Home What Wi-Fi Router/Mesh System Do You Use and Would You Recommend It?

[Itinj24]

I’m at wits end with my eero Pro 6 mesh. My biggest mistake was “upgrading” from the eero Pro but at this point, not sure I should even go back to a Wi-Fi 5 system.

I have GB Verizon internet.

With almost 100 devices on my network daily and climbing, what do you use and would you recommend it?

 

[mmkerc]

I use the Linksys Velop Mesh with three ax5300 nodes, and it has been a very stable setup up for me. That said what are the issue you are having with your Eero setup? You mention you upgraded and that is when the trouble started. When I upgrade my Velop to the WiFI 6 routers I was still only getting 200mbs speeds. I talked with Linksys and my system "retain a memory" of the older nodes. Once I cleared that I have been have consistent performance in the 500-950mbs range with the variations to distance from the router. You might want to check if something similar is happening in your system if speed is what your issue is.

 

[elvisimprsntr]

Gave up on consumer grade IT kit a long time ago.

I have a separate https://pfsense.org enterprise class firewall.

Just installed a WiFi 6 enterprise class AP. Not all WiFi 6 chipsets/kit are created equal. Make sure to buy kit that supports OFDMA in both directions.

Wi-Fi 6 4x4 Managed Indoor Wireless Access Point

EnGenius EWS377AP WiFi 6 Access Point: 4x4 Managed Indoor Wireless features 802.11ax technology, which deepens and extends the capabilities of Wi-Fi.

www.engeniustech.com

Out of 40+ devices, only had one 15+ year old HP printer that cannot connect to WiFi 6 (802.11ax), but then it also had problems connecting to WiFi 5 WPA2+AES

 

[Itinj24]

I use the Linksys Velop Mesh with three ax5300 nodes, and it has been a very stable setup up for me. That said what are the issue you are having with your Eero setup? You mention you upgraded and that is when the trouble started. When I upgrade my Velop to the WiFI 6 routers I was still only getting 200mbs speeds. I talked with Linksys and my system "retain a memory" of the older nodes. Once I cleared that I have been have consistent performance in the 500-950mbs range with the variations to distance from the router. You might want to check if something similar is happening in your system if speed is what your issue is.

Thanks for the reply. Ya know, funny you should mention… My issues started when I replaced my eero Pro gateway with an eero 6 Pro. Many calls to support and one of them said that the Pro 6 “injected” files into my network or whatever the hell that means. I factory reset and dismantled my whole network and HomeKit setup. so if that didn’t work, not sure what else could. I replaced all my eero Pro nodes with Pro 6 nodes and the issue got worse. What’s happening is out of nowhere, one of the nodes would go offline and even though there are only 4 clients connected to it, for some reason, it would pull other clients off line with it, then another node would drop too. Speeds on my iPhone 13 Pro would drop to 1 mbps during this time. This happens daily and could last from an hour to six hours. Then everything would stabilize. Sometimes I’d have to re-add devices to HomeKit causing a ruckus with my automations and scenes. I have some automations going through Shortcuts that are a PITA to reconfigure. On another note, I have client steering on which is supposed to connect the client to the nearest node. I have an ecobee thermostat connecting to my pool shed node in the backyard when the gateway eero is directly a floor below it. Turning off client steering doesn’t help either. What’s also crazy is I just bought a new gen ATV 4K with the Wi-Fi 6. It’s the only ATV out of eight I have in my house that’s getting awful connection lol. Go figure. I’ve absolutely had it with eero.

I was actually looking at the Linksys now as a replacement. I wanted to stay with HomeKit Enabled Routers it options are extremely limited in that so I might not even bother. Only the older original Velop and the AX4200 support it. I was considering the Linksys Atlas Max 6E but reviews don’t look great on it as far as security features and parental controls but stability is the most important. Thanks.

 

[Itinj24]

Gave up on consumer grade IT kit a long time ago.

I have a separate https://pfsense.org enterprise class firewall.

Just installed a WiFi 6 enterprise class AP. Not all WiFi 6 chipsets/kit are created equal. Make sure to buy kit that’s supports OFDMA in both directions.

Wi-Fi 6 4x4 Managed Indoor Wireless Access Point

EnGenius EWS377AP WiFi 6 Access Point: 4x4 Managed Indoor Wireless features 802.11ax technology, which deepens and extends the capabilities of Wi-Fi.

www.engeniustech.com

Out of 40+ devices, only had one 15+ year old HP printer that cannot connect to WiFi 6 (802.11ax), but then it also had problems connecting to WiFi 5 WPA2+AES

Thanks for the reply. I’ll look into this. Admittedly, I’m not by any means a networking expert. I’ll be happy with stability and connection/speeds decent enough to run my whole HomeKit setup and a few cell phones and iPads.

 

[mmkerc]

As I said my issue was only with initial throughput speeds. With this upgrade, I have few routers (3 vs 4), no dead spots in coverage area that I have found, and consistent performance. In terms of your specific issues you've gone Beyond my capabilities as I'm just a jack of trades not a master of any. ?

 

[zhenya]

What kind of things do you have on the network to have 100 devices? We have a much larger and more connected house than the vast majority of people, and we have about 40 wifi devices. Total connected devices is probably closer to 200, but the vast majority of the IoT stuff are on zigbee networks. If you are putting that stuff on wifi, you may never have a stable network.

 

[Itinj24]

As I said my issue was only with initial throughput speeds. With this upgrade, I have few routers (3 vs 4), no dead spots in coverage area that I have found, and consistent performance. In terms of your specific issues you've gone Beyond my capabilities as I'm just a jack of trades not a master of any. ?

Oh of course, I wasn’t looking for tech support out of you. You asked so I told and it was more of me venting than anything lol. Thanks for listening though lol. I’m the same. I know a little about everything but a whole lot about nothing.

 

[Itinj24]

What kind of things do you have on the network to have 100 devices? We have a much larger and more connected house than the vast majority of people, and we have about 40 wifi devices. Total connected devices is probably closer to 200, but the vast majority of the IoT stuff are on zigbee networks. If you are putting that stuff on wifi, you may never have a stable network.

Zigbee might be the way to go then and I’m still waiting for that Thinka Z-Wave HomeKit hub to make it to the US. But why would it slow down only a once a day? Eero claims that each router can handle 128 devices and I have three Pro 6 routers running right now (three more are disabled but I used them for testing). They should not make such bold marketing claims if it isn’t true.

I have mix of HomePods HomePod Minis, AppleTVs, TVs, many cameras, six thermostats, garage doors, door locks, smart plugs, Ceiling fan, Philips Hue (Zigbee), Aqara (Zigbee) Lutron Caseta (proprietary Zigbee like network), iPhones, Macs, iPads, etc… Most are sleeping at any given time.

 

[Bl0ckHe1d]

Have you considered hardwiring [Ethernet cable] the Mesh nodes to the main router, this should boost the mesh nodes connection quality and WIFI signal strength(s)? Also the network signals are dependant on the distance of the nodes from the router, the further away the node is from the router the weaker connection quality and WIFI signal strength becomes.

Can you access the Eero configuration page [usually http://192.168.1.1 or similar] to assess where the issue may be, it may arise you which node has the weak connection point etc?

I have the ASUS router [RT-AC86U] and use the same ASUS routers for the Mesh nodes. One of the node is hardwired directly to the router which provides an "great" connection quality and the other is "partially" hardwired via a powerline adapter which provides a "normal" connection quality.

Like you, I had a lot of issues with the Logi-Circle camera which is installed outside of my property which would drop out on many occasions. After installing a Mesh node in the garage this boost the connection quality to the camera and very rarely do I get any drop offs.

 

[Itinj24]

Have you considered hardwiring [Ethernet cable] the Mesh nodes to the main router, this should boost the mesh nodes connection quality and WIFI signal strength(s)? Also the network signals are dependant on the distance of the nodes from the router, the further away the node is from the router the weaker connection quality and WIFI signal strength becomes.

Can you access the Eero configuration page [usually http://192.168.1.1 or similar] to assess where the issue may be, it may arise you which node has the weak connection point etc?

I have the ASUS router [RT-AC86U] and use the same ASUS routers for the Mesh nodes. One of the node is hardwired directly to the router which provides an "great" connection quality and the other is "partially" hardwired via a powerline adapter which provides a "normal" connection quality.

Like you, I had a lot of issues with the Logi-Circle camera which is installed outside of my property which would drop out on many occasions. After installing a Mesh node in the garage this boost the connection quality to the camera and very rarely do I get any drop offs.

Oh yeah, I’ve already gotten a quote from a GC to run Ethernet though my walls but I have coax already in every room so I’m wondering if I can do MOCA too. Exploring that possibility now.

Eero, as far as I know just had the app and nothing else. One of the complaints of many users that there isn’t even a web based site. I personally don’t care as long as stuff works but it ain’t working lol. The network would be fine all day. Getting strong speeds and signals to all nodes and then would just crap out, out of nowhere for a few hours, at random times. My original eero Pro was excellent and the eero Pro 6 nodes were placed in the same locations so I’m thinking it’s something with the Pro 6. Maybe not ready for prime time. There was one firmware update that was rock solid. Had everything working perfectly for a few weeks. No drops, HomeKit was solid. My Logi Circle 2’s brought up the stream in less than a second. Then another firmware update and bang. Instantly the crap came back. Can’t even decline firmware updates so I’m at their whim.

 

[srl7741]

I feel for you, what a pain in the rear end. I wanted something I could set and forget so I took a blind leap, gave up on any HomeKit compatible systems and setup up the Nest WiFi with 3 additional access points. I currently have 67 devices connected.
My Wifi has never missed a beat. It’s works flawlessly, its the most reliable WiFi I’ve ever had. Yeah, it’s a little dated and lacks WiFi 6 and other features but it’s a trade off. I wanted a set it and forget it system.

Like most in here I enjoy using/trying the latest and greatest but sometimes I’m just not willing to constantly try and figure out why things aren‘t working like they should.

A single smart device is one thing but with WiFi it causes 67 devices to act up/not work and that’s too much for me (what a pain). I hate using google anything however I have to admit it’s been great.

 

[Itinj24]

I feel for you, what a pain in the rear end. I wanted something I could set and forget so I took a blind leap, gave up on any HomeKit compatible systems and setup up the Nest WiFi with 3 additional access points. I currently have 67 devices connected.
My Wifi has never missed a beat. It’s works flawlessly, its the most reliable WiFi I’ve ever had. Yeah, it’s a little dated and lacks WiFi 6 and other features but it’s a trade off. I wanted a set it and forget it system.

Like most in here I enjoy using/trying the latest and greatest but sometimes I’m just not willing to constantly try and figure out why things aren‘t working like they should.

A single smart device is one thing but with WiFi it causes 67 devices to act up/not work and that’s too much for me (what a pain). I hate using google anything however I have to admit it’s been great.

I hear good things about the Google Nest Wi-Fi and I’ve considered it. Reliability is most important. Speed/connection a close second. TBH, I don’t even see much of a difference with Wi-Fi 6. I was even thinking about going back the regular eero Pro. I had no complaints with that.