- I've reviewed a bunch of Wifi routers over the years,
but one that sticks out
is the video I did four and a half years ago
on the Netgear Orbi Wifi mesh system.
I was so impressed with it
that I called it the best wifi I'd ever had in my home.
It really was that good.
That was 2016.
Fast forward to today
and wifi is on a whole different landscape.
We've seen the recent release of wifi 6,
and now we're seeing the upcoming wifi 6E taking shape.
Now that wifi 6 devices are more widely available
and in use, Netgear has a new version,
a wifi 6 mesh router system
that they sent over for me to check out,
big shout out to them for doing so.
Now, if you're a techie,
then you're probably familiar with Netgear routers
like the iconic Nighthawk series.
Orbi is something different.
Rather than a single router,
the Orbi comes in a package of either two,
three or four units,
which Netgear says we'll work in unison
to eliminate wifi dead spots inside the home.
One is the main router and the others are satellites,
which extend and expand your wifi coverage
without a degradation in speed.
If you're interested in the net,
your Orbi wifi sucks system at any point
and wanna check it out for yourself,
I will have a link down in the description below.
Don't forget to hit that subscribe button
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So, let's talk about the design of the wifi six model.
Like the original Orbi, the wifi six gear is big
continuing with the tall unique overlook.
They stand about 10 inches tall,
which is a lot bigger than competing routers.
They're easy to put on a shelf or desk
and Netgear even sells a wall mounting bracket,
if that's more your thing.
The units have a single LED band near the bottom
serving as a status indicator.
When the device is starting up,
it blinks white and then turns blue
when data is flowing back and forth.
When the light is purple, there's something wrong
and it requires attention to fix.
Inside each unit are eight smart antennas.
Using the Qualcomm networking pro 1200 chip,
the router and satellites support four by four
streams of data.
Using the latest (indistinct) technology
to support lots of connections
and being forming to tailor the signal
to each devices needs,
the system is capable of transferring
a theoretical six gigabits of data back and forth.
Now my favorite physical feature of the wifi 6 Orbi units
has to be the 2.5 gigabit per second
when it pro port for use with the newest modems.
Here in my home I have 10 gigabit internet speeds,
and almost every router that I test has a one gigabit
when port.
This means that my wired network supports 10 gigs,
but my wifi only supports one gig.
Using the Orbi wifi 6,
my wifi network can now tap into 2.5 gigabits of speed,
making it two and a half times faster.
In addition to that, when port,
the units also have for one gigabit land ports
for connecting things like a printer
and network attached storage.
If you're wondering, there is no USB port.
Aside from the great features of the Orbi wifi 6,
you may be wondering what is wifi 6
and how is it different from my current router?
So, let's talk about the benefits.
First wifi 6 is significantly faster
than their previous generation of wifi.
The inclusion of wifi 6 in this router
is going to keep things speedy fast,
and you will notice a difference.
Next, wifi 6 is less congested.
Due to a change in how data is transmitted,
wifi 6 can handle more simultaneous connections,
more efficiently,
meaning it can handle more devices easily without choking.
Finally, wifi 6 can improve your battery life.
As long as you're using a wifi 6 compatible device,
you'll see improved battery life
when connected to a wifi 6 connection.
Since data is transmitted faster and further,
your device doesn't have to work as hard
to maintain a connection
and that means the battery life will be better.
Now with that out of the way,
let's talk about the performance of the Netgear Orbi wifi 6.
For some background, I live in a 5,500 square foot,
five bedroom home with two stories,
plus a finished basement and outdoor deck
and an acre of land.
So all that to say, this is an environment
that is tough for a single router to blanket in fast wifi,
and even some mesh systems have had trouble.
I went for the three unit system with Orbi wifi 6
which is supposed to be able to cover
about 7,500 square feet.
The two unit version is good for up to 5,000 square feet,
and there's even a Ford unit version
that can cover 10,000 square feet.
Aside from the house,
I want it to be able to cover the area in the backyard,
as well as get wifi to the Tesla model three and model Y
sitting in the driveway
and Tesla power walls in the garage.
I'm happy to say that the three unit wifi 6 Orbi
did the trick.
I now get a very good your connection,
no matter where I am in the house,
as well as when I'm hanging out outside.
We run two businesses out of this home
and do a lot of video streaming and gaming,
as well as uploading huge (indistinct) video files
like this one on the regular.
Now, part of what makes it so good
is that these are tri band units
where they dedicated five-year Hertz back haul.
This lets the system move data around between the router
and satellites in a much more efficient manner
and without any interference,
which means faster data connections at a distance
even when connected to a satellite. '
And even if you don't have any wifi 6 devices
capable of taking full advantage of all the
features of the new protocol,
the fact the router and satellites can talk to each other
over a wifi 6 connection
means better speeds for all devices
With its wifi 6 functionality,
extended range and useful app,
the Netgear Orbi wifi 6 system is a solid option
for a next gen router for your home.
If you're looking for the easiest
and fastest mesh networking kit
that you can pick up today,
the Netgear Orbi wifi 6 is the one.
It has excellent performance,
even in larger homes with lots of walls
and it's tri band design with a dedicated back haul,
data channel continues to be the best
mesh approach out there
and it delivers on the promise of wifi 6,
even though each device is huge
and you might need a third one
depending on the size of your home.
I should also mention that Netgear only includes
90 days of support after purchase,
which definitely feels low to me.
You can pick up the Orbi wifi six system now,
I will leave a link down in the description below
in case you wanna do so.
As I mentioned,
it's available in two unit,
three unit and four unit configurations.
Let me know what you think of
the Netgear Orbi wifi 6 system.
Does it sound like something you can use in your home,
sound off in the comments below
and I will meet you there for further discussion.
Thanks for watching as always guys,
I appreciate your support.
I'm Andrew Edwards,
and I will catch you in the next video.
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