WiFi Mesh

[Bsuds]

I have been having issues with my WiFi dropping out on a regular basis. With all the Smart devices we have it can be a real pain not to mention my Wife complaining "I've been kicked off the internet again!"

Usually it's pretty short time wise and hooks back up quickly but very annoying. I am so tired of being on hold waiting for a Telus rep only to be told to reboot their modem.

So I ordered a TP link Deco M4 mesh from Amazon and it arrived yesterday.

Set up was so easy it was up and running in less than 30 min. (3 units) Most of that was waiting for them to boot and connect.

I goofed on my SSID but fixed that this morning and everything seems to have connected with no problems so far.

Time will tell. (fingers crossed)

[Even Steven]

Yup, this usually helps.

Another way is to have your devices work on a different protocol (Zigbee or Z-Wave) - this way they don't occupy your WiFi. But it would require having a Smart Hub.

[Bsuds]

Yup, this usually helps.

Another way is to have your devices work on a different protocol (Zigbee or Z-Wave) - this way they don't occupy your WiFi. But it would require having a Smart Hub.

Yes but only if you do that from the get go. I have too many WiFi devices to switch now so this is probably my best option going forward.

The mesh claims to be able to handle up to 100 devices.

[Urban Cowboy]

Isn't the newest stuff from Telus mesh?

The router looks like a little barrel and the piece downstairs is connected to it wirelessly and looks like a flat rectangle with rounded corners.

Mind you with the exception of phones and tablet all the other items in house are hard wired. I do notice my phone drops the wireless now and then.

[Jlabute]

Z-wave at least allows you to operate in the 900MHz frequency where there is less interference these days, rather than the world-wide unlicensed 2.4GHz. ZigBee still works at 2.4GHz although the standard home automation channels are meant to be between WiFi channels. Z-Wave and ZigBee are low bandwidth. These types are devices are the kind of thing you have to be invested in.

Perhaps an up-and-coming technology called Thread might help in the future. The Thread protocol is a low bandwidth (802.15.4) IP6 based meshing network developed by Google and other big names in tech. Thread capable devices are available now like the Google Nest WiFi. The idea behind thread is you have border router devices but you do not explicitly have Thread controllers. This allows WiFi traffic to get to your low bandwidth devices, without needing a separate 'controller' so to speak. I don't see a lot of support for it yet. Like ZigBee, you can have battery operated Thread devices. I am eyeballing thread, I think it is a good start for IoT of the future.


802.15.4 (at 2.4 GHz) thread support
https://store.google.com/product/google_nest_hub_max_tech_specs

Curious, why not get the Deco M5? I think meshing is a good idea for getting more devices reliably on a network, although, it may not be the best idea if raw gaming is your focus. Personally, I would chose nodes that have the option of an ethernet back-haul. Perhaps my next step up if I ever do, would also have WiFi6.

[Bsuds]

Curious, why not get the Deco M5?

Price and from what I read specs are not that much better on the M5 to warrant the extra.