NETGEAR Orbi 972 Black

Very high build quality

Bought as a second-hand item. New at half price!

Installing the router and putting it in AP mode was a piece of cake,

but adding the satellite was another story.

probably the reason why the product was returned)

The app failed to find the satellite multiple times (with devices side-by-side); after multiple synchronizations, the MAC address was indeed stored in the router. After that, I reset the satellite, and after synchronizing a few more times, a firmware update presented itself (a blessing in disguise when I had to leave for a moment and could only continue the installation later) which turned out to be the solution. The notifications in the app were sometimes quite confusing and not always logical.

The quick installation guide also says nothing about updating the firmware first.

After placing the satellite on the upper floor, the WiFi6 backhaul initially did not work. After placing the satellite on the floor, the 6G backhaul did work. (Sat and Router are 5m apart with a reinforced concrete floor in between) Long story short, if you are planning to purchase this MESH, be aware that you need to provide a wired backhaul or the inferior solution of Powerlines.

However, I must say that before installing the Sat, I was still getting 30% signal strength from the Router, and it was still able to push my download speed upstairs at 80%.

Ultimately, the system works well. It has been running for a few days now and is stable without a single WiFi or backhaul outage. After a lot of trying/testing and fine-tuning, I have a MESH WiFi 7 BEAST in my home for a bargain price!

The Orbi app also works in AP mode, which is different from what was stated.

My conclusion: Good hardware, but for this (original) price range, I expect a much simpler and clearer installation and better WiFi backhaul. After the necessary problems, I am ultimately satisfied with the result. With sincere thanks to the buyer who returned the product.