Switching to Gig Speed service

[CChickanosky]

Hello - I currently have the RBR50 router with two sattelites.  I am in the process of moving to a new home ~6500Sq Ft and will be using Gig Service.  Interested in the pro's / cons of using my current RBR50 mesh system vs upgrading to a newer RBK853 system.  Is it worth spending the $1000 for the new tech?  The home is fully automated with ~ 50 devices connected spaning from lighting, cameras, video streaming, etc.  

[plemans]

6500sq ft. 

thats a big home. 

Not sure what you have setup but that's a lot of area to cover.

I know I've got an orbi setup running gigabit successfully. And I run >50 devices on it. 

so device wise and speed wise, the 50 series is capable. In terms of covering that much area, you'd probably need extra satellites depending on what you're coming from. 

Benefit is that you already have the Orib system. You can try it out and see how well it covers. 

there's been users on here who've integrated the AX system with the regular orbi. Its not a full integration but you can read through it. I can't attest to how well it works as I don't have an Orbi AX. 

https://community.netgear.com/t5/Orbi-AX/Additional-satellites/td-p/1815762

[Mikey94025]

I upgraded my smaller home's RBR50 system to RBK853.  I added a couple extra satellites to both systems.  From my experience I "think" the AX system provides more usable coverage area with less satellites, but I don't have any real data to support that.  The customer from that other AX post also mentions the same thing.

Remember that 5G has faster speeds but less range than 2.4Ghz.  So the advantages of AX are really just just faster speeds, especially if you have WiFi 6 devices (like iPhone 11 Pro).  Those devices will get closer to your 1G service limits.  Your other non-wifi 6 devices may see small speed improvements over 5G, but frankly this doesn't make much practical difference unless you are speed constrained (and streaming video or reading web pages are not such activities).

[FURRYe38]

Your RBK53 should work fine for a 6000sq ft home. Placement and distance will be key here:

30 feet is recommended in between RBR and RBS to begin with depending upon building materials when wirelessly connected. https://kb.netgear.com/000036466/How-far-should-I-place-my-Orbi-satellite-from-my-Orbi-router

 I use 1 RBR and 1 RBS 50 series in a 5000sq ft home. Zero problems. 

Also if you get 1Gb ISP services, just be aware that you won't see near 900Mpbs on wireless speeds tests. Most wifi devices top out at around 400-500Mpbs depending upon design and support. You may see near 900Mpbs with ORbi AX depending if your wifi devices support AX mode. Many factors contribute to wifi speeds and results. 

You should see near 900Mpbs+ with a wired PC though. 

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@CChickanosky wrote:

Hello - I currently have the RBR50 router with two sattelites.  I am in the process of moving to a new home ~6500Sq Ft and will be using Gig Service.  Interested in the pro's / cons of using my current RBR50 mesh system vs upgrading to a newer RBK853 system.  Is it worth spending the $1000 for the new tech?  The home is fully automated with ~ 50 devices connected spaning from lighting, cameras, video streaming, etc.  

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