The Netgear Orbi AX6000 is too expensive to suggest outright at $699 for a two-pack, but if you only want one of the quickest mesh routers money can buy, look no further.
With full Wi-Fi 6 capability and a second 5GHz band that acts as a dedicated backhaul link for the router and its satellites, the powerful system performed admirably in our tests, reaching close-range maximum speeds of around 900Mbps. That’s one of the fastest rates we’ve ever seen from a mesh network in that test, and it only dropped to 666Mbps at a distance of 75 feet – still faster than the Nest Wifi up close, barely 5 feet away.
Things grew much more remarkable when we took the Orbi AX6000 home to put it through its paces. With a 300Mbps incoming internet connection as a speed limit, the system returned average rates of 289Mbps to Wi-Fi 5 devices and 367Mbps to Wi-Fi 6 devices throughout the entire home, including speeds at the farthest point from the router that was 95 percent as fast as when connecting up close. That’s an excellent result, and it’s been consistent as I’ve continued my controlled mesh router speed tests. No other system I’ve tested has been able to take the top rank in the scoreboard in the two years since I first tested the Orbi AX6000 at my home, not even the newer Orbi AXE11000 system, which adds compatibility for Wi-Fi 6E. (yes, really).
Again, the issue is the price: $699 is simply too much for most people, especially considering that you’ll need at least 500Mbps to see much of a difference between this system and others we like that cost less than half as much.
Eero 6 Plus
