Ubiquiti - UniFi Express 7

My recommendations for short and simple stacks, for Ubiquiti - a UniFi cloud gateway ultra, UniFi lite 8 POE switch and U6+ APs for WiFi. Controller is built into gateway. For Alta labs, route 10 router, s8 Poe and AP6 or AP6 plus APs. They have a free cloud controller or you can buy their controller device. If you want to go TP link route ER7206 for router, OC300 controller, TL-SG2008P for switch and EAP610 for APs. You can skip the OC300 and go with a free software controller on a desktop. The controllers are to get a unified view of the network and configure them.

Ah, yes, if you want a no headache router with everything under the sun plus ids/ips, this is the way.

You’ll need to buy piecemeal, I’ll leave required equipment below for what I’d do. https://store.ui.com/us/en/products/u7-lite https://store.ui.com/us/en/products/ux7 https://store.ui.com/us/en/products/usw-lite-8-poe You’d only need about 1 UX7 and 1-2 U7 Lites. I’d do 1 U7 Lite and see how that performs, you can scale up easily if needed.

Skip all of those and grab a Dream Router or Unifi Express 7 from Ubiquiti. I’d opt for the Dream Router over the Express for growth, such as adding security cameras and such or additional access points for expanded coverage. If you don’t plan on any of that, then an Express 7 will meet what you need.

WiFi mesh with all access points being wired back to the main router totally avoids this issue. While some devices stay static, having multiple SSID's is fine but for phones mesh is way better than dropping off one AP to connect to another. I believe OP has a "gateway" from his ISP which is a modem and router in one device and they are always terrible but I could be mistaken. Having a good router does matter because at the end of the day all traffic relies on it so having a terrible router can cause or make WiFi issues worse. After dealing with a terrible Google mesh setup for years I finally moved to Unifi. Their software really is easy to set up, especially stuff like VLAN's and multiple SSUD's, which AP's can use what SSID's or mesh and a mix of SSID's if you want. . Ran pfsense for years but it has no WiFi solution. The difference in WiFi latency is insane using [this](https://store.ui.com/us/en/category/cloud-gateways-wifi-integrated/products/ux7) and one of their AP's that's wired back to the Express 7. Switches AP's while doing speed tests. It just slows down for half a second when it does switch AP's.

Recently got a Dream Router 7 and while it's just the router all their AP's are mesh capable. Now it's above the mark you're going above but I wish I had gotten the UniFi Express 7 which is essentially the same with less ports. I misunderstood something so 70 dollars probably wasted although I ended up using the porta. Depending on your internet speeds it may not be enough. This is the misleading part. It has a 10Gbps port but its IDP is like 2.4Gbps so you will never get 1oGbps from it but if your Internet is under 2.5Gbos it's fine. The great thing to me was their software. It's stupid easy and I used everything from PFSense to WRT to Cisco CLI. Any AP can be a mesh AP or independent. It suggests stuff like iot VLAN's and makes it simple so while not cheap you're paying a lot for the software and future software support. The one thing disappointing I found out after was for MLO to work, the main benefit of WiFi 7 were it uses all the bands as one "pipe" requires WPA 3. I've been meaning to mess around with VLAN's but it appears to be a per router/AP setting which sucks because I think my Pixel 8a support WPA 3 but most my 5Ghz stuff doesn't so that's going to be an issue with any WiFi 7 mesh system. I did get noticeably higher internal (LAN) transfer speeds when using it so it works. EDIT: see below and it's a network wide WiFi setting [https://www.reddit.com/r/Ubiquiti/s/qXrsjaMuRO](https://www.reddit.com/r/Ubiquiti/s/qXrsjaMuRO) https://preview.redd.it/v2lx4as0mscf1.png?width=1080&format=png&auto=webp&s=b542fc1ec84cd08901689b85afea01768521168a

I don't know why availability would be an issue. All the items are in stock. This is what you would need for a "complete" setup. 1. https://store.ui.com/us/en/products/ux7 -- That's your main unit. They are just as plug-and-play as most consumer routers these days. 2. https://store.ui.com/us/en/category/all-wifi/products/u7-pro-wall -- Ubiquiti has a LOT of access points. I'm not sure what your ethernet cable terminates. If it terminates into a wall plate, then you may want one of the nice wall mounted ones. If it terminates in the ceiling or in a cabinet, then maybe you choose a different one. 3. https://store.ui.com/us/en/category/accessories-poe-power/collections/pro-store-poe-and-power-adapters/products/u-poe-plus -- That's the PoE injector for your second access point. To your questions... Configuration and management: Honestly if you're even slightly network savvy, it's so much cleaner and nicer than the other systems. The Asus / TP-Link stuff is now either typically locked in an app or has a crappy web UI with infrequent updates. Google WiFi is fine. I have it for my parents, but you don't get much control. At least it "just works" most of the time. Range: In my experience, much more than the Google WiFi Nest Pro. Similar to you, I installed that at my parents' house. I upgraded them from the previous Google WiFi system, and I found the range got a bit worse, but if you're in range, the speeds are much better. PoE Injector -- Most Ubiquiti stuff is powered by what's called "power over ethernet." It atually sends a DC current over the cable. It provides both power and data to the access point. For homes / businesses that require multiple access points, it's so convenient to just drop an ethernet line where you want to add the access point, versus needing a separate power source. Most mid-range or high-end Ubiquiti stuff has ethernet ports that are already "PoE enabled." With the device I recommended to you, the ethernet port there doesn't have PoE, so you need an "injector" which takes wall power and sends it through the ethernet line. An alternative device is the Dream Router 7. https://store.ui.com/us/en/products/udr7 -- One of the ethernet ports on this device is a PoE port, so in this case, you wouldn't need the injector. BTW - I agree it's awkwardly hard to tell if wired backhaul is working w/ the Google Home app. As I mentioned, I have it set up for my parents w/ 3 nodes, all wired, and I find it so frustrating how NOT intuitive it is. Like, they really hide the visibility of it. That being said, it DOES pretty much "just work" for my parents. You said you "added" the Nest Pro. Google doesn't allow you to run mixed mode. I'm assuming you have swapped both old units out for the newer Nest Pro, right?

If you're looking for simple, as in single router with integrated wifi, get this - [UniFi Express 7 - Ubiquiti Store United States](https://store.ui.com/us/en/category/cloud-gateways-wifi-integrated/products/ux7) however, ubiquiti separates the AP from the gateway/router when you go higher end so you can upgrade them independently - so if you want wifi whatever, you just upgrade the AP instead of everything (more cost effective). I have a dream machine SE with a U6 Long Range access point and they work great together. If you want to discuss feel free to DM me.

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.

It’s bit overkill maybe, but if you don’t use any Ethernet ports I’d recommend the [UniFi Express 7](https://store.ui.com/us/en/category/all-cloud-gateways/products/ux7) for the cutting edge WiFi 7, the security, and the ease of managing devices for a family. It should be supported for a long time. If you do use extra wired ports you could always opt for the [Flex Switch](https://store.ui.com/us/en/category/all-switching/products/usw-flex-mini) from them that gives you four extra ports and is powered off the router itself. That or you could go for the the [UniFi Dream Router 7](https://store.ui.com/us/en/category/cloud-gateways-wifi-integrated/products/udr7) for a bit more. I just purchased the UDR7 and love it!

That’s probably the best option if you need a couple extra Ethernet ports. You will also need POE injectors for the two APs. UI sells a [regular POE injector](https://store.ui.com/us/en/products/u-poe-af) for $8 which is all you need for the U7 Lite. My only other suggestion would be a [UniFi Express 7](https://store.ui.com/us/en/category/all-cloud-gateways/products/ux7) which has an AP built in, with 6 GHz, to boot. But it only has one LAN port so if you’re wanting to run more Ethernet you’d need a switch. The [cheapest one UI sells](https://store.ui.com/us/en/category/all-switching/products/usw-flex-mini) is $30 which makes it about a wash with your setup. The only advantage would be 6 GHz from the router but your still be without it on the other floor. Edit to add if there’s a chance they may ever want cameras the Cloud Gateway Max and Dream Router 7 both offer a basic NVR that supports their Protect products. And both have several LAN ports. The Dream Router even has a POE port to power an AP.

lol, glad I could help. If I remember correctly, the routers I had (I had two different models) both were said to have a max of about 30 clients or so before they would start dropping clients randomly, for random amounts of time. At the time, I was pushing 60 or so (I’ve since increased). I can now support 300+ clients and have no further issues. I removed the Google route entirely, my UniFi Cloud Gateway Ultra connects directly to the ONT. From there I have a couple of managed POE switches, and 3 access points - all of which is managed in the same interface. And work together as one system.