The manufacturer NETGEAR has presented its new top-of-the-range Wi-Fi Mesh system, and the first with the new standard Wi-Fi 7 to provide us with the best possible wireless performance. The new model is the NETGEAR Orbi 970, a high-performance device both wirelessly and wired, however, taking into account the price of this model, we believe that it will have very few buyers since it has a price really prohibitive, becoming the most expensive equipment in the world right now. Do you want to know all the features of this new WiFi Mesh system?
Wi-Fi Mesh systems are the solution to wireless coverage problems in our home. Depending on what our house is like and our speed needs, we can opt for many different models. In the case of the NETGEAR Orbi 970, we are talking about the fastest, but also most expensive, device in the world, only suitable for very large multi-story homes that want to achieve the maximum possible performance in any circumstance.
Main features
The most notable thing about the NETGEAR Orbi 970 is that it has top-of-the-range hardware, it is the most powerful that exists right now in routers and WiFi Mesh systems, therefore, performance in all aspects is guaranteed. The main processor is a Quad-Core at 2.2GHz speed, it has 2GB of RAM and a total of 4GB of Flash memory to store both the firmware and the different internal non-volatile files.
Wireless
The main wireless features of this equipment is that it is Simultaneous quad-band with Wi-Fi 7 and class BE27000. In the 2.4GHz band we can get one speed up to 1148Mbps, thanks to its four internal antennas in MU-MIMO 4T4R configuration and the Wi-Fi 6 standard (according to the technical characteristics, in this frequency band we do not have Wi-Fi 7). In the first 5GHz band (low channels) we can get one speed up to 5765Mbpsthanks to its four internal antennas in MU-MIMO configuration in 4T4R configuration, the 160MHz channel width it supports and also the Wi-Fi 7 standard. second 5GHz band (high channels) we can get one speed up to 8647Mbps, thanks to its four internal antennas in MU-MIMO configuration in 4T4R configuration, the 240MHz channel width it supports and the Wi-Fi 7 standard, this frequency band is the one used as backhaul between the different nodes. Finally, we have a 6GHz frequency band with a speed up to 11530Mbpsthanks to its four internal antennas in MU-MIMO 4T4R configuration, 320MHz channel width and the new Wi-Fi 7 standard.
This Wi-Fi Mesh system has all the technologies of the Wi-Fi 7 standard, such as OFDMA, MU-MIMO, Beamforming and also MLO (Multi-link Operation) and Multi-RU. In this way, we will have the maximum possible performance at a wireless level. Of course, the firmware supports WPA3-Personal to provide the best possible security in all frequency bands.
Wired
In order to get the most out of wireless performance, it is essential to have a really fast wired network, with the aim of not having any type of bottleneck. Being a WiFi Mesh system, we have different ports on the main router compared to the satellites, below is a summary of all the ports on both the router and the satellites:
- Router:
- One 10G Multigigabit port for the Internet WAN. The firmware supports VLANs on the Internet WAN and also VLANs per port to provide IPTV services.
- One 10G Multigigabit port for the LAN.
- Four 2.5G Multigigabit ports for the LAN.
- Satellites:
- One 10G Multigigabit port for the LAN.
- Two 2.5G Multigigabit ports for the LAN.
A very important detail is that we have the possibility of enabling Ethernet Backhaul to interconnect the nodes by cable instead of by Wi-Fi, this is perfect if you have wired rooms in your house, because in this way we will get the best speed wireless and wired.
Firmware and price
The firmware of this NETGEAR WiFi Mesh system has the same configuration options and possibilities as the rest of Orbi equipment. We have an application for smartphones that will allow us to install the system from scratch, and also perform local administration. Of course, if we enter the router via the web we will have access to each and every one of the configuration options. In this equipment we have the main options such as creating a WiFi network for guests, but we also have the possibility of creating an additional WiFi network designed specifically for the IoT (Internet of Things), perfect for connecting all home automation devices. Of course, this model will allow us to configure the WPA3 protocol on the main network, we have at our disposal all the usual LAN and WAN options in detail, and we also have services such as VPN servers to remotely access our home.
The price of this Wi-Fi Mesh system depends on the number of satellites, below are the prices:
- Pack of 2 (Router and satellite): 1700 euros.
- Pack of 3 (Router and two satellites): 2300 euros.
- Satellite to expand coverage: 900 euros.
As you can see, the prices are very prohibitive, although we must take into account the novelty factor, that the chipsets with Wi-Fi 7 are much more expensive, and that it is NETGEAR’s top-of-the-range model.
