NETGEAR is aware of a growing number of phone and online scams. To learn how to stay safe click here.
Forum Discussion
Official WiFi 7 certification and AFC support for Orbi 970 ?
Recently a came across a video for a newly released Mesh WiFi system that claimed that the Netgear Orbi was not officially certified to the WiFi 7 standard because it lacked AFC (a bit of a stretch, ...
Oh, my. The answer appears to be glaringly obvious. (i.e. "no") The WiFi Alliance certification search engine reveals zero Netgear products matching WiFi7. (There appear to be only 28 certified products, from Dec 23, 2023 through June 6, 2024) Since certification testing began less than six months ago, it is not surprising to see a small number of products so far.
Of six WiFi routers that TP-Link advertises as WiFi7, only one displays the official logo from the WiFi Alliance:
One could make a case that official certification is not considered a significant priority at Netgear.
Of 211 WiFi routers certified WiFi6E, only 1 is a Netgear product.
Of 2,252 WiFi routers certified WiFi6, only 7 are Netgear products (all Nighthawk).
Certification may carry a cost and employee burden that fails a cost/benefit analysis.
Would be really helpful if Netgear employees participated in the Community Forums (which they do not). Even if they did, my guess is that no one would be authorized to predict what Netgear may (or may not) roll out in the future.
This practically screams out for some enterprising WiFi investigator to test and report.
If there is a cost to obtain certification, then for a company like Netgear charging $2000+ for their mesh wifi (more than tp-link or Asus) then I assume they would want more reason to prove their products meets every spec of the standard.
That said, if the radio (chipset) used in the Orbi 970 is based on Qualcomm IPQ9574-2, then would it be fair to assume that Netgear inherits certification đ
"
Product Name: Qualcomm Networking Pro Quad-Band Wi-Fi 7 Platform
Model Number: IPQ9574-2
Total Variants: 3 (1 result)
Brand: Qualcomm
Category: Other
Last Certified Date: 2024-01-05
"
Not finding excuses for Netgear and to be honest, it goes a long way (when planning on future proofing) to have a WiFi system that offers the best compatibility with the standard.
Based on what I have been reading, lots of WiFi 7 endpoints/clients will be coming out in the next 2 years.
Netgear needs to provide clarity on this matter - especially for such an expensive investment.
That said, if the radio (chipset) used in the Orbi 970 is based on Qualcomm IPQ9574-2, then would it be fair to assume that Netgear inherits certification đ
"
Product Name: Qualcomm Networking Pro Quad-Band Wi-Fi 7 Platform
Model Number: IPQ9574-2
Total Variants: 3 (1 result)
Brand: Qualcomm
Category: Other
Last Certified Date: 2024-01-05
"
Not finding excuses for Netgear and to be honest, it goes a long way (when planning on future proofing) to have a WiFi system that offers the best compatibility with the standard.
Based on what I have been reading, lots of WiFi 7 endpoints/clients will be coming out in the next 2 years.
Netgear needs to provide clarity on this matter - especially for such an expensive investment.