Access Point U7 Lite (U7-Lite)

Modular system. Unifi is good and pretty simple these days. There are others like tp-link omada and such as well. But if i would recommend anything for you i would say get a Unifi system. Perhaps a Unifi cloud gateway fiber or ultra depending on budget. Pair that one with unifi aps, 1 per floor should do. Go for U7-lite or U7-Pro XG depending on your budget. And hardwire everything. You will regret it down the line If in a few years want the latest and greatest, you wont need to replace your entire network. You just swap the APs, gateway or switches and it just works.

Every topology has its weaknesses. Many people may think that mesh is the golden goose, but that is not the case. The biggest weakness is the backhaul. If it is too weak or the AP-to-AP section has poor reception, the mesh will also perform poorly. Since many people tend to push 3-4 Wi-Fi networks onto the transmitter, there is often a problem with beaconing on light consoles, as these only have 4-6 max streams. Therefore, it makes sense to use a good AP instead of a light one. For example, two xgs can be placed further apart because their reception strength is 30dBm and more instead of a u7Lite. Then there are Wi-Fi-specific issues: a backhaul that is too weak can cause the MLO on the end devices to not function properly in Wi-Fi 7, for example. Individual AP cells still deliver the best quality.

It was so good for me that when I accidentally messed up some wiring it was doing wireless back haul from an older udr to u7ap’s and I only noticed it due to the app showing topology looking wrong. This is 2 story house with udr in basement and aps on the 2 above ground floors.

Ubiquiti's UniFi system is difficult to recommend without running some ethernet cable. Even the Eero, Orbi and TP-Link mesh routers I cannot recommend without wired backhaul. Some of the U7 access points are capable of doing mesh but the ethernet backhaul to a PoE switch is crucial. Being that your current house is a ranch, do you have access to the attic? All you'll really need to do is run maybe about 1 or 2 ethernet cables (2 if you use the UCG Fiber which I recommend getting or 1 in the case of the Dream Router 7) in the attic which you could theoretically take with you when you move. I've shopped around for mesh routers as my dad has a Lorex Wifi Flood Light camera above the garage that our current router can't reach and the best combination I've seen so far is the UCG Fiber and any of the U7 access Points. I've priced everything and the Eero Max 7, Orbi 970 & TP-Link's equivalent came out to over $100 more than any UniFi equipment combination that I need.

I use TP link Deco X95 2 nodes system at home and Unifi 7 at work works without any issues for over a year though we will replace Eufy at work as we rolling out our own cloud platform

If you’re heavy on Apple devices then WiFi 7 won’t be coming for a while and you should be okay with a WiFi 6E router for the next 5 years. However, if you want to go forward with you can look at Ubiquiti CG Fibre and U7 or UX7 AP. The router should be future proof and allow you upgrade your AP nodes based on which band you want. If you want a different mesh brand then you can look between Deco (best on budget), Asus Zenwifi BT10 (tri-band) / BQ16 (quad-band) or Orbi 770 / 870 / 970. This are the top 3 brands with top mesh systems and best coverage. Nevertheless, your bandwidth and devices should decide your choice (added with budget) Honorable mention will be Eero Max 7 but it’s barely customizable and you have to do things the Eero way

Ubiquity hands down. Their WiFi 7 gear is reasonably priced too

Get ubiquity. Fuck that other crap. I tried all that other shit you are looking at, get a couple WiFi 7 access points and a gateway and have some reliable easy to upgrade stuff. If your existing Poe is the 48 volt Poe+ stuff you won’t need to get Poe injectors or Poe switches for the access points. Since I went this route I do t know what to do with my free time, as I am not battling my iot shit disconnecting and going off line.

I've used Netgear Orbi, Eero, and Ubiquiti UniFi WiFi 7 systems all long term. If you want an excellent ecosystem all behind one very sleek pane of glass WITH better performance and reliability and control than the other stuff, just get UniFi. The only caveat is lack of a dedicated wireless backhaul channel but this is often inconsequential because of better range and overall bandwidth. If you want to set it and forget it and have tolerance when a forced botched firmware update is pushed with no rollback option, consider Eero.

I dropped off my orbi 970 at UPS today to be returned in favor of my new UniFi stack. It’s no comparison.