WiFi router recommendations for home? Currently using a Netgear R7000

Hardware
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That’s working well. Good coverage.

But I kinda like to get a new router every 4-5 years for new features and to tinker with.

[A couple weeks ago I bought a new Netgear MK62 WiFi6 mesh router. Specs looked fantastic.
But plan to return it. No matter what I tried iPhones and iOS devices kept dropping from WiFi. Channels, packet sizes, etc.]

Things I like:

  • I like having a good iOS app to manage the router
  • built-in OpenVPN (not a deal breaker)
  • ideally WiFi6 support
  • doesn’t need to be mesh, but if not would like some solid distance
  • we usually have around 20 devices attached to the router at any given time
  • a little gaming, HD and 4K TV streaming, and wife works from home over a corporate VPN full-time

If there was any additional HomeKit support that would be gravy.

What do you like? Thanks in advance!

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If you want to go full geek build your own with pfSense you’ll be able to upgrade tweek and tinker for years :wink:

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Haha, thx, I don’t want to tinker THAT much. :slight_smile:

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You may want to try out the Eero mesh routers. I have one with two additional nodes installed for two years now and they work well with iphones, macs, appletv, homepod etc. Comes with a pretty easy ios app to administer the system and Eero updates automatically fairly frequently.

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As a(n) (unfortunately not completely) former network guy, I went with an Eero system after my Airports began to show signs of failure. I love it. BUT, I love it because it’s the antithesis of a tinkering system: setup is dead easy, it’s rock solid, and you almost never have to think about it again. The very last thing that I want to do when I get home is network management or tinkering.

If I were inclined to do much tinkering then I’d probably look into network equipment from Ubiquiti.

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My internet service came with a router, but its Wifi Access Point functionality was not reliable, nor was its DHCP. I got an AirPort Extreme that worked great (never needing reset) for years. I ran my DHCP server on a Mac mini using the Server app.

Last year I replaced it with a Ubiquiti UniFi access point which has been rock solid. I’ll probably also replace the router with the Ubiquiti UniFi Security Gateway. I would no longer need the Server functionality of the Mac mini with the full Ubiquiti setup. This is low cost yet commercial quality gear with lots of settings to play with if you are so inclined.

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Thanks! That’s my likely next move.

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I, too, went with Eero, after a few years with a Ubiquiti UniFi system. The UniFi system was nice and fairly stable, but I found I spent much too much time tinkering and tweaking, and learning on the fly.

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Evan, Eero Pro or the regular version?

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The 1st-gen Wifi 6 mesh units have just come out or been announced. For years I’ve had an Airport Extreme linked wirelessly to an Airport Express but I’m waiting to see what shakes out by the end of the year in terms of hardware from Netgear (looking at Orbi instead of Nighthawk), Synology, Ubiquiti, Linksys, and Plume, and at what price-points. (Also looking at how nicely they’d play with a tiny Raspberry Pi box running Pi-Hole, which I’m also researching.

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I have Eero Pro, although it might be overkill. I think my wife would have much preferred the beacon units that plug directly into an outlet. I’ve had zero issues, although I did get them prior to the Amazon purchase of Eero. That might have affected my choice at the time, although so far that hasn’t resulted in any adverse changes.

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Another vote for eero, but I don’t know that any of them support Wi-Fi 6 at this point.

iOS app is quite nice (there’s no Mac app or web interface, so iOS app is your only option).

Does not have OpenVPN built-in, but if you get their “Eero Plus” service for $100/year you get their ad blocking and malware protection AND you get 1Password for Families free (which is $60/year) AND you get EncryptMe (formerly Cloak) free (normally $100/year, I think) AND you get MalwareBytes free. I think it’s the best deal on the Internet right now, to be honest.

I had the eero gen1 and upgraded to the gen2 mostly because I plan to give the gen1 to my mom who needs to replace her old AirPort+AirPort Express router/extension system. The beacons are less expensive, which is nice, but they don’t have an Ethernet port, which may or may not matter to you.

I’m hoping that Amazon pretty much leaves eero alone, and so far they have, so :crossed_fingers:

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Eero Pro here, two, with five meshed pro basestations in the house since I have a lot of paths ending at brick walls. Never once had an outage on the Eeros. As simple to install as can be.

Without hijacking this thread, I’d be curious about the pros/cons of WiFI 6?

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Eero Routers work wonderfully. They are easy to set up. Eero Plus includes 1Password subscription, Encrypt.me VPN, and Malwarbytes. It has been updated for Homekit too.

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The new routers have benefits beyond new devices which can connect at faster WiFi6 speeds: it means faster node-to-node speeds within a mesh network with better beam-forming, meaning your network will work better throughout the space it’s in with fewer dead spots and better performance in congested Wi-Fi areas like apartment buildings

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Do the Eeros have a guest network? I want to extend WiFi into my garage. Several have suggested getting an eero or similar, but these are designed to replace your existing router, as well as install an additional module or two for a complete mesh network. I don’t want to replace my existing router, it has 3 separate guest networks as well as other features that I like.

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The Eero system that I have (Eero Pro, but think it applies to all of them) support one guest network. I highly recommend them if you’re looking for a WiFi network that Just Works. If you’re trying to do anything custom or unusual at all then they’re probably not for you.

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It means faster, better mesh connectivity between mesh nodes.

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I am also using eero, and very happy with it. It has been fast and reliable. The iOS app is easy to use.

It does not support WiFi 6 as others have noted. I assume it will not in that presumably a hardware update would be needed, so when WiFi 6 becomes a “thing” (eg my other devices support it, which none do as of yet) then I would need new hardware.

Configurability is limited; you can set up port forwarding and dhcp reservations, for example, but you don’t have the wide range of configuration that other vendors allow. That can be viewed as a drawback or a positive depending on your perspective.

One thing I did like is that you can configure with wired backhaul just by plugging into your Ethernet backbone; I have seem that some mesh systems require you first configure via WiFi and then convert to wired. Probably not a big deal in the long run, but just a little convenience.

As @tjluoma noted, if you subscribe to eero plus (they have a new name for it) at $99/year, you get your Malwarebytes, 1Password, and encrypt.me subscriptions for free, which is a great deal, especially if you were already paying for 1 or more of those on your own (which I was).

As far as VPN support, they do not have it built in. Outgoing VPN is handled by whatever service you use, whether encrypt.me or otherwise. If you are looking for incoming VPN, you have do do that another way. I have a Synology which is my incoming VPN server. You could easily build an inexpensive VPN server with a Raspberry Pi if you are so inclined.

Recently Linksys released their new Velop system which supports WiFi 6 and which looks very capable. I have not seen any real-world reviews as of yet. It’s expensive, at over $600 for two units, and in the absence of any WiFi 6 enabled devices, not worth that cost to me at this point. I expect by the time I have enough such devices to warrant WiFi 6 networking, there will be lower cost options available as well.

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After trying a lot of stuff, I settled on the Synology RT2600ac (expandable/“meshable” with MR2200ac). Now I am happy. (I don’t have any WiFi6 devices, so not missing it).

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