NETGEAR - Orbi AXE11000 Quad-Band Mesh Wi-Fi System (3-pack)

I’ve tested/used/reviewed a number of Router & Mesh setups in my life, so when presented with a chance to review the new Orbi WiFi 6E Mesh setup, I jumped at the opportunity. ​​TL;DR for my frequent readers and details below. Pros: Fast / Great Performance Coverage Both Router and AP mode Dedicated Mesh Link ports (2.5Gb/s) 10Gb/s ISP link (I can’t even get a Gigabit link where I live!) Web Interface as well as App control These run pretty darn cool to the touch at the top; the satellite is even cooler. Cons: App issues vary between Android & IOS Tech support is now a paid-for service Parental Controls are a (separate) paid-for service Security Software (trial) tends to block normal games/apps (Roblox/IOS App store) Meh: Huge Cost Fast Web Interface timeout / password box can’t be auto-filled Setup was a breeze and these things are huge (see pic, crowler for scale). Follow along with the App and don’t think you know more or try to advance before it’s time, you may have issues; patience. I set this up as a router before cutting the house over and got a feel for the controls and features with a handful of devices and computers. I quickly found that attempting to use many of the basic features in the App got me “Unknown Error” all over the place and it was different for the IOS App vs the Android one. For example: My S10+ got “Unknown Errors” looking at the client list, where the Pad Mini 6 was fine in that menu - but got “Unknown Errors” trying to activate my 30 day trial of the security software. Then, I couldn’t get into it anywhere to see what the heck I signed on for, or what I could do to administer it. Want tech support after 90 days? You have to pay. Want Parental Controls after 30 days? Pay. In all seriousness, for this being a $1k+ system at launch that requires a subscription for features offered for free by other WiFi vendors, such as simple parental controls is utterly ridiculous. This is a mega expensive system that deserves these features included; want to charge for these services for a $200 router? I don’t like that idea, but that’s the right price point to do so. Now, with so many App issues, I found myself in the Web GUI and found AP mode! AP (Access Point) Mode is where you use your old router and just use these for the WiFi Coverage. This is a perfect fit for me, because I like my existing router and its parental controls (no cost) so I could continue to use my old router for those features & leverage the Orbi for its Mesh capability throughout the house. I disabled the WiFi functionality on my existing router, kicked the Orbi into AP mode, renamed it to the old SSID, set the same password and off I went; I did it so quickly, that nobody noticed the cutover and all of my smart home devices just kept on going. I noticed that when moving to AP mode from Router mode, a number of router-only features were disabled in the Web Interface, as well as the App - which is totally expected. I didn’t notice any change in performance gain/loss between Router & AP mode, so I’ll stop talking about Router mode moving forward. Performance: I’m on a 400Mb/s link with my ISP. I’ve always had good speeds, but this is consistently 20Mb/s faster than I’ve seen before (see pic); WiFI and Wired are the same speeds for me now, so I don’t even wire up to play online games anymore. The wired ports on the back of the Satellites are live. I hooked a wired computer up to the satellite as a test and when running a fast dot com test, I saw speeds that I’d expect for a wired-to-the-router computer, not one connected to a Mesh Satellite. Coverage: Coverage is great. I’m able to pull down 45MB/s about a half-acre away across the yard (see pic). I have one satellite across the house and after rebooting devices on that side, I see the wireless devices pick up that satellite. I do still have a device or two that floats that way for no reason, but it doesn’t impact the stream. I’m torn on the rating here. Performance wise, 5 stars. Pay-for services, take away 1.25, the App issues - albeit likely fixed in future updates, take away another .5. By that - I’d be a 3.75, so I guess I’ll round up to 4. Do I recommend this? Sure, if you have a ton of cash to throw at it. And I recommend AP mode over Router mode as having to pay for services others include by default is just silly.

When the box containing this mesh system arrived at my door, the size and weight of the system was significant. Bigger is not always better, but these three units- one a router and its two matching satellites- each weighing in at three pounds- are darn big. In the case of this system, however, bigger is definitely better. By better, I mean significantly better at pushing a wide band wi-fi signal through my house with results sufficient to satisfy me that I am getting the most out of my high speed gigabit internet service. The power of this system would probably be wasted on a lesser connection. My house is a fraction of the size that this product's specifications say it could actually cover- i only have a 2200 square foot house- but the house is a story and a half, and would be extremely difficult and expensive to wire for ethernet cable to every room. You don't have to do that with this mesh arrangement. The backhaul connection between these three units uses a dedicated wifi radio channel to move data between them and the results I obtained are far better than I have ever come anywhere close to getting with a router alone or a router connected to an access point. I strongly suspect that many customers for this system are going to use it just like I am using it- without any ethernet connection between the units. If you are physically able to have ethernet handle the backhaul connection, there is a 2.5 Gbs connection on the router and each satellite available for that duty which could significantly increase your performance. To utilize it, I would have to obtain a 2.5 Gbs splitter to pipe the backhaul signal between the router and the two satellites and be able to run the cables through walls to reach the satellites. Such is not practical for me because of a high wall with horizontal members to drill through which could not be accessed without removing the dry wall. Such is just not in the cards for me. This quad band system has guts and power that point toward the future. The WAN port which connects to your modem is a 10Gbs port. I scratch my head over that impressive feature because there is no 10Gbs LAN port on the router to send that wide data pipe to the rest of your home network over ethernet. It is a moot point right now for me because my internet connection is only 1gigabit. I have a gigabit switch connected to one of the three LAN ports on the router unit which serves a number of direct ethernet connected devices in my equipment cabinet adjacent to the router. The satellites in other rooms upstairs are connected only by their wifi radios. The router and satellites are powered by a quad core processor with 512 NAND Flash and 1 GB of RAM. The massive router and satellite units offer 12 high performance antennas with high power amplifiers. I will forgo comment on the specified bandwidth performance of 10.8 Gbs, because my setup does not offer a means to fully utilize or test that level of performance. It took me no more than 20 minutes to get the entire system up and working, and it was not complicated at all. Each unit must be plugged into a power adapter. You are prompted to use the Orbi app for your iPhone or Android phone which will walk you through the setup and add a month of free security to help protect your home LAN from outside threats. After a month, you will have to pay for that service. If you don't want to be bothered with that future expense, you can login to the router through a locally connected device to complete your set up, but you'll have to forgo remote access. That is exclusive to the smartphone app, and it will be up to you to weigh any risk associated with outside monitoring of your home network offered through the Netgear Armor program. After the guided set up, my router and its two satellites were meshed together and ready for action. I used the Speedtest app on my iPhone 12 to measure the wifi internet performance at various locations. I do not have any present equipment with wifi 6E capability, but this system supports that technology as well. This system also has support for your legacy 2.4Ghz wifi devices , but the 5Ghz radios, of course, provide the high performance which this system is capable of delivering. As a baseline, I measured internet performance with the Speedtest app on my Mac Mini which had a direct ethernet connection to the router through a 12 port switch. I obtained a download speed of 919 Mbps from my provider and an upload of 12.1 Mbps. The upload measurement appeared to be an aberration as I usually get around 60Mbps on upload and subsequent measurements confirmed this to be the case. From my iPhone 12, standing directly in front of the router, and about 10 feet away, the speed test app showed a download speed of 784 Mbps and an upload of 63.4 Mbps. Moving 22 feet away from the router yielded a download speed of 577 Mbps and an upload of 58.7Mbps. Both of the satellites are in upstairs bedrooms. One is somewhat closer to the router unit than the other, but has extensive HVAC and ductwork between the living room where the router is and the satellite location. This has been a signal impediment in the past. For the nearer satellite upstairs, I measured 412 Gbs download and 59.2 upload. For the further upstairs satellite behind multiple walls I got 291 Gbs download and 53.8 upload. The latter result compares to the sub- 100 Gbs wifi download speed in that bedroom on my previous equipment. Remember that if I had both those satellites connected to the router unit with ethernet cable, I would fully expect download speeds approaching the 1Gbs limit of my internet connection in both the further and nearer bedrooms upstairs. The here and now wifi results I have enjoyed from the 5Ghz radios exceeded my expectations although they fall short of the full capabilities of this mesh system connected with ethernet cable. Using the sheer radio power to reach through walls is the only alternative for me right now and this system represents the very best of that technology. I suspect that many users who lack the capability to run ethernet cable to every room in the house and have gigabit or multi gig internet service are going to be attracted to this powerful mesh system. I fall into that catagory. If you can run ethernet cable to every room in your house, however, you’ll be probably want to consider a hardwired local network with every device that can be connected with ethernet cable connected in that manner, using lower powered access points for wifi where needed. The most secure system wouldn’t use wifi at all, but for most home users, including me, such is not an option. With the caveats I have mentioned, this mesh system is highly recommended. You will have to pay a premium for the power and the convenience, but if this is your only practical alternative, you are going to want to take a careful look at this ultimate Orbi.

Verdict: We needed extended WiFi coverage with fast speed… The Netgear Orbi Quad-Band WiFi 6E mesh system delivered everything we were looking for, and more. Initial impressions. The system comes with three Orbi units and plugs, and a cat 5 cable. There is also a quick reference pamphlet that directs customers to download the Orbi app. Each Orbi unit looks like other Orbis but they are taller and heavier. Setup. The Orbi app aims to guide users through setting up the WiFi system. Perhaps it was smooth for other users, but I had to restart the setup three times before I was able to complete it successfully. During setup, I was able to customize the name of the network and set a new password. Once the WiFi was setup, I was able to customize the network fairly easily. Total setup took me about 40 minutes due to the first two failed attempts. App. The app is quite good. You can see all connected devices by name, check internet speed, setup a guest network, setup a dedicated Internet of Things network, setup some parental controls (most useful features require an upgrade), and access advanced settings (i.e. setup static IPs). Some of the more powerful features of the app are provided with a 30-day trial, and then require a subscription, which is quite unfortunate. Speed & range. I expected faster speeds, but it turns out to be MUCH faster than expected. With my previous WiFi, I averaged 200 Mbps over WiFi, down from a 1 Gigabyte fiber line. Now I hit 946 Mbps up and 765 Mbps down over WiFi, pretty much everywhere in the house. I tested the range with a signal strength app at various locations in the house and outside. Signal strength is perfect everywhere in the house. I tested signal strength about 100 feet outside of the house, and signal strength was exceptional, with speeds of 200 Mbps up and down. Before receiving this Orbi system, I expected that I would have to add a fourth satellite to the system, but it turns out that it’s perfect as it is. WiFi service has been perfect so far with no drops. Things I like: - Exceptional coverage, indoors and outdoors - Phenomenal speeds over WiFi, and in all areas of coverage - You can add additional satellites to create a bigger home mesh system - The app is fairly good, but it’s restricted by the subscription requirement - Dependable service thus far Things I don’t like: - Setup wasn’t smooth for me, but I worked through it and it’s fine now - The decision to restrict powerful features to a subscription is a mistake in my opinion. This system is at the top of the price range for consumer WiFi systems. As a premium option, it should include all features. Moreover, powerful apps add tremendous value for customers, so including the best security features in the app for free would encourage more customers to choose this system over others. Instead, many other systems include excellent security features for free. Overall, this WiFi system is fantastic and almost perfect for us. It would be perfect if it included all the security features without the need for a subscription. I would give this system 4.5 stars instead of 5 stars because of the subscription requirement, but since I have to pick between 4 and 5 stars, I am rounding up because of the exceptional speed and range.

About five years ago, I installed my first Orbi system in my home. Since the technology behind WiFi networks has changed pretty dramatically since then, we’ve ended upgraded our wireless routers a couple of times in the meantime. The newest Orbi AXE11000 is the latest addition to our network. Orbi does a great job of making the installation of this router system extremely user-friendly. To get started, you download the Orbi app and make sure you have an account with Netgear setup. Once that’s in place, you can proceed with the rest of the setup. You will want to place your router near your modem because it connects directly to it. The main router unit as well as the two satellites have Ethernet ports so that you can hardwire devices into them. The WiFi speed can be up to 10,800 MB/s while the Wired connections around only around 10,000 Mb/s. Even though the app provides on-screen directions, I’ve found that it goes much smoother if you go ahead and place the satellites where you want them in your home or office. They have a range of 9,000 square feet (with the 3-pack), which is 4,000 square feet more than our original Orbi system. Each additional satellite covers 3,000 additional square feet In our home, which is also our offices, we have the main router in the main office located in the front of the house. The first satellite is placed in the second office space, which is down the hall from the main office and it's on the north wall of the house. The second satellite is installed in our living room, which is located at the back of the house. When it’s all said and done, the three units sort of form an obtuse triangle. We structured them this way because it hits all the places that we typically need our Internet signal to reach clearly. Now, I do want to point out that our home is only 1,500 square feet in size. So, this system seems as though it is overkill for the space. But, we’ve found that having an advanced, dedicated mesh WiFi router is the way to go - even if you don't have 9,000 square feet to cover. We never find ourselves with a dead zone in our house and because the Orbi reaches so far, our network even extends into our yard. I'm excited that this system supports WiFi 6 even though a lot of devices haven’t caught up to that technology. We actually have two laptops - the MacBook Air M1 and the MacBook Pro M1 Max - in our home that can take advantage of WiFi 6 speeds. I was able to verify that the network is actually compatible with the technology, by looking up my laptop’s current network information in the System Profiler. The PHY Mode shows 802.11ax, which is WiFi 6. One of the big benefits of using a stable WiFi system like this is its ability to handle smart devices. Years ago, we started adding smart devices to our house. We started small with just a few lightbulbs, but suddenly, we were swapping out ALL our bulbs for the smart ones. We now have 67 different devices on our network. This includes devices on the WiFi network and those hardwired into our switcher. This also includes many different smart home products including light bulbs, hubs, speakers, controllers, and other sensors. This Orbi system supports up to 200 devices on the network. We have not had any issues with how the system handles all these devices. Better than that, the setup couldn’t have been easier. Aside from the initial Orbi system setup, if you have an existing WiFi network as we did, you can simply rename your new Orbi network with your old network name and password. All your old devices should reconnect within a few minutes. Since we had so many different items, it did take about 30 minutes for everything to reappear, but most of the major devices popped up right away. Even though there is a considerable monetary investment for a system like this, I think, based on my experiences with this and other Orbi (and non-Orbi) systems, that it is extremely worth it. Our house will never end up going back to a non-mesh network.

I like Netgear products, I have relied on a Nighthawk and told all my friends and family to buy one. But I have a very difficult time recommending this Orbi WiFi 6e. The router and two satellites provide an enormous amount of wireless coverage if you don’t mind their large size. For a Satellite that is really far from the router you can run cat 6 cabling between them to create a wired backhaul. Note that only one satellite can be backhauled connected via a cable. The wireless throughput when connected to the router or satellite was on par with other high end tri-band Wi-Fi 6 routers that I have used. Netgear includes some fundamental firewall and router configuration options and network monitoring capabilities via a web browser and a mobile Orbi app. The router does perform auto updates to the firmware which is a requirement these days. But the overall cost for performance and the required subscriptions for Parental Control and Enhanced Security features which other routers provide for free are reasons I would recommend thinking twice before purchasing this solution. Here are things to consider: 1. The biggest concern with a router is keeping it secure. Netgear still forces you to use “admin” as the only user id for accessing/logging into your router. This is a known security issue. You should be able to create a unique user id to make it more difficult to hack. 2. Wifi 6e provides new wireless bands so that in a congested wireless area you can get a cleaner signal with higher data rates. But you have to be very close and have a clean line-of-sight to the router/satellite for this to work. Wireless coverage past that line-of-site distance drops back to standard wifi 6 so if you have a large house that would mean that most of your wireless coverage would be standard wifi 6. Bottom line is that the vast majority of the wireless coverage will rely on standard wifi 6 speeds so why pay all the extra for the wifi 6e. 3. I first tried to install my units using the Orbi app on my Apple iphone but the install kept failing. So I connected a pc to the router and used the web interface to complete the install. Once the router and satellites were operational the Orbi app started working as expected. Both the web interface and the Orbi app allow you to do the standard administrative functions required for setting up and monitoring your network but they lack the intuitiveness and standard features/options that other router companies offer in their devices. The router only supports QOS WMM which very limited in its capabilities. If you are a gamer and want more control this router is not for you. Parental control is a subscription based service and not included. If you want additional firewall and device security beyond the basics you must purchase the Armor subscription. There are no notifications of new devices being added to the network unless you pay for the Armor subscription. The Armor subscription does include BitDefender that provides antivirus software and checks all devices for vulnerabilities. But if you keep your devices updated and you already have a favorite Security/Antivirus software loaded on your devices this becomes a useless and costly duplication. 4. The router does not have a USB port so you cannot attach a USB drive for file sharing on your network. This was one of the nicer features on the Nighthawk that I used regularly. 5. Netgear placed the wireless SSID and password label on the front of router. If you look at the photos you can see where I tried to remove the label without discoloring the white finish on the router. The same label is on the bottom of the router and satellites so why they ruined the finish by placing it on the front is confusing. 6. There is no way to control or influence what devices attach to which satellite nor is there anyway of making one preferred over the other. When I first powered up the router and satellites most of my devices registered with the main router even though they were closer to a satellite. Over time some of the devices have since moved their registration to a satellite that is physically closer but other devices have not. I would like to have some way to influence what goes where so the overall load is shared. The Orbi app via the network map and drill downs does allow you to see what device is registered to which satellite or router.

The Orbi Wi-Fi mesh system has always been my favorite of the systems that I have used in the past. I had the original Orbi system, and I loved and when I replaced it with another brand, I was never as happy. There were always little things that bugged me and now I can happily say that I have been given the opportunity to use the Orbi system once again. This system is very expensive and if you are looking for the latest and greatest that you can get, this is the one for sure, however, there are a few things to consider if you choose this system. The biggest disappointment with this system is that most of the advanced features are trial only and then you must pay for them. Security and parental controls are separate and cost extra. Tech support is free, but only until the 90-day mark, then you must fork out cash. You are given a full year hardware warranty, but if you need technical support, well…. The Orbi app has been good enough for me. I have not had any errors or problems with it. Setting up the devices was as simple as can be (or perhaps I have done this a few times to its easy now), but I removed my old mesh system, launched the app, and plugged in the Orbi’s as the app instructed me to. It walked me thru the entire process and after it was all said and done, about 30 minutes had passed by and my new system was up and running. I used my identical SSID and Passkey so every one of my (75) devices were able to easily connect without any intervention. My wife and kids did not even notice. They did notice the new Orbi’s and commented on how big and good looking they were though, so they are rather large, but they do look stylish. Each device has 4 Ethernet ports on them, with one being a 2.5GB connection and the Router has a 10GB uplink. My home connection is no where near that speed, but someday it could be and its nice to have that if needed. Back to the Orbi app, there is one of my favorite features, you can set up a separate IoT network for those devices that may not be able to use the 5GhZ network or if they can only do WPA/WPA2 security. Before this, I had to create a separate network using a different router for this purpose. Now I can retire that router and just use the Orbi system to accomplish the same thing. It is a good idea to segment out your IoT devices since security on them may not be as strong as you expect and may allow a way in for attackers. The rest of the settings and configurations found in the app are pretty much standard that you can find in most quality systems. Speed wise, these have had no problems keeping up with my demanding household. As I mentioned earlier, we have over 75 connected devices and the majority of them are connected nearly all the time. My speed tests have been what my advertised speeds from my cable company are and we have been very happy. The Orbi satellites have not dropped connections to each other, and they have provided a nice blanket of coverage that encompasses my house and front and back yard. If you are looking for a top of the line Wi-Fi mesh system and have the extra money, then I highly recommend you get these units, if not, then Orbi does make some less expensive models that are not the latest and greatest, but they work pretty darn well also.

I’ve always been interested in this advent of mesh networks but never could convince myself to take the plunge given that these systems don’t come on the cheap side. Yet, cue the new Orbi system from Netgear. I switched to their hardware around a year or two ago because I got tired of dealing with my ISP’s run of the mill gear, so I picked up Netgear’s highest end modem and a RAX50 router. Fast forward to now and they’ve recently released this new Wi-Fi 6 Mesh system. Setup was a breeze. I placed my Router next to the modem, and one of the satellites in my dining are as it’s near the furthest point in the house. It took about 10-15 minutes from downloading the Orbi app (do this before you disconnect anything on your current setup) to being able to get everything connected again. It really is a simple process. If you need finer control, once setup, you can always go to the Router’s webpage to make more detailed changes than what’s available in the app. I can honestly say, if you’re serious about having full home coverage, mesh is by far and large the way to go. I’m currently only using the Router hub and one of the Satellites till I figure out where I want to install the 3rd. It’s a bit overkill for my home in all honesty, but this is something I’m not going to have to replace or upgrade for years. It supports up to 10 Gigabit coming in. It features a 2.5Gbps ethernet port for devices on your network that may be able to take advantage. My desktop pc does feature one of these ports, however I can’t even come close to saturating it. There are 3 other 10/100/1000 ports on the main router. On the Satellites there’s 1 2.5 Gigabit and 3 Gigabit Ethernet ports. With my old Netgear setup out in my kitchen a good 30 feet away I could get reception just fine, but the speeds would start to drop quickly. I believe in some areas of the house I would see speed reductions of below 600Mbps over Wi-Fi 6. Still more than what I get from my service provider, but a steep decline. With this new setup, there was only once place in my house that dropped below 1Gbps, and I believe it was around 920 Mbps, still plenty fast especially for those with gigabit connections. What I really like most about this setup is that it has multiple bands, but best of all, it’s got a separate band you can setup specifically for all your IoT devices. Things such a Wireless Security system, Thermostats, Smart Speakers etc. It is off by default, but once you enable it, it really helps to segregate things on the network. I would like to see more companies provide an option like this. Speed wise, one thing I noticed is that my pings dropped about half. In gaming I don’t really notice much of a difference. Until I get a better option for a service provider, I’m left with pretty lackluster performance. I’m not certain if it was a setting, but on my old setup, doing speed tests to some places, my pings would be in the mid to upper 40’s. With the Orbi I’m down to the mid 20’s. Again, that could have been due to some changes I made but with the Orbi already running better out of the box, I’m certainly impressed. I’ve got several devices in the house running over Wi-Fi, Two phones, a table, a Surface Pro 8, a PS5 and several other IoT devices and so far, no hiccups at all. Everything just powers through without an issue. I did notice that my PS5 on the 5Ghz channel is performing very well now, I’m seeing downloads near what my total bandwidth is. Uploads are better, but still around half, but I think that’s an issue with the console and their network infrastructure. One of the photos I’ve included in the review show what my speeds are from the Speed Test in the app ranging from the areas of my house. If you’re looking for a setup that you don’t have to replace for 5 years or so and want the best, look no further than the Netgear Orbi. There’s a good reason Netgear is a household name and the quality of the product shows this.

Talking with an ADT installer inquiring about good mesh systems for larger houses, he had recommended Orbi as the product that came to mind. After extensive web surfing and product reviews I too came to the conclusion that Orbi was top of my list. After reviewing three systems ranging from $500 - $1200 I decided because of my square footage (8000) and the way my house is laid out (3 stories with some slabs and concrete block) I decided to go with the AXE11000 6E for range and use of the new frequencies of the 6E. I’ve used it now for over two weeks and undoubtedly made the best choice. Not only does it cover the entire house at speeds near what my router can max at (400mb) but It extends into the yard and detached garage near those speeds as well. Yes it’s expensive, but given the fact that using another brand I couldn’t even connect the satellite on the third floor, this product blew the competition completely out of the water. You get what you pay for and I needed fast Wi-Fi everywhere and that’s exactly what I have. Highly recommend