I switched to a Wi-Fi 7 mesh router at home, and the faster download speed is so worth it

Tenda BE5100 3-Pack Mesh Wi-Fi System

4 / 5

Very good

 on Google.

There’s nothing more frustrating than sitting on your couch or at your desk and noticing a limited Wi-Fi signal. I don’t know about you, but I’ve been seen with my phone in my outstretched arm, doing something that looks like a weird yoga pose, trying to get a better signal. 

Also: I set up a $4 router reboot timer, and it’s made my internet reliably faster

Back in the day, the solution I’d fan back onto would be to set up a repeater or hook up another Wi-Fi router to spread the signal. Not a great solution because it didn’t allow for a smooth handover between the different routers. I also dabbled with Wi-Fi extenders of all sorts. 

Yeah, they were mostly a waste of money. Even the ones that worked didn’t work all that well. The extenders often made a good internet connection bad, and a mediocre connection terrible.

But there wasn’t much of an alternative because, back then, I didn’t have a Tenda BE5100 3-pack Mesh Wi-Fi System. They’re good systems for sure, damn good, but that’s a lot of money to put down.

Also: I’ve fully converted to adaptive chargers from fast ones and already feel safer

This cost is why I’ve been on the lookout for quality mesh systems that don’t cost the earth. And this is exactly what the BE5100 (also called the ME6 Pro) offers. You get three units, each packed with five internal antennas and five independent high-power FEMs (Front-End Modules), offering super-fast connectivity capable of handling broadband speeds up to 2,000 Mbps and Wi-Fi speeds of 688 Mbps at 2.4 GHz and 4,323 Mbps at 5 GHz. 

And yes, for those who like to be at the cutting edge, this system is Wi-Fi 7 compatible, so you’re future-proofed. For those with many devices at home, such as modern households that have embraced the Internet of Things, any network you build using the BE5100 can handle over 160 devices.

One drawback with many mesh systems is that they can be complicated to set up, and it’s not long before they start asking you about things like IP addresses. While a small amount of setup is required with the BE5100, the Tenda app (iOS) guides you through the process, making it as easy as possible. And if you mess up, you can always start again. 

Also: Traditional Wi-Fi router vs. mesh: How to decide between the 2 popular networking options

Once you set up one unit as your main unit, meshing the others is simply a case of pressing the mesh button for a few seconds and using the app to add the satellite to the network.

Simple. 

NFC and diagnostics

Another cool little feature of this system is that the kit comes with a tiny self-adhesive NFC tag. Once you’ve set up a network, you can use the Tenda app to write the network details to the tag, making it easy for others to connect to the network. I don’t remember another router app having this feature.