corner of the house. I'll eventually buy an Orbi satellite to cover that part + back yard, but didn't want to spend that out of pocket.

Getting about 900 to my PC and I'm thrilled.
For comparison, I initially setup the network with an older Nighhawk 1900 and the PC was only seeing about 300.

Garrelli 5000 said:

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I could be wrong but my take on a mesh system has always been that you use mesh to provide wifi where don't have a close enough ethernet drop to add a wifi access point. The mesh network passes the wireless from point to point, expanding the distance you can obtain wifi.

If you have the ethernet drops available, you don't need mesh. Just get more wifi access points.

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This isn't accurate at all. Lots of people should read this post...

Mesh is when two more more access points work together to "move you" from one to the next, without you disconnecting, all using the exact same SSID. So when you walk from one end of the structure to another, the mesh system "moves you' without disconnection across the various access points working together in said mesh. Using this method, the mesh system always knows which access point you're closest to and quickly moves you to it as necessary.

So if you had 3 access points in a line #1................. #2 ....................#3.....

As you walk from #1 to #2, for example, the mesh system will auto-move you to #2 as soon as your closer to #2. That's mesh. If you're not in mesh, you could be standing between #2 and #3 before #1 finally gets weak enough on your device to disconnect you, and then connect to the next closest... meaning you have a weaker signal because you're still tethered to #1, despite being far away when connecting to #2 or #3 would be more logical and a better connection with faster throughput.

Mesh, however, also has a heavy processing overhead for the access points themselves - which comes into effect when you using Mesh in a business or place with heavy traffic... then Mesh can really slow down your network depending on said load.

IF YOU DO NOT use MESH - but you still program each access point with the same SSID name... then what happens is as you move away from the one you're actually attached to, eventually you'll reach a bandwidth threshold and you'll disconnect and then re-attach to the one that's now nearest you. This causes a minor disconnection that you may or may not notice. (Example, you at home on a tablet device - wouldn't really notice. You as a restaurant server carrying a point of sale handset moving around the restaurant that constantly gets their connection broken, would totally notice and have issues).



ALSO - Not all access points have direct connections, and mesh has nothing to do with it. Example... you could have all 3 access points with ethernet connections... which is ideal. But you could have a situation where you have one or two ethernet wired, but one that's an "extended" access point who's job is to be unwired but connects to one of the hard-wired ethernet access points and "extends" the connection via amplification and also still uses mesh. Not ideal, not the best, but can work for many situations/homes.

Naveronski said:

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I bit the bullet and bought the Orbi 970, then ran Ethernet to the back corner of the house. I'll eventually buy an Orbi satellite to cover that part + back yard, but didn't want to spend that out of pocket.

Getting about 900 to my PC and I'm thrilled.
For comparison, I initially setup the network with an older Nighhawk 1900 and the PC was only seeing about 300.

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Ubiquiti makes a Access Point called the LR which means long range and has great coverage and you can jack up its signal inside the unit too. Furthermore, with Ubiquiti, you can even go in and set the bandwidth width and the channel/frequency it broadcasts on which is awesome for wifi collisions in neighborhoods and such, with affects people more than they realize.

$179.00 https://store.ui.com/us/en/pro/category/wifi-flagship/products/u6-lr

That's not true. For anyone discussing wireless networks, a "mesh" is a chain of access points where one access point uses the RF from another to grab network connectivity to then provide wireless signal from its own radio.

You are right in that they are using the same SSID and they are probably handing you off from one to the other, if they support that ability.

However, any full WLAN includes both the wireless access points and a wireless controller. It is the controller that connects all wireless access points in the LAN or WAN to the same SSID. In this situation, the controller provides the WAPs the ability to handoff an endpoint based on location or WAP load. This is never described as a "mesh" network in any discussions I have ever had with a wireless manufacturer, solution engineer, or network professional.

Well, ***** Now we don't know the truth about mesh with all of these competing definitions.

All I know is that I can't really improve my speed because my wiring is basic CAT5 and would require a complete redo. Not really possible without breaking open walls, I suspect. Unless someone has some kind of genius fishing solution I'm unaware of.

Lathspell said:

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That's not true. For anyone discussing wireless networks, a "mesh" is a chain of access points where one access point uses the RF from another to grab network connectivity to then provide wireless signal from its own radio.

You are right in that they are using the same SSID and they are probably handing you off from one to the other, if they support that ability.

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First off, I'm accurate, you're incorrect that an extender is automatically a 'mesh'... let me break it down... (and see my post below where the AI probably explains it better for you)

You are basically '*******izing' what a mesh is... the same way non-computer people look at their actual computer case and call it their hard drive.

If you don't have intelligent seemless routing, with the access point(s) and any extenders working together and sharing statistics and adjusting based on performance ---> then you DO NOT HAVE MESH.

Real life example : If you have an Access Point "A" and Extender "E"... (wired or unwired, doesn't matter) far apart in a structure...

If it was actually MESH - as soon as you walked from A towards E, and were closer to E... they would work together noticing your signal to E was not strgoner and thus "move you" to talking directly to E...

In a non-mesh system, you'd just about have to break the signal with "A", because you're already connected to it, before "E" would pick you up and improve your speed/connection... because "A" and "E" aren't mesh'd and thus not comparing notes of your signal strength to both of them and moving you to whatever is stronger.

Look at #2 below - in the AI post... it's called 'seemless roaming'.

YouBet said:

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Well, ***** Now we don't know the truth about mesh with all of these competing definitions.

All I know is that I can't really improve my speed because my wiring is basic CAT5 and would require a complete redo. Not really possible without breaking open walls, I suspect. Unless someone has some kind of genius fishing solution I'm unaware of.

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You can get the U6 or U7 units from Ubiquiti (Unifi), set the bandwidth.

Even on Cat5, you can set the "Channel Width" in the units from default 80 to 160, and reach far closer to that 100 mb/s Cat5 limitation than you likely would otherwise on a Cat6 Gigabit network....

.... or if you aren't in a huge structure, you could put in one of those near your network gear (aka not using old cat5 in the walls) where you're still gigabit only (or cat6 externally), and reach great speeds.

Food for thought.

Let me "AI" that for you :

TLDR : ALLLLLLLLLLL of these are required for mesh.


In Wi-Fi networking, a mesh network refers to a system where multiple devices (access points or nodes) work together to provide seamless Wi-Fi coverage over a large area. This contrasts with traditional setups, where a single router serves as the central hub, and additional range extenders connect to the router in a hierarchical (or "star") topology.
For a system to qualify as a mesh network between access points and extensions, it should meet the
following criteria:

1. Dynamic Routing (Self-Healing):

• In a mesh network, every node (access point or extension) is capable of communicating with other nodes, not just the main router.
• If one node fails or experiences interference, the system dynamically reroutes the traffic through another node to ensure continuous connectivity. This is often called a self-healing capability.

2. Seamless Roaming:

• A key feature of mesh networks is that they allow devices (like phones or laptops) to roam seamlessly between different nodes without dropping the connection. This is typically achieved through protocols like 802.11k/v/r.
• The mesh system handles the transition between nodes, ensuring a consistent experience without needing the user to manually switch networks.

3. Single Network Name (SSID):

• All nodes in a mesh network broadcast the same network name (SSID) and use the same credentials. Devices automatically connect to the nearest or strongest node without the user noticing a difference.
• Unlike traditional extenders, where each extender might create its own SSID (e.g.,
  HomeWiFi_EXT
  ), a mesh system operates under a single SSID.

4. Unified Management:

• Mesh networks are usually managed as a single entity through a unified interface, often via an app or a central management dashboard. This allows you to control the entire network from one place rather than configuring each access point or extension separately.

5. Backhaul Flexibility:

• Mesh networks can use multiple types of backhaul connections (the link between nodes), such as:
  
  • Wireless backhaul: Nodes communicate wirelessly with each other.
  • Wired backhaul: Nodes can be connected through Ethernet cables for more stable and faster communication.
• In many systems, nodes can switch between wireless and wired backhaul as needed, depending on the network conditions.

6. Optimized Network Performance:

• Mesh systems often include algorithms that optimize network performance by choosing the best paths for data to travel between nodes and connected devices. This can involve balancing the load across different nodes and selecting the least congested channels.

Differences Between Traditional Extenders and Mesh:

• Range Extenders: A traditional Wi-Fi extender simply rebroadcasts the signal it receives from the main router. It usually operates on a separate SSID and provides a weaker connection because of the way it extends the network.
• Mesh Nodes: In contrast, mesh nodes work together in a coordinated system, where each node communicates with others to provide consistent coverage and performance across the entire network.

Example Systems:

• Google Nest Wi-Fi, Netgear Orbi, Eero, TP-Link Deco, and Ubiquiti AmpliFi are popular examples of mesh Wi-Fi systems that meet these qualifications.

In summary, for a Wi-Fi system to qualify as a mesh network between access points and extensions, it needs to support dynamic routing, seamless roaming, a single SSID, unified management, and flexible backhaul options, all of which contribute to a robust and reliable wireless network.