Google Nest Wifi Professional Evaluation: Wi-Fi 6E at a Cheap Value

The Nest Wifi Professional is the most recent mesh router from Google. In step with the corporate’s penchant for simplicity, this mesh system is a breeze to arrange and simple to handle. However the “Professional” moniker appears ill-fitting contemplating the dearth of superior options and settings—it actually simply refers to Google’s adoption of Wi-Fi 6E. The newly opened 6-GHz band affords an expanse of untapped bandwidth, and you do not have to be a professional to take benefit.

After a month with the Nest Wifi Professional, I’m concurrently impressed and underwhelmed. Folks seeking to improve to Wi-Fi 6E shall be sorely tempted by the pricing: Nest Wifi Professional prices $199 for a single router, $299 for 2, or $399 for 3. That’s comparatively inexpensive for a tri-band mesh with 6-GHz help. The Nest Wifi Professional can be easy, straightforward, and dependable, however it feels barebones in comparison with different mesh programs, and speeds are distinctly common.

Preserve It Easy, Foolish

{Photograph}: Google

The shiny, minimalist capsule design appears rather a lot like an enormous Pixel Buds case (the corporate’s wi-fi earbuds), and the routers are available in 4 colours: Snow, Fog, Linen, or Lemongrass. They’re small and unobtrusive sufficient to take a seat on cabinets and window sills and may match with any decor. I examined the three-pack in white (er, Snow).

All three models are equivalent, with two Gigabit Ethernet ports apiece. Every can cowl as much as 2,200 sq. ft and join as much as 100 units. My three-pack got here with a single 6.5-foot Ethernet cable, and organising was so simple as plugging it into my modem and scanning the QR code on the underside of every unit. If you add routers (Google calls them factors), you get a sign of the suitability of your chosen spot. I added one to the lounge behind the home and one other upstairs. I needed to transfer the latter barely earlier than it turned inexperienced and informed me, “Nice connection.”

The Nest Wifi Professional is Google’s first Wi-Fi 6E router, and it’s a tri-band system, so the acquainted 2.4-GHz and 5-GHz bands are joined by the 6-GHz band. As we go up by means of the bands, the potential velocity will increase, however the vary drops, so 6 GHz affords the quickest speeds however the shortest vary. (Our Easy methods to Purchase a Router information goes into extra element.)

The Nest Wifi Professional makes use of the 6-GHz band for backhaul, which is how the routers and factors ship visitors forwards and backwards. As I’ve famous with different Wi-Fi 6E programs, the 6-GHz band is short-range and doesn’t penetrate by means of partitions and different obstacles very nicely, so your routers will work greatest with a line of sight or by means of a single wall or ceiling. To get pleasure from these probably excessive 6-GHz speeds, you want units that help Wi-Fi 6E, and there aren’t many in the meanwhile. Nonetheless, shifting the backhaul onto the 6-GHz band leaves the 5-GHz and a pair of.4-GHz bands free in your units. A wired backhaul, when you can run Ethernet cables across the residence, will present the most effective efficiency. 

Efficiency and protection have been rock strong in my testing. My house is round 1,600 sq. ft, and the Nest Wifi Professional supplies a robust Wi-Fi sign all over the place, together with my yard. Our household of 4 is steadily gaming, video calling, and streaming, with everybody on-line concurrently, and we now have but to expertise any lag, buffering, or glitches in a few weeks of testing. Downloading a 30-GB recreation took quarter-hour.