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In 2023/2024, is there any reason NOT to be buying a mesh network? (alien.top)

submitted 11 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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I am reviewing what I have... ASUS - ROG Rapture GT-AX11000 Pro. I know this is a beast but I'm wondering if I made a small mistake with this after talking to some friends.

My house is totally covered by this and the speeds are great. I really have no issues at all with it. I was talking to a friend who has a "longer" house where his router is in 1 corner so he has trouble reaching wifi at the other end. Naturally I recommended a mesh system and sent his family a Nest Wifi 6e Pro which will be delivered tomorrow.

It made me wonder why I bought the router I bought instead of upgrading my older Nest Wifi (from 2019 I think) to also getting a Nest Wifi 6e Pro. And that made me wonder why anyone even makes these routers anyway that aren't just mesh systems...

Yes, I know the AX11000 can use Asus AImesh proprietary thing but I don't think it would work as well as a router designed to work around mesh like eero or Nest.

Thoughts? Why does anyone sell stand-alone routers at all? Simply cost?

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Mesh can certainly be viable in situations where it is simply not possible or practical to install ethernet to support traditional access points.

You could be in an apartment or rental housing where you can't readily install the necessary cabling because you don't own the property, are in a historic home where you can't or don't want to risk damage to finished surfaces, or simply don't want the interruptions to the aesthetics. Or you might be in a home where there aren't accessible wall or ceiling cavities to run cabling.

Then there is always the balance between affordability and portability.

That being said, distributed WiFi via traditional ceiling-mounted access points are generally better than integrated table-top mesh units, both from a performance and stability stand point.

Stand-alone, non-mesh routers. . . probably about profitability. Low cost routers for the folks that can't afford, or don't need more advanced devices.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 11 months ago (1 children)

You can use mesh even with Ethernet. You get the benefits of seamless roaming, better home coverage, and faster backhaul communication. Idk why people keep saying either/or when mesh can complement traditional Ethernet networks.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 11 months ago

I don't believe that I said it was either/or in my reply.

Other folks were claiming that wireless mesh shouldn't be used, and that mesh units / access points should always be wired.

I responded with examples of why some folks would choose (wirelessly deployed) mesh systems, which, for them, might be the only viable option.

Then I mentioned that traditional (ostensibly pro-sumer based) access points were more stable, and often provided better overall performance compared to integrated (consumer-based) table-top systems.

Lastly, I offered one possible answer to OP, with regards to why some folks wouldn't automatically buy mesh, versus using a WiFi-type router.