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Forum Discussion
Wired home - Orbi vs. Router + ?
(tl;dr, mesh or traditional in a wire house?) Hey all, When I moved into my house, I made sure we ran ethernet to all rooms. It's a 2,400 sq foot home, minus the basement (which is ... 1,200 ...
I'm no expert but if you already have ethernet to all your rooms, why not use it? I do understand that alot of newer devices only allow connections via wifi. However, if you install a wifi access point (AP) or two (depending on coverage needed) you'll be using your ethernet to transistion to wifi in the "dead zones". Configuring the APs can be a challenge but this type of wireless network has been used in commercial settings (hotels, airport terminals, hospitals, etc.) for years. Ubiquiti and Engenius are two brands that have lots of low/moderate cost solutions.
I'm not against using AP's, as yes, using my existing Ethernet would be most ideal. Just not entirely certain on best options. Ubiquiti's are great and all, but I don't want to ceiling mount, nor do I truly understand how to implement. I'd assume I disable wireless broadcasting on my current router to avoid interuptions in handshakes correct? (Last time I trierd to use an AP with my router and kept them both broadcasting, I just had all kinds of issues).Then implement some form of AP(s) that allow for a single SSID with ease of handshake/handoff?
Obviously the appeal with Orbi, Google, Eero, etc. are to avoid the headache and confusion ... but I'd probably have a better setup If I leveraged my hard lines appropriately.
Open to feedback!
Thanks
I understand your reluctance to use APs as it can be a problem to implement over an existing wifi system. Here's a link to an article (albeit a few years old) that may help: https://www.howtogeek.com/104469/how-to-extend-your-wi-fi-network-with-simple-access-points/. It's worth a reda to give you ideas on how to go about APs witn minimal disruption. Good luck!
Thanks, I'll check it out now! I just don't want to mount or rewire anything. The Orbi just seemed ideal, but I do have the wires to support a better setup. Hell, maybe I should just look at Eero or Luma?
I'd think, ideally? Is that the Orbi impliments ethernet backhaul. Found several thread about it here, many asking, but no timeline.
The beauty of Orbi's implementation of the wireless backhaul is for those of us who do not have an ethernet backbone in their houses. In my case I have a 40 year old, 3000 sq foot house constructed of concrete block with a stucco exterior with a 2 x 4 stud/drywall interior. Running ethernet would require time consuming and expensive drywall rework (>$2000). Prior to the Orbi I had a NetGear R7000 which gave me pretty good coverage but there were serious dead zones in my garage and outside on my patio/pool. The Orbi (with 1 satellite) gave me coverage throughout my entire house and well outside all 4 corners of my house. I've not had (knock on wood) any of the major issues noted in this forum since I installed it in Feb 2017.
For NetGear to implement a wired backhaul for Orbi will require more effort than it may be worth for the company. Remember the dedicated frequency wireless backhaul distinguishes them from other "mesh router systems."