Mikener wrote:
When you say each device conducts a dialogue about the features they support, I assume, but want to be sure that this dialogue is done behind the scene and not a bunch of questions that I need to respond to.This is exactly correct. There are WiFi standard protocols that WiFi access points and customer devices use to communicate what their capabilities are. Ironically, this is one of the "bones of contention" in regard to the Orbi product because some users want to be able to force devices to communicate a certain way and the Orbi makes that very difficult.

While expense is one concern, I am looking for the option that's the easiest to setup, the easiest to maintain and the most reliable. Plus my wife already ordered the Orbi for Father's Day. With all that in mind, excluding the expense, would the Orbi be a better choice than the extender? I find the Orbi really easy to set up. Every time I replace my WiFi system with a new one, I give the new system exactly the same WiFi name (SSID) and password as the old one. Every device "simply connects" as if nothing has changed. In terms of reliability, the situation is puzzling. My Orbi has been installed since Dec 2016 and has given me absolutely no trouble. This use forum is full of posts about "network dropping", can't do this or can't do that. Being an "old punched card sort of guy", I am not a big fan of the Orbi "app" for setup. Obviously a lot of people seem to do just fine with it.

Thanks again and sorry to bother you.If it is coming from Amazon, you have 30 days to decide whether you like it or not. Keep the packaging intact. If you hate the Orbi, just plug in the old WiFi router and all your devices will "simply connect" to it.

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My AX3000 already registered