Working and schooling from home has put major strain on our WiFi. A Mesh WiFi system solved our problems. The problem was too many devices for our router to handle. Thanks to the advice from some IT friends and a friendly CenturyLink technician, our NETGEAR Orbi Tri-band WiFi Mesh System has improved our lives.
In the last couple of weeks we noticed a significant strain on our home system and occasionally we would lose WiFi, no matter where in the house we were sitting, our devices would lose WiFi. Devices that were hardwired seemed marginally impacted.
After multiple CenturyLink visits (very friendly and great customer service!) one of the gents mentioned that it might be the number of devices on our system. I was a little surprised that routers could be limited to 10 to 15 devices. It sounds like a lot, but how many WiFi devices do you have: security camera, doorbell, computer, phone, laptop, Ipad, Kindle, Alexa, connected appliance like a fridge, vacuum, etc. Now how many of each? They add up quick!
So, I did some research and pestered my IT friends and read lots of the results from “why does my WiFi drop all the time” and “how many devices can routers handle” searches. We ultimately decided on the Orbi system, thanks to a friendly neighbor, and it’s been flawless. Access to all our devices is noticeably faster (especially the Ring doorbell) and no loss of connectivity.
Our Conclusion: NETGEAR Orbi Tri-band WiFi Mesh System
The faster and the budget friendly variants; ultimately we decided on a faster variant with greater coverage. Setup for Orbi was super easy with a quick download of a phone app and you can use the same SSID and password. The mesh system also lets you move about the house without having to change networks (SSID’s) like you would with a “extender” that typically creates an SSID-ext network name which typically disrupts your connection.
Runner Ups
The Ubiquiti Laps system came highly recommended from an IT buddy that has it installed in their home. They noted the device was great at monitoring and controlling internet connectivity by device – you can easily disconnect your children’s devices when they’ve had enough screen time.
The Nighthawk Whole Home Mesh system was another strong candidate.
Other things of note – the WiFi Analyzer app for Android is great and can be used to see how busy the WiFi channels are in your area. This allows you to move your device to a less busy channel: Channels 1, 6, and 11 seem highly recommended. This app also allows you to measure the signal strength – the lower the negative number the worse the signal. This can help you determine the size of your Mesh system. Best of luck!
