Help with new router

[raaizin]

The router in my house is old and would like to replace. House is about 2400SF and router is upstairs in spare bedroom/office. House is 2 floors. I am looking to provide better coverage throughout the house. Costco has 2 available . I am thinking of using the second one. Do I need the first unit to act as a base unit or is second unit stand alone and will work. Please dont laugh at the electronically challenged

https://www.costco.com/netgear---nighthawk-rax45-ax4300-wifi-6-router.product.100523245.html

https://www.costco.com/netgear---nighthawk-mk63-ax1800-wifi-6-mesh-system.product.100536361.html

 

[BMW Dom]

One unit acts as a base, and the other 2 will receive Internet access from your base router. But run an Ethernet connection to devices like PCs and TVs.

 

[CarLuver]

second one is a mesh system. the base send signal to the others to spread the signal further. i have used that one before and its pretty good. its costco, buy and try and if not happy return

 

[mk378]

If you buy the second set, one of the three has a port to connect to your cable modem, and it will serve as the main router. The other port would ideally be connected by Ethernet (cat 6) cable to one or both of the other units. They can link up wirelessly but especially if you have hundreds of Mb or Gb Internet speed, you'll get best results wired. Branching out the network to have as much wired as possible will require adding an Ethernet switch. Those are not expensive.

 

[Warstud]

Best Buy has one on sale for $150

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/netgear-nighthawk-ax5200-wifi-6-router/6428135.p??subId1=main&acampID=0&irclickid=1rOTyJWtcxyIU95zIv1p33mSUkGT4A3lL0i5XA0&irgwc=1&loc=BrickSeek&mpid=118528&ref=198&skuId=6428135

 

[Schandyman]

Check out plume home pass Wi-Fi mesh

 

[Skippy722]

Your mileage may vary, but of the last 2 Netgear Nighthawk routers I’ve bought both stopped working after about a year. My Asus has been going strong however.

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/asus-ax3000-dual-band-wifi-6-wireless-router-with-life-time-internet-security-black/6377908.p?skuId=6377908

 

[Racer4]

I agree with Schandyman look at a mesh system. Two years ago I installed a mesh system in my home could not be happier in the way it preforms.

 

[RTexasF]

Mesh (your second listing) is the way to go, you'll not regret it. You will need a power outlet for each of the three.

 

[alarmguy]

The router in my house is old and would like to replace. House is about 2400SF and router is upstairs in spare bedroom/office. House is 2 floors. I am looking to provide better coverage throughout the house. Costco has 2 available . I am thinking of using the second one. Do I need the first unit to act as a base unit or is second unit stand alone and will work. Please dont laugh at the electronically challenged

https://www.costco.com/netgear---nighthawk-rax45-ax4300-wifi-6-router.product.100523245.html

https://www.costco.com/netgear---nighthawk-mk63-ax1800-wifi-6-mesh-system.product.100536361.html

No you do not need the first one to use the second one.
They are both stand alone, no further purchases needed. Just one or the other of your choosing.

 

[y_p_w]

The biggest problem in many houses is that the range could be increased simply by mounting it higher. If you've seen Wi-Fi setups in commercial buildings, they often mount them high up on a wall, ceiling, or exposed beams.

 

[alarmguy]

The biggest problem in many houses is that the range could be increased simply by mounting it higher. If you've seen Wi-Fi setups in commercial buildings, they often mount them high up on a wall, ceiling, or exposed beams.

Agree,
Motorola MR 2600 mounted high up in the first floor central located closet in our 3000 sq ft 2story home EASILY covers our entire home with full Spectrum internet speed of 200 Mbps.

It also allows our 4 outdoor wifi security cameras and outdoor wifi doorbell camera to work speedy and trouble free.
We have approx 25+ wifi devices.

Our home is an open 1st floor plan so that may make some difference in the full speeds we are experiencing even at the furthest end of the second floor.

 

[OVERKILL]

The biggest problem in many houses is that the range could be increased simply by mounting it higher. If you've seen Wi-Fi setups in commercial buildings, they often mount them high up on a wall, ceiling, or exposed beams.

Yes, though part of the reason we do that is because drop ceilings allow for easy routing of the cables and most AP's come with drop ceiling mounts. We also use more than one AP, despite the improved placement, because of the space needed to be covered. Of course the equipment also handles roaming and will elegantly hand-off devices from one AP to the next based on signal strength.

 

[y_p_w]

Yes, though part of the reason we do that is because drop ceilings allow for easy routing of the cables and most AP's come with drop ceiling mounts. We also use more than one AP, despite the improved placement, because of the space needed to be covered. Of course the equipment also handles roaming and will elegantly hand-off devices from one AP to the next based on signal strength.

For some homes I think it might help since it might be above furniture and other obstacles that might reduce the signal strength. Still going through walls of course. Not sure what kind of setups might have a way to route to a separate antenna. Once I tried installing a super long antenna that replaced the standard connector, but it didn't seem to do much.

 

[OVERKILL]

For some homes I think it might help since it might be above furniture and other obstacles that might reduce the signal strength. Still going through walls of course. Not sure what kind of setups might have a way to route to a separate antenna. Once I tried installing a super long antenna that replaced the standard connector, but it didn't seem to do much.

Anything with a removable antenna, though with consumer gear your options are limited. Commercial AP's, some designs are setup to use external antennas.

My AP is mounted above my TV in my living room (on the wall) because i didn't want to try and run ethernet in my ceiling. It's mostly central (pretty close) and covers the whole house quite well, even the 3rd floor.

 

[y_p_w]

Anything with a removable antenna, though with consumer gear your options are limited. Commercial AP's, some designs are setup to use external antennas.

My AP is mounted above my TV in my living room (on the wall) because i didn't want to try and run ethernet in my ceiling. It's mostly central (pretty close) and covers the whole house quite well, even the 3rd floor.

I had a box that had two stubby little antennas that attached through a screwed-in coax connector. They were only about 3 inches long. I ended up getting a single antenna to attach that was maybe 12 inches, but it didn't take care of my issue. My current box is similar in style with antennas (maybe 5 inches long) that rotate and pivot, but those seem to be fused to the box.

I think this connection is still in use. I looked it up and it's an SMA connection. This one is weird where it looks like the antenna can be placed away from the box through two cables.

 

[OVERKILL]

I had a box that had two stubby little antennas that attached through a screwed-in coax connector. They were only about 3 inches long. I ended up getting a single antenna to attach that was maybe 12 inches, but it didn't take care of my issue. My current box is similar in style with antennas (maybe 5 inches long) that rotate and pivot, but those seem to be fused to the box.

I think this connection is still in use. I looked it up and it's an SMA connection. This one is weird where it looks like the antenna can be placed away from the box through two cables.

Yes, that's reasonably common on consumer gear, not enterprise.

Most common enterprise AP's for typical coverage have internal omni antennas.

An HP/Aruba one for example:

Cisco/Meraki:

I'll use an AP with external antennas if I need a specific type of coverage, like sector for example.