Larger homes with larger homes need superior networking. The traditional, affordable ISP-provided router simply cannot serve every corner of your home and so, you are expected to browse the web with a single bar of network signal showing up on your phone or laptop. Videos buffer, video calling is impossible, but what can you do? Mesh networking, a new phenomenon might be the solution to your problem.
The solution is not to have a single Wi-Fi router in the home, but multiple, interconnected routers. Traditional routers are ideal where the all the rooms adjoin each other. They tend to be bad at transmitting data in 2-storey home. Ceilings and thick walls can deter the performance of the best of routers. Wireless mesh networking solutions help fix that problem.
There are mesh networking products slowly entering the market, and some of the most promising ones you can find today are the Netgear Orbi RBK12 and RBK13. They are designed to work with all kinds of internet connections as well.
Most mesh networking solutions including the two Netgear ones mentioned above have a base station and satellites. The RBK12 model only comes with one satellite, whereas the more expensive RBK13 comes with two. Additional satellites can be purchased depending on your requirement and the size of your home. A total of 6 satellites are supported under the mesh setup on the Netgear Orbi, and an alternative Daisy Chain setup allows only up to 2 satellites.
The RBK12 and RBK13 claim wireless network speeds of up to 1200Mbps, which is good by modern router standards. They use the dual-band spectrums, and they are compatible with 802.11b/g/n/ac which are all the popular standards used by devices over the past two decades. Netgear claims the RBK12 mesh network can cover up to 3,000sq ft of area while the RBK13 covers 4,500sq ft. The satellite and base system operate on dual-band Wi-Fi, with 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands. All this performance also comes supported by the quad-core 710 MHz processor onboard them
The RBK12 and RBK13 are quite easy to setup. Simply plug in the incoming RJ45 cable from your internet provider’s fiber box or modem, to the internet port on the RBK12 or RBK13. Place the Orbi satellites at places where there is signal to the base router. Other satellites can be placed in areas with coverage. In this manner, you could have a chain network setup between all the satellites leading up to the base router. Simple coloured LED indicators display whether the connection on the satellites is good enough or not. You do not need to manually configure anything beyond this. The satellites with detect each other automatically. There is a Sync button that lets you restart the connection through to the other satellites and primary router. The devices automatically re-calibrate and get the connection back online. The wired ports, both the internet and local network one on the router are gigabit-supported so you can expect the fastest of internet connections to work on it.
The Netgear Orbi routers have many features in addition to the traditional features found on mainstream routers. The Orbi App for example, lets you to remotely manage and control the mesh network. You can do speed tests, set parental controls and permissions for web sites. You can also check what devices are connected to the network. The app even tells you the status of the satellites and their connection to the primary router. The parental controls onboard are advanced as well. It is called Circle and it lets you take fine control over which devices get access to specific sites. You can set easy filters, check history, set time limits, even a bedtime for when the internet is turned off for specific devices. Some of the features are available on paid subscription basis, bust most essential ones are free. You can also opt in for Netgear Armor, a paid service that acts like an antivirus and data protection solution for all devices connected to your Netgear Orbi network
The Netgear Orbi routers can also be controlled using voice commands with the help of Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant. It’s the kind of convenience the Netgear Orbi series of mesh routers allow. You could use voice commands on your Alexa device to ask things like, what your internet speed is like, the internet usage, to enable guest network and many others.
Mesh networking is the future, and it is great if you have a large home and need strong network coverage across it. Using a setup like this ensures rock-stable network connectivity and you will not have to worry about reaching out to anyone, for help on improving the network coverage at home. The Netgear Orbi solutions are also very compact, and the satellites only require a single power cable to operate. This means they are perfect to place on top of some cupboard or a showcase, or next to the TV.
We rarely change routers every year or two, so when you are upgrading, why not choose a mesh network Wi-Fi setup? Mesh networking solutions are now available at Reliance Digital, and products such as the Netgear Orbi RBK12 and RBK13 can now be ordered online at reliancedigital.in and at your nearest Reliance Digital store.
