renfred89
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Just gotten myself a set of Linksys Velop (3-pack) and here i am sharing with you what this product is about.
This post will not be a full review as many others have already done online. Youtube videos are all floating around so you can choose to browse over there for unboxing and set up process.
I'm starting this thread so as to consolidate the issues you have while using this, and also to gather answers for the sake of forum users who is looking at this product. We already have Netgear Orbi thread, now its the time for Linksys Velop. Hopefully someone can create one for TP-Link Deco soon when it reaches our shore.
Just to start the thread with some pictures:
Front view of the box
left view of the box
right view of the box
Now notice that linksys claims there's 100% performance for wifi? I did a read up from SNB, linksys velour is a triband mesh system with 2.4Ghz and x2 5Ghz-es. So what it does is that every node will broadcast 2.4Ghz and one 5Ghz, while another 5Ghz is mainly for backhaul. As such, there is no bandwidth reduction as opposed to singtel wifi mesh and netgear orbi. Netgear Orbi works different, i will explain later.
back view of the box
inside the box
App based setup process. Note that Velop has no WebUI interface, all things must be done through the app, available in App Store and Play Store.
Bottom view of the nodes, having 2 gigabit ethernet ports, power switch, reset button and AC supply.
Experience
I have placed all 3 nodes in the house, covering all areas. The initial set up process was rather time consuming, but it was pretty intuitive. I let my mum go through the set up process alone and she did it, despite being a noob in networking. In the process, you will see pictorial guidance with animation and that once you have done all you need to do at each stage, just tap Next and the app will bring you to next step. The only hurdle she encountered was to choose which type of set up we need to choose;
1) Modem with router and
2) Modem-Router.
For Singapore fibre ISPs, usually is Modem-Router mode. If you choose modem with router, the app will instruct you to remove the router and use Velop as a router instead. So after choosing Modem-Router mode, just connect the Parent Node to the wireless router and it will automatically acquire DHCP from your main router.
So after the initial set up, the app will attempt to upgrade the firmware of your Parent Node first before allowing you to add more nodes into the system. Add of nodes is as simple as the parent node. subsequent child nodes can be added after you completed the setup process too.
The initial feel of the wifi is that the signal coverage is indeed impressive for an internal antenna design. I could receive the same signal strength as my tplink c5400 at my bedroom on 5Ghz. As for the speed wise, it depends on the location as mesh systems will allocate the appropriate band based on RSSI. Otherwise, no difference in real life usage as comparing to using a wireless router, unless you are torrenting something which is speed sensitive.
Roaming between node to node is seamless, but not entirely perfect. Don't expect the node to handover your device from one to another at a flick of a finger. It will take several seconds for your wireless client to recognise a drop in signal strength before the node hands the client over to another stronger node with better signal, so you will see a drop in signal strength before bouncing up after a few seconds. Tested on s7 edge, macbook pro and tab s2.
As my dad is using an oneplus 1, i realise that the time taken for the phone to be handed over to another node sometimes work and sometimes it took a while longer than my other devices, i went back to linksys promoter and he advised the handover mechanism is from the wireless client itself. So i presume older devices might have a longer switching time comparing to newer devices?
So to put a benchmark on the speed you will be getting with a link rate,
866mbps link rate i'm getting about 500mbps+/- download/upload (e.g. macbook pro, s7 edge)
433mbps link rate i'm getting about 200mbps+/- download/upload
144mbps link rate i'm getting about 74mbps+/- download/upload
So any other users already got their velop? Share some ways on how you deploy the nodes leh..
This post will not be a full review as many others have already done online. Youtube videos are all floating around so you can choose to browse over there for unboxing and set up process.
I'm starting this thread so as to consolidate the issues you have while using this, and also to gather answers for the sake of forum users who is looking at this product. We already have Netgear Orbi thread, now its the time for Linksys Velop. Hopefully someone can create one for TP-Link Deco soon when it reaches our shore.
Just to start the thread with some pictures:
Front view of the box
left view of the box
right view of the box
Now notice that linksys claims there's 100% performance for wifi? I did a read up from SNB, linksys velour is a triband mesh system with 2.4Ghz and x2 5Ghz-es. So what it does is that every node will broadcast 2.4Ghz and one 5Ghz, while another 5Ghz is mainly for backhaul. As such, there is no bandwidth reduction as opposed to singtel wifi mesh and netgear orbi. Netgear Orbi works different, i will explain later.
back view of the box
inside the box
App based setup process. Note that Velop has no WebUI interface, all things must be done through the app, available in App Store and Play Store.
Bottom view of the nodes, having 2 gigabit ethernet ports, power switch, reset button and AC supply.
Experience
I have placed all 3 nodes in the house, covering all areas. The initial set up process was rather time consuming, but it was pretty intuitive. I let my mum go through the set up process alone and she did it, despite being a noob in networking. In the process, you will see pictorial guidance with animation and that once you have done all you need to do at each stage, just tap Next and the app will bring you to next step. The only hurdle she encountered was to choose which type of set up we need to choose;
1) Modem with router and
2) Modem-Router.
For Singapore fibre ISPs, usually is Modem-Router mode. If you choose modem with router, the app will instruct you to remove the router and use Velop as a router instead. So after choosing Modem-Router mode, just connect the Parent Node to the wireless router and it will automatically acquire DHCP from your main router.
So after the initial set up, the app will attempt to upgrade the firmware of your Parent Node first before allowing you to add more nodes into the system. Add of nodes is as simple as the parent node. subsequent child nodes can be added after you completed the setup process too.
The initial feel of the wifi is that the signal coverage is indeed impressive for an internal antenna design. I could receive the same signal strength as my tplink c5400 at my bedroom on 5Ghz. As for the speed wise, it depends on the location as mesh systems will allocate the appropriate band based on RSSI. Otherwise, no difference in real life usage as comparing to using a wireless router, unless you are torrenting something which is speed sensitive.
Roaming between node to node is seamless, but not entirely perfect. Don't expect the node to handover your device from one to another at a flick of a finger. It will take several seconds for your wireless client to recognise a drop in signal strength before the node hands the client over to another stronger node with better signal, so you will see a drop in signal strength before bouncing up after a few seconds. Tested on s7 edge, macbook pro and tab s2.
As my dad is using an oneplus 1, i realise that the time taken for the phone to be handed over to another node sometimes work and sometimes it took a while longer than my other devices, i went back to linksys promoter and he advised the handover mechanism is from the wireless client itself. So i presume older devices might have a longer switching time comparing to newer devices?
So to put a benchmark on the speed you will be getting with a link rate,
866mbps link rate i'm getting about 500mbps+/- download/upload (e.g. macbook pro, s7 edge)
433mbps link rate i'm getting about 200mbps+/- download/upload
144mbps link rate i'm getting about 74mbps+/- download/upload
So any other users already got their velop? Share some ways on how you deploy the nodes leh..