Ubiquiti vs Orbi

[speedlever]

I cannot seem to make up my mind how I want to reconfigure my house wifi.

-Existing RT-N66U configured as an AP in the living room. I have a cat 5e cable from the office to the LR connected to a Gb switch from which I run a TV, Fire TV, multiple gaming systems, DVR, the AP, etc.
-Existing main router RT-AC56U in the office, about 50-60 ft away from the AP in the living room.

I have ethernet cables running from the office to the LR and from the office to the den, where I plan to deploy another AP.

I recently bought the Orbi RBK53 (3 pk) but haven't had time to set it up yet. I read so much about the Orbi firmware issues that I'm considering returning the Orbi before I even try it. My plan was to put the RBR50 router in the office and use the existing RT-AC56U as a switch to connect my PC, printer, and ethernet cables to the other APs.
Put one RBS50 satellite in the den connected by a cat 6 cable to the office switch. And put another RBS50 satellite in the living room connected by a cat 5e cable from the office to the Gb switch.

Given all the Orbi firmware issues that I've read about, I'm wondering if I might be better off buying 2 or 3 UAP-AC-Lites and continuing to use my existing RT-AC56U as my router but disable wifi on it. But only having 4 LAN ports on the AC56U means I'd likely need to put another Gb switch so I could connect my printer, PC, 2 ethernet cables and an AP for the office. However, I might be able to get by without an AP in the office... which would mean I'd only need 2 UAP-AC-lites.

I would likely set them up as follows:
modem->AC56U router/switch-> (office - off to one side of the house)
AC56U->AP in the den (near the center of the house)
AC56U->Gb switch in the living room (opposite side of house from the office) -> AP
I would place the APs on top of existing furniture/cabinets/mantle. They would not be ceiling or wall mount.

I currently have one SSID for the 2.4 GHz bands and one SSID for the 5 GHz bands. For our 5 GHz clients, I only set them up on the 5 GHz ssid so there's no temptation for them to connect to the 2.4 GHz band and then refuse to move to 5GHz once the signal strength is sufficient, for instance, when we come into the house from outside where the 5 GHz signal is weaker than the 2.4 signal.

The obvious pros for the UAB-AC-lites are:
1) about $150 cheaper ($83 x 3 vs $399 for the RBK53)
2) no power cord issues, just use an ethernet patch cable from the PoE injector to the AP.

Are there any cons to using the UAP-AC-lites vs the Orbi system? The only thing I can thing of might be GUI/set up issues, but having no experience with either system, I have no idea. And I would likely need to add a Gb switch in the office since I only have 4 LAN ports on my AC56U and I need at least 5 open ports if I put an AP in the office.

I suppose I could use the wifi on the AC56U, but would I enjoy configuration advantages by switching off the AC56U wifi and using a UAP-AC-lite in it's place?

In either case, I would have wired backhaul unless I decided to deploy a satellite in the 2nd story. But I really don't think I'd need it as APs in the den and LR are right under upstairs bedrooms. The bonus room is largely storage right now. But an AP in the office would likely cover that since the office sits underneath and to one side of the overhead bonus room.

Here's a rough layout of the house. The dashed lines show the existing ethernet cables on the first floor. There is no ethernet wiring to the 2nd story where bedrooms and the bonus room are located. The downstairs office sits under the bonus room.

 

[thiggins]

If you have Ethernet where you want to place APs, then you are wasting money with Orbi. Use your current router and add APs where you want them.

There are other options besides Ubiquiti. See the AP roundup.

 

[sfx2000]

Orbi's and the UAP's serve different purposes and markets.

Might actually consider just setting up a simple Orbi mesh and see if it works - Netgear has done a fair amount of work on the firmware, and they're getting mature in the features which is good for stability.

Consensus from the forums - either it works or it don't - and most of the time it works.

 

[speedlever]

I set the Orbi up last night and it seemed to be working fine initially. I updated the firmware to the latest version.

This morning I'm having connectivity issues with iOS devices and am having trouble with mulitple Google Home devices. Some will set back up, some won't saying they can't connect. But hey, I have a great signal throughout the house!

Our iOS devices keep getting a page telling us to make sure to connect to the WAN port on the AC56U (currently with DHCP disabled and the wifi radios switched off, being used as a switch).

I'm just about to pull the plug on this Orbi system and return it. Tim, I'm coming to a similar conclusion: it appears the Orbi is a waste of money in my application. Fortunately, I bought it from Costco so the return will be easy.

I like the fact that the Orbi system doesn't depend on the cloud and that I can have wired backhaul. But if I have to nursemaid it to make it work, it doesn't suit my purposes.

I'm going to replace my AC56U that I thought I could use as a switch with a Gb switch and see if that's been causing any issues. If no change, I'll likely take this sucker back to the store.

 

[speedlever]

Son of a gun. As usual, I'm my own worst enemy. After replacing the AC56U with a Gb switch, my Orbi system has been stable, I've been able to configure my Google Home devices, and I've seen no issues with the Orbi system.

Just for my education, can you not disable DHCP and kill the radios, then use a router as a switch? Did I overlook something important or is that simply a bad idea?