Luma Surround Wi-Fi System Reviewed

[sfx2000]

Looks very broken in terms of Wi-Fi performance. I really, really wish companies would stop shipping products with half baked firmwares...

No - what we're running into is a good thing for small networks... the challenge now is that the model has changed, and Tim's working hard to get ahead of it - thus the investment of time and equipment...

 

[PumaSteve]

Ubiquiti is in line before Open Mesh

Do you have an ETA on the Ubiquiti review? I am a current (amazon) pre-order with Luma but am thinking of cancelling pending what I hear on the Amplifi.

 

[thiggins]

I have no ship date for the review samples.

 

[whsbuss]

When I did a chat w/AmpliFi the other day, they said August 17th for USA release.

 

[thiggins]

When I did a chat w/AmpliFi the other day, they said August 17th for USA release.

That doesn't mean I will get samples then. They may wait to get product to SNB and I have not pre-ordered any.

 

[whsbuss]

And yet another player enters the frey

https://www.plumewifi.com

 

[thiggins]

And yet another player enters the frey

https://www.plumewifi.com

Old news.
http://www.snbforums.com/threads/plume-joins-the-mesh-wireless-battle.33165/

 

[whsbuss]

Old news.
http://www.snbforums.com/threads/plume-joins-the-mesh-wireless-battle.33165/

Thanks, missed that.

 

[rmiller1959]

I had the opportunity to try both of the current wi-fi home mesh systems this month. On August 5th, I received my Luma home system, consisting of a three-pack and a single device. I have an older three level home, so I thought four devices would best serve my purposes, and since they were significantly less expensive than the eero devices, I took a chance on a pre-order.

To make a long story short, I was constantly emailing their technical support team with problems, including inconsistent connectivity to the Internet to include dropouts of a few hours at night (yes, I checked the app settings to be sure it wasn't set to shut off the Internet at night), sporadic performance and frequent buffering of streaming media. My son even offered the observation that his 4G LTE connection on his smartphone was faster than our wireless connection. The technical support folks were quick to respond and offered numerous suggestions, but after none of their recommended fixes worked, I requested a return label and a refund and I dropped off the return package this morning.

Yesterday, my eero three-pack arrived, and I set it up with minimal difficulty, other than the app's insistence that my 10-number passphrase be reconfigured as a phone number, and having to reenter all my passphrases as (###) ###-####, complete with parentheses, a space, and a dash! Once I figured out that little quirk, everything worked smoothly, the eero devices pulled down and installed the latest update, and the network is very fast and reliable - so far. I've heard no complaints and everything just works, which is all I want my network to do. I've only got a one-day sample set, but given that the Luma network was problematic from the start, I'm quite hopeful about this one.

Any thoughts on why there is such a pronounced difference, at least thus far, in consistency and performance between the two?

 

[L&LD]

Any thoughts on why there is such a pronounced difference, at least thus far, in consistency and performance between the two?

Firmware.

 

[thiggins]

eero has been at it about a year longer than Luma. They said they have been focusing on tuning backhaul bandwidth management vs. adding features like load balancing, parental controls, etc.

eero also has one more 5 GHz radio to work with than Luma.

 

[hmurchison]

I think my days of pre-ordering hardware from unestablished vendors is over. Luma pre-order was make Nov '15 and I haven't heard a peep. Troubled by the performance issues. I think the smart money is on waiting as I'm intrigued by the recent offerings by Netgear and Ubn.

 

[rmiller1959]

I think my days of pre-ordering hardware from unestablished vendors is over. Luma pre-order was make Nov '15 and I haven't heard a peep. Troubled by the performance issues. I think the smart money is on waiting as I'm intrigued by the recent offerings by Netgear and Ubn.

I wouldn't dismiss eero out of hand, however. I've had their solution for nearly a week and, compared to the constant issues I was having with the Luma network, it's running as smooth as glass.

 

[rmiller1959]

eero has been at it about a year longer than Luma. They said they have been focusing on tuning backhaul bandwidth management vs. adding features like load balancing, parental controls, etc.

eero also has one more 5 GHz radio to work with than Luma.

Whatever they're doing, it's working. After nearly one week of use, it's been practically flawless. I'm amazed at how seamless and strong the wireless coverage is, and how much more stable it is than the Luma solution.

 

[Ziggy]

With Amazon investing into Luma there's no way I'd purchase a Luma. I'll consider the other brands in this category.

 

[whsbuss]

I'm interested in the AmpliFi HD - $150 cheaper the Eero

 

[Phasenoise]

I have to admit, I'm very interested in the Amplifi HD as well. It looks like a pretty neat solution for many situations, including mine. Largish house with not quite enough range on the ol R7000 to get every corner.
A clean base + AP satellite system is appealing. I suspect I'll be getting this or the eero, depending upon how I see reviews going.

 

[thiggins]

Luma just sent an email blast. Latest firmware update adds device prioritization, WiFi details screen and ability to prune devices from network view with "forget device".