PoE Access Point advise

[mlody_me]

We currently live in 2200 sq ft 3-floory townhome. Even though it is a newer construction (6-7 years old), it is not prewired for ethernet in each room (what a shame btw).

We have Asus RT-AC68U strategically located on the 2nd-floor living room. The coverage is OK for the most parts; however, it gets sketchy on the 3rd floor in the corners or the garage or outside the front doors.

I do not think a more expensive router like RT-AC5300 or RT-AC3200 would offer me that much better and reliable coverage, so I am looking for two PoE Access Points to install - one in my lower level and the other on the top floor so that way I have strong wifi on each floor and outside.

I happen to have two Cat-5 cables ran, so I could make that happen; however, I am unsure of what would be the best Access Points for my needs? I need something that is cost effective, could be configured from MAC preferably and is aesthetically pleasing (one access point would be mounted on the ceiling in the middle of the hallway, the other one on a wall towards the ceiling).

Can someone recommend reliable PoE APs for my needs?

Thank you

 

[MichaelCG]

Ubiquiti Unifi UAP line is my vote...generally cost effective, reliable, and aesthetically neutral. Depending on requirements and budget, you can look at the UAP-AC-LITE, UAP-AC-LR, or the UAP-AC-PRO. There are others out there besides the Ubiquiti line...that just happens to be what I run and am familiar with.

 

[mlody_me]

Ubiquiti Unifi UAP line is my vote...generally cost effective, reliable, and aesthetically neutral. Depending on requirements and budget, you can look at the UAP-AC-LITE, UAP-AC-LR, or the UAP-AC-PRO. There are others out there besides the Ubiquiti line...that just happens to be what I run and am familiar with.

Wow, I never heard of them, but they look like great products. It looks like UAP-AC-PRO is something I would want to buy, but also UniFi Ac In-Wall might do it in one of my other locations.

Also, what about Aplifi HD mesh network? Is that as good as adding additional AP, or should I stay away from that?

 

[thiggins]

The Amplifi mesh points have no Ethernet port.
If you want Ubiquiti mesh, try https://unifi-mesh.ubnt.com

 

[Trip]

So single-location consumer AP is ruled out. Got it.

Before getting into specific APs, are the Cat5/Cat6 runs usable, and/or do you have the ability to do more? That would be the best backhaul scenario. Otherwise, MoCa if you've got coax (use Actiontec ECB6200 adapters), or powerline if possble (I would suggest Broadcom-based AV2 adapters... Extollo LANSocket 1500, etc).

Regarding APs, whole-house wifi consumer stuff can be decent. I've done some Eero and Orbi for a few clients, both OK when run in bridge mode, using other solutions for routing/switching. UBNT Unifi is pretty good, sometimes a bit buggy depending on the features used. Lack of an embedded controller in the APs means CloudKey is usually desirable for SOHO setups where continuous management is of interest (and servers are pretty much never present).

I know I'll be yelled at for the following suggestions as being overkill and too expensive, but if you're a homeowner whose budget is big enough and you want someone to "just handle it", I'd just go Ruckus Unleashed or Aruba Instant. Just works, period. But we're talking a fair bit more cost in parts, and then labor to get it setup properly. For noisy or structurally-challenged environments, Ruckus especially, their radios have no equal.

Just my 2C.

 

[pege63]

Look at a Ubiquiti EdgeRouter (low price) + Ubiquiti Unifi AC AP solution (LITE, PRO or LR).
It get you more configurations options on the router and the whole network