At a look
Professional’s Score
Execs
- Straightforward to arrange and use
- Good efficiency for the cash
- Three Gigabit Ethernet ports on every node
Cons
- No possibility to purchase single items at time of assessment
- App nags you to subscribe to HomeShield Professional
Our Verdict
TP-Hyperlink’s newest mesh system combines Wi-Fi 6 and G.hn powerline to offer efficient whole-home protection with respectable speeds for the cash
Worth When Reviewed
$269.99 (2-pack); $299.99 (3-pack)
As we purchase increasingly more cellular and good dwelling units, it turns into fairly clear that the typical Wi-Fi router isn’t as much as the job. The additional away from it you’re, the much less dependable the connection, which may have an effect on the velocity and even whether or not you will get on the web in any respect.
Sadly, fashionable houses aren’t precisely Wi-Fi pleasant. Obstacles comparable to metallic beams, thick partitions and enormous home equipment can weaken or intervene together with your router’s Wi-Fi sign.
The brand new Deco PX50 from TP-Hyperlink tries to beat these obstacles utilizing not solely typical Mesh Wi-Fi, but additionally Powerline know-how. Which means your own home’s mains wiring carries information between every router, rendering these obstacles largely irrelevant.
It means you get a single community that gives wonderful Wi-Fi protection and velocity all through your entire property… and past.
Options & design
For this assessment, TP-Hyperlink despatched the three-pack of the Deco PX50. Within the field you will see that three white items which can be equivalent in measurement (165mm x 105mm), weight (330g), and options.
Usefully they every have 3 Gigabit Ethernet ports, and a cloverleaf-type energy socket – the transformer and powerline tech is all constructed into the items.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
An ethernet cable is offered so you possibly can join one of many Decos to your current modem/router. Any of the three items can be utilized as the primary one, with the opposite two (or extra, when you purchase extras) used because the receivers or ‘nodes’ that are positioned round your own home.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
Setup is kind of easy. There isn’t a person handbook: a fast setup information asks you to start out by downloading the Deco App in your cellular gadget comparable to a smartphone or pill. As soon as put in you merely open the app and observe the step-by-step directions.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
This course of takes just some minutes, and we had our first Deco PX50 linked to the prevailing router and set-up as the primary unit. After that, it’s merely a case of deciding the place the opposite two Deco units must be positioned round the home, plugging them right into a mains socket and once more utilizing the Deco App so as to add one other unit.
You’ll be able to title every so that they’re simpler to establish within the app. Final, it’s good apply to disable Wi-Fi on the outdated router to keep away from interference with the brand new mesh system.
It’s plain to see the Deco PX50 offers a big enchancment in Wi-Fi protection and particularly when there are strong partitions between rooms
On this reviewer’s typical three-bedroom British terraced home, there have been some Wi-Fi blackouts particularly in two of the upstairs bedrooms, that are one ground up and furthest away from the outdated ISP-supplied router.
Efficiency
In an effort to see how a lot of an enchancment the PX50 would carry, we examined Wi-Fi protection with the outdated router, after which, individually the PX50 system. Utilizing the Netspot app, we went across the total home, testing at numerous factors to test sign power.
You’ll be able to see from the warmth maps under how robust the protection is on every ground with the outdated router put in.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
Right here’s the way it seems to be with the PX50 put in.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
It’s plain to see the Deco PX50 offers a big enchancment in Wi-Fi protection and particularly when there are strong partitions between rooms. As you would possibly count on, this was extra obvious on the first-floor: the unique Wi-Fi router carried out surprisingly properly all through the bottom ground regardless of a number of strong concrete partitions.
The place the Deco PX50 actually shines is its means to remove the pesky blackspots upstairs, and since it additionally offered a good Wi-Fi sign within the backyard.
However what concerning the velocity? Nicely, when you’re on typical UK broadband it’s probably this may the bottleneck. In different phrases, the PX50 offers a lot sooner speeds than the 80Mbps it’s possible you’ll be getting out of your ISP.
As long as you don’t have full fibre with 900Mbps obtain speeds, you need to be very proud of the PX50. And it’s additionally good for futureproofing, because the system ought to give you loads of velocity now and in future when your web velocity will increase.
To check velocity, we used Wi-Fi SweetSpots on a 2022 iPadAir and noticed simply over 800Mbps when inside a meter of any of the three Deco units. This implies that the powerline tech does work, however not as marketed – extra on that later)
Speeds dropped to about 550Mbps at 5m away from any node and had one wall between the iPad and node. On the furthest level – 7m (round 21ft) away from the Deco, we nonetheless obtained a really respectable 277Mbps.
Impressively, we might even get 141Mbps on the finish of the backyard, which is about 12m (nearly 40ft) from the closest Deco, with a cavity brick wall in the best way.
These speeds are nowhere close to what you’ll see marketed on the field (2402Mbps with 5GHz and 574 with 2.4GHz) however are nonetheless very acceptable for the worth.
One of many important causes to decide on the PX50 is as a result of it has built-in powerline tech
Regardless of the claims of “AI-Pushed Mesh” and “Seamless roaming”, the PX50 didn’t appear to be any smarter than different mesh system that don’t discuss AI, particularly in terms of handing off.
The method of adjusting over the connection of your telephone, say, from one Deco unit to a different might take a minute or extra. Because of this you could possibly be linked to at least one downstairs, the stroll upstairs however stay linked to the downstairs node for some time with a weaker sign and slower velocity than when linked to the close-by node upstairs.
Plus, sometimes, the one strategy to power a handover was to show the telephone’s Wi-Fi on and off to get it to decide on the Deco unit that was closest. However typically, this wasn’t a giant concern, and not likely noticeable in day-to-day use. It merely means you must take the “AI” speak with a pinch of salt.
G.hn powerline
One of many important causes to decide on the PX50 over, say, the X50, is as a result of it has built-in powerline tech. Because of this though it’s technically solely a dual-band Wi-Fi system, the actual fact it could ship information to the opposite Deco units utilizing your current dwelling electrics means it’s actually a tri-band system. And it use each “PLC” and Wi-Fi to speak.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
TP-Hyperlink claims speeds of as much as 1428Mbps utilizing “subsequent technology” G.hn powerline. It isn’t the primary to make use of it, although: Devolo has been profiting from this sooner powerline know-how for fairly some time now, and claims speeds of just about 1Gbps extra.
And simply as with the theoretical Wi-Fi velocity you see plastered on the field, we noticed a most of 811Mbps and a mean of 780Mbps when near a Deco gadget – round half the marketed velocity.
Since there isn’t a strategy to flip off the powerline backhaul, it wasn’t potential to check the system with and with out it to search out out whether or not it might go sooner (or slower) utilizing Wi-Fi solely.
As ever, your mileage might range. Powerline speeds differ in numerous houses. However as that is solely a six-year-old home, the electrics must be respectable.
Deco app
The Deco app is usually straightforward to make use of and perceive. It’s a good way to test If all Deco items are linked to one another, if there are any issues, and what number of units are utilizing the system.
You’ll be able to create a visitor community for once you need to quickly and safely share your Wi-Fi password with family and friends. And you’ll even block sure units from connecting altogether.
There are additionally additional options comparable to safety, which scans your community for vulnerabilities and any intrusions, and parental controls, the place you possibly can arrange profiles for your loved ones members and set-up age-appropriate internet filtering in addition to bedtime restrictions.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
The Parental Management restrictions could be a bit heavy-handed, stopping our son from accessing his college Google account amongst different issues.
Sadly, to get entry to all of the options, you might want to subscribe to HomeShield Professional which prices of £5.99 per 30 days or £53.99 per 12 months. You do get a free one-month trial that will help you determine, however do notice that you just’ll nonetheless want correct antivirus software program no less than in your Home windows and Android units.
Worth & availability
The three-pack Deco PX50 prices £300, though you’ll discover it cheaper than that from Amazon, the place it was £239.99 on the time of assessment.
TP-Hyperlink additionally affords a 2-pack and you should buy single items so as to add to an current system.
The corporate says a 3-pack is sweet for 6500 sq. ft of protection, lowering to 4500 for a 2-pack and 2500 for a single unit.
Within the US, a 3-pack is $299.99, however once more Amazon sells it for much less: $269.99 once we checked.
Because it’s comparatively new, it may be onerous to search out single items on the market, and even the 2-pack shouldn’t be good worth: the place we might discover it, it was costlier than the 3-pack.
For various techniques, learn our roundup of the most effective mesh Wi-Fi kits.
Verdict
So long as you’re sensible to the advertising and don’t count on the speeds you see on the PX50’s field, it’s an incredible mesh system that ought to work properly in nearly all houses because of its use of powerline.
For the worth, protection and speeds are good, and it’s good to have three Ethernet ports on every node, ought to you have got wired units that want hooking up.
TP-Hyperlink’s app is respectable, too, with the one unfavourable being the nagging to pay for HomeShield Professional which, in our view, isn’t price the price.