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Ugh I have WiFi 6 as my main nodes with a few tri-band nodes to cover some dead spots. ... Since I have Velop tri-band nodes that will get the firmware update, I wonder how this will work as my WiFi 6 nodes are acting as my main system.

In mesh systems from Linksys and/or other manufacturers, can WiFi-5 and WiFi-6 masters and satellite nodes be mix and matched? If so, does the entire mesh network default down to the lowest common denominator (WiFi-5), or does each node function at its individual max capability?
 
Looks like all of these models are for the slower 2.2Gbps WiFi 5 models. Not the 5.3Gbps WiFi 6 ones...

Can anyone more familiar with Linksys' history offer any informed speculation as to whether they might roll out HomeKit support for their newer Wi-Fi 6 routers? Is this something likely to happen at some point down the road?

If so, any thoughts about why they apparently have chosen to prioritize roll-out for their older Wi-Fi 5 routers, whose owners are perhaps slightly less likely to be the early adopters who might be more keen the average to take advantage of any added HomeKit functionality?
 
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I wish these Wifi 6 mesh routers would come down in price. It's been nearly two years now they've been on the market.
 
At this Point, if you are buying new gear, purchase the WiFi6 or better.
I disagree. The next standard (Wifi6) is not yet fully baked, especially with 6ghz / Wifi6e coming at the end of this year or early next year. Buying a wifi6 router/AP now could leave you with a partially-compatible product after the standard is solidified for long-term support. Not to mention that there are very few devices capable of it right now.

Also, buying a modern wave 2 router/AP (MU-MIMO and 4x4 802.11ac) is a pretty good bet for long-term use today. You can get close to 1gbps speeds in real-world home settings, which is faster than something like 95% of people's internet connections and close to the cap of most local networks anyway. (e.g., not many people have 10GbE networks at home). It's a mature standard that devices will fully support for a long time.
 
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I wish these Wifi 6 mesh routers would come down in price. It's been nearly two years now they've been on the market.
Until Wifi6 becomes widely adopted and more clients connect this way the mesh routers are going to be pricey.
 
I just spent 4 weeks working on upgrading my Comcast plan to 1Gbps and shopping for modems and routers. It came down to the Linksys Velop and the Netgear Orbi Wifi6 RBK852. The Orbi won hands down. Faster Wifi, more than twice the direct ethernet connection speed and no dead zones. The Linksys Velop doesn't have great coverage. I wish the Homekit was offered for the Orbi. It's the superior system.
And yes while it looks "cool" it does resemble the Xbox Series X. lol.
Do you work for Netgear or what? Lol just because YOU don’t like the Velop doesn’t mean it’s an “inferior” product, cause it’s not at all. Reviews prove this. Carry on
 
Until Wifi6 becomes widely adopted and more clients connect this way the mesh routers are going to be pricey.
I was a little surprised the Apple Watch 6 introduced last week does *not* have have Wi-Fi 6 (though, relative to series 5, Apple apparently added 5 GHz support to the existing Wi-Fi (I think 802.11n?))
 
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That's fine. Good for them. My 'mesh' crashed three times, and they are sitting in a box until I decide what to do with them. Donate them, smash them, sell them. So disappointed...

But good for them. Happy happy joy joy...
 
I was a little surprised the the Apple Watch 6 introduced last week does *not* have have Wi-Fi 6 (though, relative to series 5, Apple apparently added 5 GHz support to the existing Wi-Fi (I think 802.11n?))
Wifi6 is kinda interesting in terms of the type of results achieved. My 16" MBP (doesn't have Wifi6) on average achieves the same speeds as my iPhone 11 which of course does have Wifi6. When I'm close to the router the iPhone will get up to 900Mbps on my 1Gbps Xfinity plan. The MacBook achieves about 600+Mbps when close to the router. After about 6ft away both the MacBook and the iPhone achieve about 500-600+Mbps. I'm not saying Wifi6 is overrated but I don't think it's the "end-all" just yet. I'm sure after the Wifi6 adoption rate increases the wireless router companies will put out updated firmware to show off Wifi6 capabilities.
 
Wifi6 is kinda interesting in terms of the type of results achieved. My 16" MBP (doesn't have Wifi6) on average achieves the same speeds as my iPhone 11 which of course does have Wifi6. When I'm close to the router the iPhone will get up to 900Mbps on my 1Gbps Xfinity plan. The MacBook achieves about 600+Mbps when close to the router. After about 6ft away both the MacBook and the iPhone achieve about 500-600+Mbps. I'm not saying Wifi6 is overrated but I don't think it's the "end-all" just yet. I'm sure after the Wifi6 adoption rate increases the wireless router companies will put out updated firmware to show off Wifi6 capabilities.
what kind of router do you have?
 
I just spent 4 weeks working on upgrading my Comcast plan to 1Gbps
Great speeds on my Gig comcast.
I disagree. The next standard (Wifi6) is not yet fully baked, especially with 6ghz / Wifi6e coming at the end of this year or early next year. Buying a wifi6 router/AP now could leave you with a partially-compatible product after the standard is solidified for long-term support. Not to mention that there are very few devices capable of it right now.

The Comcast modem which is reguired for my quad services is actually pretty good. It is only about 15% slower than my Asus ax router. I gave up on the Obi mesh when I couldn't get over 200 Mbps. I see rates closer to 500 Mbps with my ax or Comcast routers in a remote upstairs bedroom. But it isn't that far away from the router. Since I have 48 networks in my immediate vicinity I rarely get over 700 Mbs even next to the routers.
 
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The Comcast modem which is reguired for my quad services is actually pretty good. It is only about 15% slower than my Asus ax router. I gave up on the Obi mesh when I couldn't get over 200 Mbps. I see rates closer to 500 Mbps with my ax or Comcast routers in a remote upstairs bedroom. But it isn't that far away from the router. I have 48 networks in my immediate vicinity I rarely get over 700 Mbs even next to the routers.
For now on Comcast will only get my monthly dues for my plan and the required hardware. Thankfully their modem/router isn't required where I live. Not about to give them an extra $14 a month just to rent their modem/router that's far outdated. Was your Orbi a Wifi6 model? I get very fast speeds with it. On average 600-800 Mbps. The only way to get the full 1GB (in reality Comcast gives 940Mbps) is via direct ethernet connection or by standing right next to the modem for wireless.
 
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I disagree. The next standard (Wifi6) is not yet fully baked, especially with 6ghz / Wifi6e coming at the end of this year or early next year.
I hope you realize that every time a new "standard" comes out it prolongs the adoption rate? 6e won't be the "end-all" until the rest of the world starts buying the hardware to support it. The same as the current Wifi 6.
 
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Could you clarify what you mean by "WiFi6 or better"? Are you referring to Wi-Fi 6E, for which routers are not yet widely available?

A related question: I currently have zero WiFi 6 devices, and this will probably remain the case at least in the immediate future. Is the backhaul in mesh networks based on WiFi-6 more reliable (and/or faster, and/or has greater range) compared to the backhaul in mesh networks based on WiFi-5? If so, would this be a good reason to upgrade to a WiFi 6-based mesh network even in the absence of any WiFi 6 end point devices?
Of you don’t need to upgrade, then wait. If you don’t have Gigabit Internet, and your network is reliable, you don’t need to upgrade. But if you are buying new equipment for a reason, then buy WiFi6 or 6e.

The backhaul depends on a particular platform. If it’s a dedicated backhaul, it’s more resilient with WiFi6 than WiFi5. Its range is also longer with WiFi6.
 
My routers are WHW03v2 is that the same thing as “WHW0302”?

If anyone has the answer I’ll be so grateful! Just got these routers relatively recently and I really hope they are compatible with this update! Nothing has rolled out to me yet.
 
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I hope you realize that every time a new "standard" comes out it prolongs the adoption rate? 6e won't be the "end-all" until the rest of the world starts buying the hardware to support it. The same as the current Wifi 6.

yea, agreed. But in the case of wifi, of all standard, it makes the most sense to wait and see how things shake out before spending a ton of money in hardware and risking it not working out long term.

new bluetooth spec? Sure, being an early adopter is low cost and low risk, go for it. New wifi standard, i’m not dropping a ton and upending my network for something that might not work out longterm.
 
Did you look at Ubiquiti's Unifi gear? Their Unifi Dream Machine product looks awesome and is getting rave reviews.

After years of mediocrity, I just don't trust the home brands such as Linksys and Netgear.

+1 for UniFi. Even with two people working from home and two kids homeschooling, lots of POE cameras, and lots of wifi devices (30-40 clients at any given time), it’s still been rock solid. I can’t recommend highly enough.
 
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