Eero 6 mesh Wi-Fi review: Eliminate your broadband bothers, now with a smaller price tag

In terms of treating your self to a shiny new gadget, there are most likely fairly plenty of devices round the home you’d look to improve earlier than the standard Wi-Fi router. A brand new smartphone with a elaborate new digicam, maybe? Perhaps a Sony PS5? Or what a few new addition to your rising sensible house?

We wouldn’t begrudge anybody for choosing any of those choices, however the fact is, your cash might be a lot higher spent having a look on the nondescript plastic field in your cabinet.

If you happen to’re paying every month for a half-decent web connection, you don’t need to be let down by the Wi-Fi router that was despatched by your broadband provider once you began your contract two-and-a-bit years in the past. With increasingly more internet-connected gadgets in your house and new threats from unhealthy actors rising every single day, it pays to have an excellent router that’s up to date with the most recent software program frequently. Not solely that, however in case you have up to date your telephone, pill, laptop computer or console not too long ago …you probably have already got plenty of Wi-Fi 6 enabled devices that you simply’re not utilizing to their full potential. For instance, the Wi-Fi router bundled by BT nonetheless does not assist Wi-Fi 6.

That’s the place the Eero 6 is available in.

Whereas it began life as an impartial firm, Amazon purchased Eero again in February 2019. Nonetheless, from the surface, you wouldn’t comprehend it. Not like Google, which added a hands-free sensible speaker into each Wi-Fi boosting node in its rival mesh system with its newest {hardware} refresh, Eero isn’t making an attempt to sneak Echo Dot audio system into your property.

Eero isn’t even managed by the Alexa app. As a substitute, it has its personal software program on Android and iOS.

For many who are deeply invested in Amazon Echo-compatible sensible house devices — don’t fear, there are some integrations between Eero and Alexa out there in case you dig deep sufficient. However for individuals who aren’t as eager to have Amazon providers of their house, with out studying the small print on the field, you wouldn’t know Eero was owned by Bezos and co.

So, what’s Eero? In a nutshell, reasonably than having a single Wi-Fi router squirrelled away at the back of a cabinet managing the web connection of each system in your house, Eero is a mesh community. Meaning you’ll have a number of smaller nodes dotted round the home.

Though it’ll nonetheless appear like a single Wi-Fi community within the settings app in your telephone, behind the scenes, these nodes might be shuffling gadgets round as you progress about your home so that you simply’re at all times linked to the node closest to you for the strongest Wi-Fi sign. It additionally means gadgets might be distributed evenly throughout the community, so you’ll be able to have extra gadgets linked to the Wi-Fi with out sacrificing reliability or pace. Every Eero 6 node can assist 128 separate gadgets, so with a three-pack at house you’ll haven’t any points connecting a jaw-dropping 384 devices to your property Wi-Fi community.

Not like the only Wi-Fi router laying on its aspect behind your telly or crammed into your cabinet below the steps, the Eero 6 system ought to remove all connectivity blackholes round your property …sure, even within the spare bed room or on the backside of the backyard.

Because the title suggests, Eero 6 is suitable with Wi-Fi 6, which is the most recent business normal for wi-fi web. It’s designed to deliver sooner speeds over Wi-Fi, larger efficiency, and higher assist throughout simultaneous gadgets. To reap the benefits of this new expertise, you’ll want Wi-Fi 6 suitable gadgets.

Thankfully, producers have been slowly including the expertise to their devices in recent times. Because the iPhone 11 collection, launched in late 2019, Apple has supported Wi-Fi 6 on its smartphones, whereas Samsung was an early-adopter to the usual — supporting Wi-Fi 6 in its handsets for the reason that launch of the Galaxy S10 again in March 2019.

In different phrases, in case you’ve bought a brand new smartphone or pill throughout the final couple of years, likelihood is, it’s suitable with Wi-Fi 6.

If that’s the case, the one factor stopping you from profiting from this newer Wi-Fi normal is the router in your cabinet.

If you happen to haven’t upgraded your telephone shortly, Eero 6 will nonetheless be capable of enhance the sign round your property and higher juggle dozens of gadgets, however the enhancements afforded by Wi-Fi 6 might be dormant till you begin upgrading your expertise.

Organising and managing the Eero 6 is dealt with utilizing the companion app, which is on the market on each iOS and Android gadgets. The app has helpful step-by-step directions so as to add every node and place it round the home. The Eero app asks what number of flooring you may have at house to assist information you when putting the community extenders for optimum protection.

In contrast with signing up for a brand new broadband contract, the place a router arrives virtually with out rationalization within the put up… you’ll really feel in good palms with the Eero app.

Eero says a bundle of three extenders will comfortably blanket a 5,000 sq. ft (420m²) house with Wi-Fi, with smaller houses needing fewer models than that. A single Eero 6 will blanket 1,500 sq. ft (140m²) with Wi-Fi, so condo homeowners would possibly be capable of make do with one.

Though, if that’s the case, you received’t be profiting from the mesh a part of this mesh system — you would possibly nonetheless need to shell out on an Eero 6 to learn from a few of the sensible options that you simply received’t get together with your bog-standard router out of your ISP.

And in case you transfer to a brand new place in a couple of years time, you’ll have the pliability to purchase an additional node or two to start increasing your Wi-Fi protection.

Juggling your devices throughout the Eero app is an entire pleasure. The Eero app lets you assign any of the devices linked to your Wi-Fi community to a profile – for a selected member of the family, for instance. Then, Eero permits you to schedule any downtime after they received’t be capable of hook up with the web, so you may make certain dinner is at all times phone-free, or cease your youngsters from with the ability to login to Instagram within the wee small hours with out you figuring out.

Renaming gadgets, including them to new profiles, and connecting new Eero 6 nodes is a cinch. However in case you can’t be bothered, don’t fear — the Eero app will robotically kind new gadgets into classes – so any linked doorbells, lightbulbs might be separate out of your iPad and Pixel 4. A small icon will illustrate every linked gadget too. So, even in case you haven’t spent a night sorting gadgets between relations’ profiles, it’s best to simply be capable of discover what you’re on the lookout for in a couple of seconds.

A separate Exercise tab throughout the app permits you to monitor your community speeds over time. That’s significantly helpful in case you’ve been having bother together with your service and you should ship a screenshot to your Web Service Supplier to show how patchy your speeds have been over the previous couple of months. In our time with Eero, we didn’t run into any hiccups with the app, which was reassuring provided that making any adjustments to your community depends on the software program.

Eero updates within the background the entire time. Since putting in Eero in our house, we might usually wake-up to a notification telling us that Eero had been up to date through the small hours to enhance stability throughout the Wi-Fi community, higher juggling between Eero nodes so that you’re at all times linked to the strongest sign, and safety in opposition to the most recent threats and hacks.

A number of updates have been put in within the final dozen weeks. Within the years that we have had the free Wi-Fi router from our broadband supplier, we’ve not heard a few single replace to guard in opposition to the most recent threats and malware.

Eero may even ship a weekly report, with the most recent statistics about your community pace, together with quickest obtain and add speeds recorded within the final seven days, the whole quantity of knowledge downloaded over your community, and extra. If you happen to’re not on a vast plan — this might prevent from a nasty shock invoice on the finish of the month.

The elective Eero Safe subscription will defend the entire gadgets in your community from malware, phishing assaults, and extra. Since it really works on a community degree, it’s going to cease the menace earlier than it reaches your smartphone, pill or laptop computer. That makes it rather more helpful than anti-virus software program, which must be put in on each single gadget in your family (if the anti-virus supplier even has an app for many of your gadgets!) 

There are additionally choices to dam commercials, filter searches — helpful in case you have youthful relations at house, and the flexibility to dam particular person websites for sure customers or gadgets. Content material filtering is divvied into three classes: Unlawful or Prison, Violence, or Grownup Content material. Eero gives presets primarily based on age teams – from Pre-College to Youngsters. In fact, all of those predefined classes might be customised. So, for instance, in case you’re comfy with youthful customers accessing on-line gaming, you’ll be able to take away that limitation whereas preserving the remainder of the Pre-College restrictions.

Eero Safe+ is a costlier subscription service that bundles different providers, just like the excellent 1Password password supervisor, for a £9.99 monthly or £99 per 12 months plan. If you happen to already pay for any of the third-party subscriptions bundled with Eero Safe+ then that is staggeringly good worth.

That is in distinction with Eero Safe, which feels fairly costly for the options bundled. Not solely that, however a few of Eero’s greatest rivals embody most of the options locked behind the subscription plan – like historic obtain pace information, content material filters for youthful customers – for free with a {hardware} buy. 

A shiny new Wi-Fi router may not be the sexiest new gadget you can purchase, however it’s most likely the system you can purchase subsequent. Whether or not you are working from house, making video calls with relations, or beginning to purchase sensible house devices like video doorbells, Wi-Fi lightbulbs and sensible audio system …Eero 6 will blanket your property with sturdy Wi-Fi sign. Eero can juggle a whole bunch of gadgets with out a drawback and prioritise vital use-cases like video calls and on-line gaming, so that you by no means lose connection at vital moments.