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But if you need WiFi 7 over 6E then those routers won’t suffice. WiFi 7’s real world benefit is only noticeable in heavily congested wireless networks.
If you think you need WiFi 7 at home, just stick to 6E and have a professional advice you on hardware and placement. That will perform infinitely better than a random nerd installing an all in one router.
I don't agree. I had a Wi-Fi 6 router. I tried several WiFi 7 routers and the speed in my home network doubled.
 
Of course Apple always has to leave something out on purpose so they can sell ya the next one. it's getting ridiculous. If I'm gonna buy a new high end machine I want at least Thunderbolt 5 AND wifi 7. hoping we get that next year along with bluetooth 6, then we should be set on standards for awhile.
The Air Series is not considered a High End product to Apple 🍎 The Pros are and the Pro series will have the real WiFi 7 chip designed by Apple 🍎
 
Wi-fi 7 mesh routers are much more pricy. I have to have three access points to cover my house, and then I have another in the garage.
If you’re buying a pricey M3 Ultra Mac Studio then you probably aren’t overly concerned about the price of wifi. Also, mesh routers will lower in price over time, and since most will have their machines for years to come, the ability to upgrade your wifi system would be nice to have.
 
If you’re buying a pricey M3 Ultra Mac Studio then you probably aren’t overly concerned about the price of wifi. Also, mesh routers will lower in price over time, and since most will have their machines for years to come, the ability to upgrade your wifi system would be nice to have.

If I was going to buy a studio, I would use Ethernet. I even have my MacBook on Ethernet when docked, which is about 90% of the time while home.

It doesn't matter all that much anyway, as our internet is 300mbit. We can get up to 2 gigabit, but really have no use for anything faster.
 
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My dial up on my core duo is fine for now

When WiFi 25 is out I’ll upgrade, that’s where I really need to be at for my high end workflow.
 
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Wi-Fi pretty much hit physical limits. Unless a lot more frequencies are made available for WiFi, many people will use a wired connection wherever they can, because it will be so much faster. You simply can't increase the amount of users, the speed and the reach at the same time. If 10 Gigabit internet connections will be the standard in a decade from now, Wi-Fi will be the bottleneck unless people install antennas in every room of their house.
 
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TP-Link isn’t a reliable nor secure brand to use for your home network if you work from home and work in IT/Tech/Telecom/etc.
 
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This is good move from Apple. They need to make as much money as possible from their customers. Therefore no point adding new future proofing features that could impact sales later on. Plus when they make their own wifi 7 chip they can really improve the margin.
 
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The four WiFi 6E Orbi 960 series mesh router and remotes blew past $2,500 but were a big improvement over a Linksys WiFi 6 in late 2023. Our home was built in 2002 and was wired pretty well for the ethernet cabling of the day which is in the walls. It is used for both backhaul and source on the more remote units.

At my desk I have a 10Gb ethernet hub that ties my Mac Studio and the M4 Pro Mac mini file server together with a NAS. Our incoming cable signal is one Gb and since their copper wire has been in the ground since the subdivision was started in 2000, we do not expect them to upgrade to fiber optic. That is as fast as we will get for a long time. The Verizon tower is perhaps five miles away as the crow flies so we sometimes get two bars on 5G.

Due to the floor design walls, we need four "units" for coverage. The Orbi 870 Tri-band V7 is $1,800 and the Orbi 970 Quad-band V7 is $3,100 with four units.

One can chase the speed bunny but the costs are substantial. Maybe next year V7 will be really solid and prices will be more reasonable. I am too old now at age 80 to be on the cutting edge let alone the bleeding edge of technology and spend time trouble shooting the latest and greatest.

There is a 2.5Gb USB-C to ethernet adapter out that I have at my desk for my 16" M4 Max Mac Book Pro and M4 iPad. The WiFi main hub is also on my desk so not much attenuation in the 16" distance to the device by WiFi. Options....
 
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Definitely less of an issue on the Studio in my opinion; mine will be hard-wired in at 10GbE (replacing the iMac Pro's 10GbE connection as I finally put that machine out to pasture). Even if it had a 1Gb or 2.5GbE port I'd likely still be hard-wiring it in for data transfers to the NAS.

Is a bit of a bummer on the Macbook Air though to some degree but Apple seems to keep Wifi versions the same for a given M-series generation. Since other M4* products don't have it I wasn't really expecting it on the Air.
 
Here I am, still happily using my AirPort Extreme routers. Yes, I know the world has moved on but I manage based on our needs and so far, we have not needed more. My connection is 500Mb which AC is fine for and anything that would transfer larger files is cable connected. I know I am not the typical user but, the lack of WiFi 7 is fine.
I still use my 2013 Time Machine for backups only. How I miss those airport days.
 
This is the primary reason I'm not upgrading yet. Sure, it's fine today without Wi-Fi 7, but I own a Wi-Fi 7 router and if you plan on keeping your computer for 4+ years...eventually it would be nice to have Wi-Fi 7 support.
 
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This is good move from Apple. They need to make as much money as possible from their customers. Therefore no point adding new future proofing features that could impact sales later on. Plus when they make their own wifi 7 chip they can really improve the margin.
Yes correct just like the iPhone, Apple never gives you everything in one year. They always leave technology off for the next year. That’s why it’s good to only upgrade every 3-4 years with the iPhone to get the most future proofing technology.
 
Welp, as long as a WiFi 7 router costs more than a Macbook, it's still kinda okay lol
Exactly I just upgraded to an Eero 6e mesh system last year and the price difference was not worth buying WiFi 7
 
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