ASUS - ZenWiFi AX Mini (XD4)

I've had the ASUS ZEN WIFI Mini xd4 since 2020 and just recently upgraded the main router to an ASUS RT-AX82U AX5400 DUAL-BAND WIFI-6 GAMING ROUTER so I could put one of the nodes in my basement where I spend a lot of time. The coverage is amazing and the speed is good everywhere. Heck, as soon as I turn onto my street my phones switch to it and I'm the 4th house down. I'd recommend to anyone and you have free internet security for the life of the product. And all of the mesh systems are compatible with one another.

I have been using the Asus AI-Mesh system for years. Seems very robust, to me. Devices seemlessly switch between the nodes. It handles 2.4ghz and 5ghz fine. Sonos works without a hitch. I am definitely using wired ethernet backhaul, however, from the remote node. Currently two of the Asus RT-AX55.

You must have gotten a dud. Deco BE95 system. Simply amazing. Had it for 12 weeks now. Zero drops. 5800 sq ft home. ISP 6 Gig up and Down. Wired backhaul. 121 connected devices. Wired devices that can handle multi gig speeds - 6 GIG WiFi 7 - 2.5-4.3 GIG WiFi 6E - 1.8-2.4 GIG WiFi 6 - 1.1-1.6 GIG WiFi 5 - 600 mbps - 900 mbps WiFi 2.4 - 200-500 mbps The consistency, reliability and speed blow every simple competitor out of the water in my experience! Amazing system and have tried them all! Eero Max 7, Orbi 970s, Asus ZenWifi

Yeah I like the ASUS approach as well. Mine just works, and it is so easy to add another node anytime I want since their stuff is all interoperable with the AiMesh setup.

Hey OP. I've been living with wireless backhaul mesh for the last few months in our new place and with a few tweaks, it's been fine. I'm using Asus AiMesh with two remote nodes, plus a couple of old OpenWRT routers purely as bridges for wired devices. I'm in the process of running cable just now just to make the most of my FTTP connection but some generic tips that seemed to help me, if you do go down the wireless route. - Choose a system with multiple radios in each node, so you can dedicate a channel to the backhaul. - Look for mesh nodes that allow you to plug devices into them and position them accordingly. The "wired" devices will obviously still be using wireless via the mesh, but keeping their own radios quiet keeps the spectrum free for the mesh nodes and wireless-only devices to talk. The mesh nodes will almost certainly have better antennae and radios than the client devices. - Try to position the nodes so they are all talking with the main router rather than hopping via each other. On consumer gear this can be more of an art than a science but it boils down to finding different locations with the same signal strength to the main router so they link directly. - Although not acting as mesh nodes, I've repurposed a couple of old routers running OpenWRT + Relayd in the office and games room, so my PCs and old consoles without wireless can get internet. - Some mesh systems allow you to lock clients to a particular node. Play around with this - you can steer dumb devices to their nearest node rather than them trying to pick up a faint signal from a further one and shouting over everything else. Smart speakers and displays are particularly bad for this. In my office, about 25 metres and 1.5 floors (it's a L-shaped split level house) away from the main AP, my main PC wired into a mesh node can pull around 400Mbps down on a 990Mbps fibre connection. Previously with the PC and laptop using their own radios, I'd be lucky to see over 150 on either. Good luck!

Netgear isn’t who I’d recommend. Not only are they expensive but they need a specific base station router rather than all the satellites being capable of running the whole thing. ASUS with AImesh is the most versatile as it will work with any of their own products even older ones and you can mix and match freely. I don’t think you can mix and match TP link but at least they don’t require a specific base station so you can use the routers in any location/configuration and extend/replace as needed without a worry that it’s not compatible because it’s only a satellite/base station. TP-Link/Netgear software and features are worse than ASUS and far more basic/limited. Eero requires a subscription for stuff you get for free/default on ASUS, also MerlinWRT is a god send.

Unifi is not the way for WiFI mesh and even if you don’t need mesh it’s not for the average joe either. They are expensive but the easiest setup and most feature rich for the average consumer is ASUS.

The folks suggesting Omada and Unifi aren't wrong. Those are *great* systems, but they're pretty "pro". If you don't need advanced networking features (e.g., VLANs beyond isolated guest networks, traffic rules)/want something that's more plug-and-play, a mesh system that supports wired backhaul might be a better fit. Asus ZenWiFi performs well, supports wired backhaul, and offers some useful advanced settings. It's not as configurable as Omada or Unifi or MikroTik, but it's simpler to manage and "good enough" (multiple isolated guest networks, band-specific networks, QoS) for lots of home users. Eero also performs well but doesn't support as many advanced features as Asus.

Eero (Amazon), tp link Deco, and Asus ZenWifi are all well-reviewed and perform well. If you've got to go mesh, look for a tri-band system with a dedicated backhaul channel (Eero, Deco, and ZenWifi all have models). Eero and Deco are a little more "plug and play". ZenWifi is also easy to set up, and some models give a few more config options/control than Eero or deco. The tricky part is that you don't know how well mesh will perform until you set it up in your place. Two nodes might be enough, but you might need three (or four). A 6 ghz backhaul channel might work, but, if the walls and floors in your place cause a lot of interference, you might see better perf with a 5 ghz backhaul. So buy from a place you can return it, maybe start with three nodes, test how coverage and speeds look, go from there. All three have 2.5 Gbps ports. 3 gig is a *lot* of bandwidth for a residential setup. Unless you're regularly downloading gigantic files (video, game updates), you probably won't exceed ~300-500 Mbps, and WiFi will de facto limit the perf on any device to ~200-600 Mbps. For most homes, 200 Mbps is plenty. If the 3 gig price isn't much different than ~300 Mbps (if you're in the US, it's hard to find service under ~300 Mbps), go for it, but if you're paying a premium for 3 gig, you can save some coin and you almost certainly won't notice a difference in performance. If you're in Europe, you rule!, fiber away because you're prob only paying like €40 for 3 gig.

I've been using AiMesh since the beginning, and it was rocky at first, but now I'm currently quite happy with it. One solid main router and two APs outside. What unifi did you get to replace your setup and do you think it was worth the cost?

Older ASUS AiMesh user here, and similar story. Portal plays shockingly well, and my PS5 isn't even hardwired.

You can connect mesh nodes through Ethernet. OP has an Asus router, so they can buy more WiFi6 Asus Routers and connect them through Ethernet to set them up as AiMesh Nodes. My house network is set up like that, and I only have issues when streaming to my phone when going downstairs because it changes nodes, so it lags for like two seconds, and then goes back to normal. Other than that, it's a great experience all around.

It's called a wired backhaul mesh. Look it up. The point of using mesh nodes connected through ethernet is to keep the "seamless" transition between nodes without having any network degradation between them.