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Apartment router recommendation (alien.top)

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

6 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Hey all,

I'm moving to an apartment (1000 sq ft) in a small city for a college program starting Jan 1. I'm not extremely tech savvy, but having relaible Internet access from multiple devices is fairly crucial for me. On top of the necessity for the program, I do enjoy gaming (PlayStation) in my free time, and I'm not sure I'll be able to hard line my system considering I am renting.

I keep looking at reviews for routers and struggling - don't want to buy something extremely overpriced that won't be supported for very long (updates, IT support, warranty, etc.) and do want some longevity from whatever I get to where it can keep up with needs, or if I move to a larger space it has enough reach.

I was looking at some of the Wi-Fi 6e routers and gaming routers because in my mind they would be the longest lasting...but a lot of them don't seem like I'd need let alone be able to use half of their options without certain equipment or specs...

I'd appreciate any and all suggestions

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

If your isp includes a router, I would use that with an additional access point.

Ubiquiti and omada are both great.

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

Tbh don't fully understand the difference between and AP and router. Heard good things about those brands . I'll have to see what the ISP includes though as I may be paying solely for the Internet over the bundled hardware package.

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

Technically, a router is just the interface that creates your network and connects to your ISP's network. Typical consumer "routers" are really a router, switch, and AP in one box (as are the UDR and UDM.)

You can add an AP to your network, so you could be using the one built into the existing router and an additional AP to provide more wifi coverage. Ubiquiti's UniFi gives you the ability to easily add network components via the unified interface, part of the benefit of their ecosystem. ( As does Omada and Asus' AI Mesh, and others also allow intelligent management.)

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

Oh right on, thanks for explaining it a little better !

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

With regard to 6E and "longest lasting" - wifi 7 is coming. If you aren't going to really use the 6E band capability (you need compatible clients) I would avoid the extra cost of 6E at this point. In 2-3 years there will be more choice and more wifi 7 device availability.

I also think a UDR or UDM would be a good choice for your situation. The UDR is a bit slower simply because of processing power (hence the lower price) when using cameras and the app that runs them.