potential buyer of RBK50 for 3 floor home with router in basement

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justthinking wrote:

1) with base unit in basement, should I put satellite on first floor?  will it cover 2nd floor well? Not likely

2) why doesn't RBK50 show up as a model.  what is the RBK53? The devices are one router (RBR50) and one satellite (RBS50). Netgear sells these as "packages", hence the "K".  RBK50 has one router and one satellite.  RBK53 has one router and two satellites.  (And, yes, it makes no sense at all how they numbered their products.)

3) I have one TV we use is a dumb analog Sony with no HDMI.  If I plug a new Mi Box into an HDMI to three-wire RCA jack converter, will it connect properly with Orbi and then how do I control what it does?  The Mi box should connect with Orbi using WiFi.  The BIG issue is the TV without an HDMI input.  This implies that it does not do 4K TV, and maybe even not 72-p or 1080p.  I am not certain (a) that a converter that you seek is even available, and (b) how the Mi box would stream programming to the TV.

thanks in advance. 

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You are right to consider in advance how WiFi signals will penetrate floors.  If this building were "square" (i.e. 50ft on a side) and the Orbi could be located in the exact center, it would probably cover one entire floor.  When placed in a corner, for example, coverage is less likely.  (My experience is that internet routers are seldom located in the center of a building. More often, they are located on a wall, or even in a corner.)

All of the products you mention have the same issue: how to connect one unit to another.  Orbi is designed to have satellites connected to the router (a) in a "spoke" arrangement, where each connects directly to the router, (b) in a "Daisy Chain" arrangement, where some satellites connect to another satellite, (c) with an ethernet cable from the satellite, or (d) some combination of the above.  Wired connections are the best every time, but are usually impractical after a building has been constructed.

I would seriously consider (1) having at least one access point on every floor, and (2) it's time to get a new TV.

What is the size of your home? Sq Ft?
What is the distance between the router and satellite(s)? 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

House size Find Your Orbi System:
https://www.netgear.com/orbi/default.aspx
https://www.netgear.com/orbi/wifi-systems.aspx
https://kb.netgear.com/000038220/What-are-the-hardware-specifications-of-the-available-Orbi-WiFi-Systems

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justthinking wrote:

Looking at RBK50 for basement plus 2-story home.  New ATT fiber router in basement. 2500 sq ft per floor. Looking at Eero, Google, and Orbi.  like the 3-band idea, but worried about signal strength through floors to the main base, as opposed to eero and google units that all talk to each other.  (old guy with a dusty engineering degree, but no modern computer/wireless technology stripes, so somewhat clueless on the acronyms and numbers). 

1) with base unit in basement, should I put satellite on first floor?  will it cover 2nd floor well?

2) why doesn't RBK50 show up as a model.  what is the RBK53?  

3) I have one TV we use is a dumb analog Sony with no HDMI.  If I plug a new Mi Box into an HDMI to three-wire RCA jack converter, will it connect properly with Orbi and then how do I control what it does?  

thanks in advance. 

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