ASUS - ZenWiFi BQ16 Pro

you can, but only the router will support wifi 7, you would have to upgrade all your nodes to a supported model that uses wifi 7. asus has the BQ16 Pro which goes on sale regulary, it's a good 2 system ai mesh. that supports Wifi 7 and MLO. If there is a microcenter near you, you can get 10% off by trading in your old router, and they may even have an open box available.

BQ16 pro with wired backhaul is a good option

How goes it lately -- I went from ET9/XT8 system which was rock solid to the BE30000. I am about to return it and go elsewhere. While the independent networks are great (when you get them working -- and still can't monitor/see them in the console) the constant disconnects are killing me. And some of the units are 10 to 20 feet away from the closest router. Of my 30+ devices, I reset 1 or 2 a day. And my only support is here as ASUS refuses to help since this is a Best Buy purchase. And the Geek Squad keeps saying call ASUS since they have no experience with these units...

I've been beating my head against the BQ16/BE30000 unit for almost a month with Asus support. Was an absolute shitshow. Got it for testing and could potentially replace the Eero Max7 I just purchased a bit over a month ago. Like many, I had issues with smart devices in my house, but Asus support finally worked out things for me to set to make it work reliably - disabled the MLO on the IOT network and disabled 2.4GHz totally on the main network. And once I did that, my smart devices around my house (about 140 of them) all came online and worked again. Prior to those changes they all showed as connected devices with IP's but everything showed offline in all the smart apps. My issue with the Wifi7 network and local file copy speeds to my media center PC and my Synology DS1821+ both of which are on my wired 10GB network. With the Eero my file copies are consistently 230 to 240MB/s with peaks up over 250MB/s. With the Asus, nothing that their support has been able to have me try has been able to get it to consistently even hit 140. Mostly it hangs around 120 or so. Huge speed drop for me, and since I just upgraded my house to 10GB so that I'd get better file copy speeds from my new Surface Pro 11 to the wired devices on my network, that's the dealbreaker for me. But if you're only worried about IOT and internet, the BE30000 works well for that once things are tweaked a bit for people who have issues with the 2.4GHz devices.

I have used the orbi WIFI 7 970 , eero max wifi 7, TP link 11000 wifi 7 and Asus be30000. Every single unit from all of the different brands are plagued with massive issues. Constant drops, devices refusing to connect, disconnects, range issues and instability between router and satellites. It's so bad that I returned every single one I used and picked up an eero 6E. I have had 0 issues on 6E. In my opinion wifi 7 is nowhere near ready for primetime and is an utter joke. To sum this up avoid wifi 7 like a plague (at least for now)

Asus BQ16 Pro is a beastly mesh system. The BT10 is a close second.

The bq16 pro 2 pack i had was really good. But you need to keep mlo disabled a causes havoc being enabled. Put the iot devices on its dedicated 2.4 ghz ssid and you are all good. Afc also does work on the 6ghz even though its not adverised. Only downside is that it has slower 1gig ports aside from the two 10 gig ports so you can use a multi gig switch to extend available ethernet. Its mesh speed via wifi is really friggin fast as well. In general most wifi 7 routers/mesh systems still need a lot of tweaking/updates to fix issues so i would wait if i could.

I ultimately went with the Asus BQ16 Pro.  For me, this setup provided the best overall setup and performance and I'm very happy with it.

get 3 gt-be98 pro, much more stable, i have both, selling my be30000 soon

well, if you want the best wifi 7 consumer mesh available now, and can afford it, this is the way to go [https://www.bestbuy.com/site/asus-zenwifi-be30000-wifi-7-quad-band-mesh-router-3-pack-white/6578392.p?skuId=6578392](https://www.bestbuy.com/site/asus-zenwifi-be30000-wifi-7-quad-band-mesh-router-3-pack-white/6578392.p?skuId=6578392) I've installed multiple wifi 7 mesh setups over the last 8 months or so, and this is what I found currently works the best you likely only need 2 of these in most homes, so you can sell the third one on ebay to help reduce the price for your house

I'm debating between the Orbi 973 and the BQ16 series (this one at Best Buy https://www.bestbuy.com/site/asus-zenwifi-be30000-wifi-7-quad-band-mesh-router-3-pack-white/6578392.p?skuId=6578392). Then I need to convince my wife that I need to spend the money to upgrade our WiFi6 system that is under a year old.

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

I had a lot of issues with the google nest wifi- for the past year or so I have used an Asus ZenWifi which works better for me, and I do have usable network access from my shed which is about 100 Ft away from the house. My biggest issue is getting a signal past the walls/siding in our house- there is 'double' siding because the house originally had asbestos siding, and a former owner put vynil over it. I get by this with a small enclosure holding one node just out side the walls of the house.

I'd avoid TP-Link out of security concerns, Asus ZenWifi or Alta Labs AP's with the Route10 is the way I'd go.

I don't think any of the products out there have an upper bound limit you would run into. The only one I saw was ASUS ZenWiFi with a limit of 9+router, and that's still plenty for your setup. What made you think there were low maximum node limits?

Bingo. So many of us are essentially engineers either by profession or by hobby, so a general list on popularity or even satisfaction is going to be worthless. I love my ZenWifi, but I also chose my particular model based on the availability and features of open source firmware (Merlin). I considered Eero with the thought that I'll give up the tinkering, but found the feature set too limiting.

Asus Zen wifi is trash. I've tried everything and can't get the node to maintain a connection. I'm not the only one, plenty of people report the same issue.

I've had success with Asus Zen Wifi and Amplifi; but I think Asus is a better product personally. I have Ubiquiti in my home right now and don't particularly like it.

EERO is popular because of cost - that is it. I tested them out and they are HORRIBLE in a highly dense area (ie Lots of neighbors with Wifi). UniFi is the best mesh- its what businesses use, but more complex to setup and maintain; not friendly for the consumer market. Depends on your requirements Out of the others I have tested: Orbi - easy to get started; great mesh; CON: Subscription for parental or added security; Not the best speeds (but generally good). Netgear - Same as orbi ASUS ZEN - Fantastic speed; Unbelievable configurability/features; No subscriptions for parental or added security; CON: Milage varies because of quality. Asus notoriously has issues with their firmware and new products. ASUS ROG - Same as ZEN; has more Gimmicks I ended up with the ASUS ZenWiFi BT10 - replaced the Orby Mesh. Very happy . I needed parental and added security; Needed VPN; Needed 10gig / 2.5gig WAN

To echo what plenty of others are saying, but also provide links to specific items to Do-It-Yourself and save money but still get good finished product. Assuming you have roof/attic access above the rooms and can run power to the attic: * buy bulk CAT6 cable, shielded twisted pair, not CCA (CCA stands for copper coated aluminum). [Get good shielded copper wire, like this](https://a.co/d/ijNWYa0). * buy a [crimper toolkit like this](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C7GRX9DW) * watch a few youtubes on terminating Cat6 cable. * buy a mesh wifi system like Amazon Eero, tp-Link Deco, Asus Zen Wi-Fi, etc. [Here's a good article / review of mesh systems and what to look for](https://www.cnet.com/home/internet/best-mesh-wifi-routers/) **NOTE:** mesh wifi is the consumer grade solution. If you can afford it, you're better off getting Wifi Access Points (APs) - the business grade solution - Ubiquiti is the best known of the AP options. Connection works similarly, with one key difference -- APs require power over ethernet (POE) instead of an electrical outlet / power supply. There are pros and cons of installing either Mesh or APs. * buy at least one [Unmanaged Ethernet Switch like this](https://a.co/d/88WLwNn) - this one is 8 port (1 connection in, 7 out). * You'll run an ethernet cable from your Comcast box to your wifi mesh router. Then you'll run a **long** ethernet cable down toward your L-corner dead zone. You'll plug that long ethernet cable to the Unmanaged Ethernet Switch. Then you'll run another ethernet cable from the Unmanaged Ethernet Switch to one of your mesh wifi satellites. BAM! Good internet within reach of that mesh satellite. You'll need to estimate/experiment with how many satellites the system needs (get multiple people to watch netflix on iPads, and spread them along rooms close to the mesh satellite -- see how many people / how many rooms you can cover before you need to add another mesh wifi satellite). I did a low-key simplified version of this at my house. Reply here if you have questions / need help. # You can do this yourself.

Upgraded our RT-AC68U router to a Wifi 6 capable RT-AX86U Pro.  Ran an ethernet cable for wired backhaul, put the AC68U as a mesh node.  The Asus mesh system works really well. 

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.

Most mesh systems will support as many nodes as you wish. But not all nodes are created equal. You’ll obviously need fewer nodes with a high powered node vs a cheap node with little range. I would HIGHLY suggest wired backhaul if possible, no matter the hw you ultimately decide upon. Ubiquity has a good solution for your use case at attractive price points. Asus’ AIMesh setup also works well, allowing you to easily tailor the hw for your home’s needs

Asus AiMesh can be configured without an app and uses local credentials for management.

100%. Just make sure you reboot the doorbell once your mesh is set up. It will then hop on to the WiFi node with the strongest signal. You should be able to configure your mesh so that the doorbell remains connected to that node, probably by assigning its MAC address to that node. I have two regular ASUS routers that have their own proprietary mesh called AiMesh. I’ve connected them to each other via an Ethernet cable that runs up through the attic (single story home). It also supports a dedicated WiFi connection between nodes, but hard wired is the way to go if at all possible.

I went from DD-WRT for years to ASUS AiMesh and have been on Unifi equipment for a good four years now. I never have any issues with roaming (3600+ home) and I can fine tune whenever necessary (rare). I love the Unifi and don't plan on moving away any time soon. If you want peace of mind, I definitely also recommend Unifi.

Avoid tp-link and any other CCP networking equipment. Don't intentionally put stuff with backdoors in them just to save a few bucks. Unifi is great but it's expensive and you really should use it wired. If you're just looking for plug and play mesh Asus has good offerings. Their AI mesh system works well