*** Official Ubiquiti Discussion Thread ***
- Thread starter RoyMi6
- Start date
Is it just me or are the prices on UBNT kit going the wrong way given the strength of the pound against the dollar?
Everything seems to be skyrocketing in price. And even at the increased prices, no-one seems to have any stock.
Everything seems to be skyrocketing in price. And even at the increased prices, no-one seems to have any stock.
I suspect it's down to the global shortage of stock, granted there's no 'let's mine and make a million quid lawlzorz' demand but the semi-conductor shortage is well documented which also includes ASIC chips for networking equipment.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-56847518
I've ordered quite a few bits directly from their EU store lately and all have come through promptly and without any hassle or fees. Prices are usually better than the usual UK retailers too, even if they do have stock.
Do you have to pay any extra fees doing it that way.
Only really considered the barcode place.
The only issue is returns. How they handle returns now we're out of Europe is still an open question. They did have a restocking fee but they waived that fairly quickly once they realised they were subject to EU consumer law regulations and that's not necessarily the case now. As I understand it, the UK are not actually processing import duty from Europe until June, so maybe get your orders in quick.
I'm out of ports on the US-16-XG, which is the reason for the upgrade.
I missed the Pro bit. My bad!
Nope. They used to not charge VAT on orders over the £135 import threshold, instead leaving it to UK customs to charge any duty and VAT.
They've done away with that now and just charge you the VAT when you order and you get free delivery on orders over €120 (ex VAT).
Not sure if import duty is even applicable to IT kit but I've never been charged anything extra and orders take around five calendar days to arrive.
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I'm sick of my Orbi 6 system. It just isn't working properly and there's no features like mapping vlans to ssids, which seems crazy for the money.
I'm thinking I'd like to replace it with UniFi 6 stuff.
Any recommendations on what I need to get started? Do I need a controller?
I'm thinking I'd like to replace it with UniFi 6 stuff.
Any recommendations on what I need to get started? Do I need a controller?
You will need a controller but, to start with, you could just run a software one on a spare computer or in a virtual machine to play around with. There are also cheap hardware solutions like running it on a Raspberry Pi.
Aside from that, I'd recommend a U6-Lite AP to start with as they're cheap, small and perform well.
Note you will need a way of providing PoE power so either a PoE switch to connect the AP to or an injector.
You’ll probably find one AP will cover the house if you centrally locate it (e.g. landing ceiling) unless you live in a particularly large house by U.K. standards.
Just note, the Ubiquiti disks are meant to be ceiling mounted and their antenna are designed as such. They are not omnidirectional, if you need something omnidirectional, look at the Flex HD, it’s WiFi 5 though, a WiFi 6 version is coming.
Just note, the Ubiquiti disks are meant to be ceiling mounted and their antenna are designed as such. They are not omnidirectional, if you need something omnidirectional, look at the Flex HD, it’s WiFi 5 though, a WiFi 6 version is coming.
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So I've bought a couple of Lite's and will see how they fair.
It looks like linuxserver.io have rolled a docker container for the controller software, which sounds ideal.
It looks like linuxserver.io have rolled a docker container for the controller software, which sounds ideal.
lol.
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Well, my two lites arrived yesterday.
Ubiquiti software is impressive but I'm a bit disappointed by the lack of defined configuration for existing networks, it seems you just turn off DHCP for the default and be done with it?
I've also not got them mounted in their final resting places but I can't say I'm overly thrilled with the speeds.
I've gone from 100-500mbps down and a fairly solid 100mbps up with the Orbi to 20-200mbps down and 30-80mbps up. Hopefully that'll improve a bit once I've mounted them in more ideal positions/orientations. I don't mind a drop in speeds if it's does what I want with vlan tagged guest networks and it's more reliable, but maybe I'll need to supplement what I have with a more powerful AP once they're back in stock.
Ubiquiti software is impressive but I'm a bit disappointed by the lack of defined configuration for existing networks, it seems you just turn off DHCP for the default and be done with it?
I've also not got them mounted in their final resting places but I can't say I'm overly thrilled with the speeds.
I've gone from 100-500mbps down and a fairly solid 100mbps up with the Orbi to 20-200mbps down and 30-80mbps up. Hopefully that'll improve a bit once I've mounted them in more ideal positions/orientations. I don't mind a drop in speeds if it's does what I want with vlan tagged guest networks and it's more reliable, but maybe I'll need to supplement what I have with a more powerful AP once they're back in stock.
The Orbi is 4x4 AC I believe whereas the U6-Lite is 2x2 AC and 2x2 AX. So it’s not surprising that the Orbi was faster with 4x4 clients.
In general, in tests, the U6-Lite performs quite well as a WiFi6/AX access point but is pretty middling as an AC access point.
Most of the reviews show that, with WiFi5/AC clients the Lite is outperformed by all the HD access points and this is especially the case with regard to coverage and thick walls. As an AX access point, the U6-Lite is a proper bargain and the compromise is it’s only an OK AC access point rather than a great one like the UAP-HDNano or UAP-FlexHD. But then, they’re both more expensive and don’t do WiFi6/AX. So either way you’re compromised. And they work much better on the ceiling.
