Wireless Access Point Recommedations

Naan_H · 11 Jun 2017 at 16:56

Hi all,

Im looking for a wireless access point to to provide better WiFi coverage upstairs. I curently have virgin with the 200 Gamer package and the router by the tv. The house has been fully networked with Cat6. The central location upstairs holds the patch panel and switch and this will be where the access point will remain.

Power is not an issue so it can be plugged or PoE.

One requirement is that i want the SSID to be mirrored with the router downstairs so that i dont have to physically connect to the access point upstairs and therefore need to input an extra wifi key. The SSID has to be the same.

I had a TP link powerline wifi extender which did the job of copying router/SSID details very well and it significantly boosted the wifi in a hard to reach area (similar to this TL-WPA8630PKIT AV1200).

Any recommendations? Thanks in advance

bremen1874 · 11 Jun 2017 at 17:52

The UniFi APs are well liked. There's a thread mainly about them here.

Duplicating the wireless details will work with any AP. If there isn't an automatic option you just need to type them in when you set it up.

DIABLO · 11 Jun 2017 at 18:20

You aren't going to get anything better than a Unifi at a prosumer price point.

Naan_H · 11 Jun 2017 at 18:46

Thanks for the replies. I have a homehub 6 lying about but to be honest don't really want to use it and thinking of selling it on.

The Unifi APs look quality. There are so many though, looks like a bit of a minefield. Any recommendations? I have a large 4 bed house with a reasonably sized garden. Do they have to be ceiling mounted? im likely to just leave it on a shelf.

DIABLO · 11 Jun 2017 at 19:58

People generally recommend the Lite or the LR unless you have 3x3 AC devices (modern Apple laptops for example) if you do you might benefit from a Pro. No of course you don't need to mount them too a ceiling, mine is mounted under my desk with self adhesive velcro, but bear in mind that the units produce their weakest signal from the centre of the front and back.

https://www.ubnt.com/unifi/unifi-ap-ac-lite/
https://www.ubnt.com/unifi/unifi-ap-ac-lr/
https://www.ubnt.com/unifi/unifi-ap-ac-pro/

If you do buy one make sure it's one of those models as there are older versions floating around especially on Amazon.

pc-guy · 12 Jun 2017 at 10:42

i bought a unifi pro tho have not got time to install it. but from the spec, the unifi pro lacks beam forming; the next one up from pro is HD which does have beam forming but not readily available in the UK

maybe if you don't need the capability of the unifi, then you can run a beamforming router as access point.

I find beamforming very very useful. so not sure how the unifi pro will perform compared with my VR900 atm (in access point mode)

Steveocee · 12 Jun 2017 at 13:15

You really don't need the pro or pro HD model.
The AC-Lite or AC-LR if you want to really hammer it home are both brilliant.

Unifi AP's have fantastic coverage and you can mirroor the Virgin routers SSID easily so you don't have to keep swapping and changing. If I'm honest you may find you end up turning wifi off in the Virgin router.

Orcvader · 12 Jun 2017 at 18:15

The lite is pretty small as well, so if you don't want to mount it you can always hide it somewhere like on top of a shelf, and it won't even be noticeable.

It's hard to know how many you need though without knowing the floor plan as well as what the walls are like, but a couple of the ac LR models should at least cover your entire home and garden.

dmsims · 12 Jun 2017 at 22:13

Whilst I love Unifi given OP's requirements it is a poor choice given the issues with handoff on the same SSID

Steveocee · 13 Jun 2017 at 11:56

dmsims said:
Whilst I love Unifi given OP's requirements it is a poor choice given the issues with handoff on the same SSID

What issues? Mine hand off no problem at all. Ubiquiti used to have Zero-Handoff but have now built some roaming goodness into there normal wifi protocol. Works fine.

dmsims · 13 Jun 2017 at 11:58

Ok thanks I stand corrected.
There were issues (by Unifi's own admission) with Zero handoff, glad it is sorted - at last!

DIABLO · 14 Jun 2017 at 12:40

dmsims said:
Ok thanks I stand corrected.
There were issues (by Unifi's own admission) with Zero handoff, glad it is sorted - at last!

Zero Handoff is kind of a depreciated feature as it's not recommended to use.

Naan_H · 15 Jun 2017 at 16:19

Thanks for the replies. I have used a homehub for this purpose previously and it struggled. When using the powerline extender it worked flawlessly. I dont have a floor plan to hand but it is approx 1250 square feet per floor, with an identical floor plan on both floors. The AP will be located on the first floor in a central location. After having a network installed im hoping the central location will improve general wifi throughout the house. Before this it was located on one side of the house with poor penetration through walls (the Homehub 6). Steveocee thats good to hear re the handoff capabilities.