What is Mesh WIFI and why you need it?

What you need to know about Mesh WIFI and why you need it.

A Mesh WIFI system consists of the main router that connects directly to your modem, and a series of “satellites” or “nodes” are placed around your house or business for full WIFI coverage. Unlike traditional WIFI routers, this is entirely 1 large network under the same SSID, rather than multiple access points you have to connect to around the house.

How does this benefit me compared to a strong router with more access points connected to it?

At times, you may be on your laptop or phone and will be moving around your house. Let’s say you have an extremely powerful router with multiple access points around the house. Essentially, you already have WIFI all across your house. However, when moving from downstairs to upstairs, you notice the WIFI signal getting weaker so you’ll need to switch to a closer access point in your home via the WIFI settings. A mesh network will eliminate that need since it’s 1 large network through the Mesh router and nodes, you’ll never need to switch the WIFI. Obstacles such as walls, floors, ceilings, furniture, etc, do significantly decrease the signal strength of your WIFI. The beauty of mesh networks is that they are significantly stronger in terms of penetration through these obstacles, further eliminating dead spots and weak signals across your household or business.

Cover your entire home with WIFI!

Many people use a smart assistant such as a Google Home/Amazon Alexa in their household. Let’s say you have one in your dining room and you’re playing music through it. You go towards the back of your house and even at the loudest volume, you can’t hear it that well. A solution? Add more smart assistants in other rooms so you can play them all throughout the house. That’s similar to how the mesh works with your WIFI. By placing more nodes across your house, the bigger the network will become, essentially, covering your entire household with WIFI.

Super easy expansion

How do you extend a mesh network? Easy! You just simply get another mesh node of the same brand, put in any room you wish to extend the mesh network to, from there, a brief set up of the new node and that will add-on to your mesh network.

Easy setting up

It’s never been easier to set up WIFI with mesh WIFI systems. Most companies have a simple app that you can download on your smartphone and set up the mesh network all directly (quite literally) at your fingertips. A brief set up and you’re already, ready to go!

Mesh systems are aesthetically pleasing

These days, technology-wise lots of companies are trying to build routers, consoles, TV’s, speakers, pretty much anything you can think of, with the intention for people to display them within their homes, without sticking out like a sore thumb. Mesh systems are no different. Almost all companies take pride in their designs as you’re going to be placing these all-around your home, so you want something that not only provides you with a superior WIFI connection but also easily blends into your décor. You’ll be able to find a ton of different designs when it comes to mesh systems. Whether they be ceiling-mounted ones or table-top ones, you’ll be able to find something that suits your home and yourself!

What features do mesh systems have?

Wired and Wireless Expansion

You can use them wired, or wirelessly! Today, many people have Ethernet ports all around the house, to connect from your modem/router to your TV/Console/Computer/Access points, etc. This can also be done with mesh routers and nodes as well! Each node and router have their own Ethernet ports, so you can replace whatever you have with a node, and simply plug in the device via Ethernet to whatever device you have, for even stronger connections throughout. If you don’t have Ethernet ports around your house and need to hardwire something, no problem! Just wirelessly set up a node in that room and connect whatever it is you need to connect to the node and you’re all set! That device now has a hard-wired connection, wirelessly!

One network to rule them all

Excuse the terrible LOTR reference above. As mentioned earlier, no matter how many mesh routers/nodes you install, it will all still be under 1 seamless network. No need to change anything through your settings, no need to find a better spot for your WIFI, just simply set and forget them, you’ll never need to change your WIFI settings again.

Can’t I just use a range extender to achieve a similar outcome?

Not entirely. Range extenders can be good, but they’re not needed when you have a mesh system. Comparing a mesh system to a range extender is like comparing a cat to a dog, similar but obviously very different. The thing is with range extenders is that they don’t actually provide you with a strong extended network. It does extend your WIFI range, but it doesn’t do any justice to the speed and data transfer of the WIFI, if anything, the further you are away from the main access point, connected to the range extender, the weaker the transfer of data may be. Mesh does it differently and better, it connects to your other nodes and merges them as 1 network and rather than just “extending” the WIFI, it’s basically creating a new access point for all your devices to automatically switch to if they are within range, without losing the data transfer speeds.

So which mesh system do I need?

Well, all mesh systems are different, just like how all modem/routers are different. We have many different models with different specifications, so it’s best to comb through those and see what suits you best! If you’re unsure, our staff can definitely help you out to find the right one that you need. Just simply give us a call on (02) 9687 8828 and our team will gladly assist you in finding a mesh system for you.

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