Wi-Fi Mesh: How It Works and Improves Coverage

Improving wireless network connections

Not so long ago, telecommuting became the norm in a large number of homes in our country. This was a real challenge for the employees of thousands of companies, who were forced to improve the technology they had at home, with solutions such as Wi-Fi Mesh. To this day, this modality is still maintained in many companies, with employees who are not convinced to return to the office. Other companies have made the leap to a new methodology called hybrid work.

Be that as it may, this is just one example of the need for have good internet coverage at home. But he is not the only one. We can talk about streaming videos, video conferences with friends and online games. All of these activities require stable network connectivity, something that Wi-Fi Mesh technology promises.

Still, you may be wondering How does a Wi-Fi Mesh system work?. Or maybe you don’t know very well which devices are compatible with a system with these characteristics. No problem! Here we solve all your doubts regarding the Mesh Wi-Fi. Discover everything this technology can do for you.

How Mesh Wi-Fi Works

A Wi-Fi mesh network, also known in Spanish as a wireless mesh network, is an infrastructure whose main objective is to improve connectivity within large spaces, even when there are various obstacles in them. Thus, it seeks to solve the housing coverage problems of several floors or with a very large extension. As you can imagine, this is a more effective system than rudimentary solutions such as placing aluminum foil on the router antennas. Now, how exactly does it work?

A wireless mesh network or Wi-Fi Mesh is made up of the following elements:

• Router. This device is responsible for providing an Internet connection, routing traffic to the outside. In a Mesh network, the router can be the one provided by the operator or, on the contrary, it can be one of the network nodes.
• Base station. It is the main node of the mesh network. It connects to the Internet provider’s router and acts as a gateway to the network. As we have mentioned in the previous point, a station could well work with a router. In that case, the company’s should be discarded.
• nodes. They are satellite devices that must be strategically placed throughout the space to be covered.

So far you probably think that we are talking about something similar to network repeaters. However, there are notable differences between a replay system and a mesh network. Here are the most relevant:

• Communication with base station. The repeaters receive data from the main node, but in Mesh networks all the satellites communicate with each other. This, in a virtual way, generates a mesh throughout the space to be covered.
• traffic management. A signal repetition system is much more basic than a mesh system. In the latter, the devices that connect to the network always do so using the most convenient node. During this selection process, variables such as the distance between each of the satellites, the strength of the signal and the state in which they are found are used.
• fall protection. Losing the signal in a Wi-Fi Mesh is more difficult, compared to a repeater-based infrastructure. Why? If one of the nodes stops working for some reason, the rest continue to offer a signal without problems, being enough for the user to continue accessing the Internet. Instead, repeaters connected to other repeaters rely on intermediaries to keep the network stable. If one falls, the rest also.
• device management. Mesh networks act like a single Wi-Fi network. As a consequence, if one of the satellites stops, the connection continues with the nearest node.

To finish, we attach an image designed by Linksys so that you have no doubts regarding the operation of Mesh networks.

In the diagram above, you can see how all nodes interconnect with each othergenerating a virtual connectivity mesh that distributes the wireless signal throughout all the rooms of a house.

Compatible routers and devices

In the market you will find a immense variety of models compatible with this technology. In fact, at Geeknetic we have already told you about various models that can help you boost the signal of your wireless network.

Take the ASUS Zen Wifi ET8 set as an example, which comes with compatibility for Wi-Fi 6E and 6MHz band, perfect while we are still waiting for Wi-Fi 7. Something similar happens with the Nighthawk Mesh capable of reaching 1200 mbps in the frequency 5GHz (we already showed you how to make Windows always choose this band). Another recommended model is the Eero 6 Pro, a manufacturer dependent on Amazon. In this case, an added bonus is that they offer some compatibility with Alexa home automation. Finally, you cannot miss the ASUS router, the ROG Rapture GT-AX6000, which reaches Wi-Fi speeds of up to 6000 Mbps. In this case, although it is a router, it has AiMesh compatibility.

What is clear is that, regardless of the model you choose, all these devices and the associated technology, that is, Wi-Fi Mesh, will help you improve Wi-Fi coverage.

Mesh Technology Boosts the Performance of Wi-Fi Networks

We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did discovering how Wi-Fi Mesh works. In the same way, surely the clarifications on compatibility have been timely and have allowed you to clear your doubts in this regard. Now we only have to answer the final question: is it worth getting a Wi-Fi Mesh device? Yes, in circumstances such as the following:

• When the router is far away. Due to the characteristics of some homes, it is not possible to place the router near the main devices, such as the television or the computer.
• If you want to improve the speed of your router. Sometimes it is not even necessary to buy more than one node. Buying one and using it as a Wi-Fi repeater significantly improves performance compared to that offered by carrier routers.
• Your house or office is very big. It is the most frequent use. Mesh networks distribute the signal in large spaces. Check the power of each node and acquire as many as necessary so that Wi-Fi reaches everywhere.

There is no doubt that this is an ideal technology for boost the performance of Wi-Fi networks in cases in which, with a single issuer or with the operator’s router, the necessary results are not achieved. If you finally decide to install a Wi-Fi Mesh, don’t forget to check its performance with our speed test.

End of Article. Tell us something in the Comments!