[Technology] Mesh Network

Stephen Seagull · May 23, 2020

Since we've been stuck at home I've spent almost €200 on wifi extenders which still haven't done the job.

After a little more thorough research I am about to invest in the TPLink mesh system but before I spend €300 on this wanted to get some feedback from those who have already made that investment. Anyone?

Bold Seagull · May 23, 2020

Stephen Seagull said:
Since we've been stuck at home I've spent almost €200 on wifi extenders which still haven't done the job.

After a little more thorough research I am about to invest in the TPLink mesh system but before I spend €300 on this wanted to get some feedback from those who have already made that investment. Anyone?

I’ve got TP Link deco M5’s, 3 of them and it’s been pretty stable after a bit of teething. Sky router is modem mode (or WiFi off) with an Ethernet cable to the first main Deco. That then is hardwired to a switch where I have hardwired the other 2 elsewhere in the house (we had a big rewrite so have the cat cables in).

Everything is masonry, every wall in the house but coverage is good even in the garden. The teething problems I think was the router and the switch and the number of clients and the whole thing just failing to issue the IPs I think. Anyway for last 2 months not needed to reset router or anything.

CheeseRolls · May 23, 2020

Stephen Seagull said:
Since we've been stuck at home I've spent almost €200 on wifi extenders which still haven't done the job.

After a little more thorough research I am about to invest in the TPLink mesh system but before I spend €300 on this wanted to get some feedback from those who have already made that investment. Anyone?

I have the Asus ZenWifi AX. Two nodes one upstairs and one downstairs. This is tri-band and it dedicates one of the 5Ghz channels for the mesh, leaving you with a 5Ghz channel and a 2.4 Ghz channel. coverage is excellent, although nodes seem to need to be restarted more frequently than I would like. Of course if your house is huge or built like a castle you can add more nodes.

This setup supports WiFi6 as does one of my laptops, so far this is underwhelming, but future proofed. The USP of the Asus ZenWifi is the subscription free trend malware protection. It not only stops stuff coming in, but alerts you if one of the devices on your network appears to be compromised. When I have looked at alternatives, they tend to be 12 months free then you pay. Not a decider for everyone, but I thought it worthwhile.

18 devices typically on my home network.

Boroseagull · May 23, 2020

Not TP Link but I purchased and use a Tenda mesh system here in Spain in a rather large concrete and steel construction house (18 rooms). Master node connected to Jazztel (Orange) router, one slave downstairs and one at end of house upstairs. All works perfectly including reaching the pool area and most of the orchard. Used for streaming 2 Firesticks simultaneously, smart phones, Alexa smart speakers and 2 laptops. So far, so good.

Springal · May 23, 2020

Stephen Seagull said:
Since we've been stuck at home I've spent almost €200 on wifi extenders which still haven't done the job.

After a little more thorough research I am about to invest in the TPLink mesh system but before I spend €300 on this wanted to get some feedback from those who have already made that investment. Anyone?

Why haven’t they done the job? Better to understand the problem rather then throw money at it. I e if the distances are too big, building material around your house is not great for WiFi then anyone’s products might not help. Is cabling definitely out of the question?

dazzer6666 · May 23, 2020

I bought a Tenda mesh system recently after reading about them on another thread on here to replace old-style wifi extenders I was using. It’s fantastic.......basically now getting almost full-speed wifi anywhere in the house. In addition, junior cables his PC and Xbox into one of the mesh boxes which he finds even better than the wifi. The old extender I had in the kitchen took the speed down by about 70% and didn’t work in the garden. The mesh system works at full speed on the patio. Very pleased with it (was about £60 for the spec I needed and 3 nodes).

Bold Seagull · May 23, 2020

dazzer6666 said:
I bought a Tenda mesh system recently after reading about them on another thread on here to replace old-style wifi extenders I was using. It’s fantastic.......basically now getting almost full-speed wifi anywhere in the house. In addition, junior cables his PC and Xbox into one of the mesh boxes which he finds even better than the wifi. The old extender I had in the kitchen took the speed down by about 70% and didn’t work in the garden. The mesh system works at full speed on the patio. Very pleased with it (was about £60 for the spec I needed and 3 nodes).

That is very good value, one of the systems mentioned above is £400 for 2 nodes.

dazzer6666 · May 23, 2020

Bold Seagull said:
That is very good value, one of the systems mentioned above is £400 for 2 nodes.

Tenda Nova MW3-3 Whole Home Mesh Wi-Fi System; Get Rid of Wi-Fi Dead Zones; 3500sq² Wi-Fi Coverage, Two Fast Ethernet Ports, App Control, Parental Controls, Easy Set Up, Pre Configured (Pack of 3) https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07CTKHRG8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_ngnYEbEJF1SRT

Dick Swiveller · May 23, 2020

Do you need massive high speeds? If not, have you tried Powerline solutions? You can get one with Ethernet ports that also extend WiFi.

Stephen Seagull · May 23, 2020

Thanks everyone,

I'm based in Spain and have an Orange router. I'm on video conferences pretty much all day, so is my wife and my eldest daughter as she's now on school videos with her class.

I went into another room to take a call and I couldn't hear or see anything. I get wifi on the tablet and phone sometimes but it's very erratic.

Will changing from the extenders to the mesh improve the situation? I'm thinking 3 nodes as that will definitely be more than enough. Cabling the entire house is out of the question

Springal · May 23, 2020

Can you replace the orange router for something better? Most ISP wireless routers are pretty basic and not great. Might not even support 5GHz wireless.

Meshing may help but just in mind it still needs the wireless coverage to be good enough between each point.

You probably don’t need to cable the whole house, just to somewhere nearer where you want the coverage. I.e put an AP in the normal place and cable to a second AP nearer your outside area

Daddies_Sauce · May 23, 2020

I also have 3 of the TP Link deco M5’s, main unit is UTP cabled from the BT hub, all work fine and stable. I've configured the Deco's have a separate SSID for the wi-fi from the default BT SSID.

Official Old Man · May 23, 2020

I'd start right back at the beginning. Check your router. Is working to maximum capacity, placed out in the open rather than in a cupboard (I made that mistake once).
As mentioned before, throwing money on more tech when the tech you purchased should work is wasting money.
Reconfigure everything. Check the speed using a wired connection to the router then check wi-fi speed next to the router.

Curious Orange · Jun 9, 2020

I recently purchased a pair of TP-Link Deco M4s to improve the coverage in our house, which has rather solid walls compared with our old one, and this I have achieved. Sure, speed is slightly slower on the 2nd node, but not so much that you'd notice, and I could improve that by running a Cat 6 cable up to it.

The only thing I found I needed to do was to switch the Deco system into Access Point mode as I use all the ethernet ports on the main router/modem and didn't want two networks running as it would cause issues using the printer (wifi connection only).

thedonkeycentrehalf · Jun 9, 2020

We put in a Tenda Nova MW6 system a couple of weeks ago to replace a TP Link Router.. We have Virgin Media as our ISP and my son tested speeds before and after from his room which is on the opposite side of the house to the modem / TP Link. Having switched over to the Tenda system it more than trebled the upload and download speeds we had previously been getting.

Justice · Jun 9, 2020

WiFi extender sockets have done the trick in our place. One in the hallway did a magnificent job.

elninobonito · Jun 9, 2020

Bought a Huawei AX3 Pro from China, arrived last week and my WiFi reach and performance has never been better. Would recommend as a solution.

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