Question Powerline WiFi 6 versus traditional WiFi 6E extender ?

[puffo25]

Hello. I own a large house, around 250 square meters built around 1968. Walls are not too thick...
Currently I have a mix internet cable system with copper (around 120mb/sec) and my local operator will provide me a high speed 1GB/sec FTTP fiber in mid January 2024. My current router is wifi-6 already capable to reach over 1GB/sec (ready for FTTP).

So far I have used 3 tp-link Deco X90 wifi 6 mesh triband AX6600 (1 connected via ethernet to the main router) and 2 extenders, with decent stability and performance. However sometimes connection was unstable in certain rooms and although walls not too think, in some rooms speed and signal strength was poor (dropping from 120mb/sec to less than 50mb/sec)...

As consequence I have decided to switch this week to the tp-link powerline/wifi-6 Deco mesh PX50 (I got 3 items: I connected via Ethernet to the main router and 2 extenders placed in 2 rooms). I use of course the same electrical circuit.

Some computer are now connected with the ethernet cable to the power line, other via wifi (like mobile phones and portable computers).
So far the connection looks stable and fast around the entire house (more or less I get constant speed of 100mb/sec all over the rooms).

However I read that with games, video and heavy consuming applications, movies and multimedia devices, power line tend to suffer from some delay and lags. I know technology is evolving and probably those latest power line with a mesh network and wifi-6 provide better preferences than older?.... But this is just my consideration.

I am wondering, for example, if I switch (again) to a faster network, based on WIFI 6E will provide faster speed in my home? Also latest WIFI 6E devices have probably more features and option s than power lines (which looks a bit obsolete technology with only few vendors selling it and limited to WIFI 6 only). With WIFI 6E I might have no issues with games and heavy consuming multimedia apps also (I just might have to buy more satellite / extenders in order to get a strong signal all over the house), but WIFI 6E should have also a stronger signal compared to WIFI 6 so this should balance the fact that I will not use power line.

Do you think this last idea (leave power line for a WIFI 6E) is truly good and provided indeed concrete advantages OR I am just too paranoid and I should keep my existing powerline system?

Thanks in advance for your consideration.

 

[bill001g]

This is where you have to be very careful where you read stuff. So much wrong information on the internet.

Powerline should always be better than wifi for most things. The problem with wifi is it is subject to random interference both inside and outside your house. The main issue most people see on this forum is lag in games. You might also see distortions if you run live video conferring. Powerline is almost immune to interference so it is a much better choice for online games. Even if you were to only get 100mbps that should be more than enough for most activities. Things like netflix is about 30mbps. Games are less than 1mbps and most web surfing is around that also. It is not likely you come anywhere near 100mbps even with multiple people using it at the same time.

The only reason you need large bandwidth is to reduce the download time of large files. It really depends on how many times during a month you do that. This is the question of how many dollars extra do you spend each month to get say 1gbit internet and how many minutes does it save you. How many dollars/minute is it worth to you.
Most people do not "need" anything over 100mbps even for a family with multiple devices.

Only you can decide how much money you want to spend to get a bigger speedtest number.

If you have coax cables in the remote rooms you can look at MoCA technology. It can run full 1gbit speeds.

It appears powerline networks have reached their technical limitations. Even when they first came out the so called av500 models used to have 100mbps ethernet ports on them which showed the manufactures knew they couldn't really do 500mbps. The newer units that claim 1000 or 2000 number get maybe 130-150 if you are lucky. This is still about the common 130mbps you see on wifi5 and even wifi6 so have faster wifi just like having a gigabit ethernet is being limited by the powerline tech. I suspect we will see wifi6e just because the chips for wifi6 and wifi6e are about the same cost.

Wifi6e though is not strong and it does not go farther than other wifi. In some ways the signal might go less distance because the 6ghz bands are more easily blocked by walls etc.

wifi6 and wifi6e are pretty much the same. They both use qam1024 (which really only works in the same room as the router) and they both can use 160mhz radio bands. The 160mhz radio band is the key thing that lets it run faster. The problem is there is not really 160mhz radio band in the 5ghz, there are all kinds of rules about radio interference with thing like weather radar. There tends to be 1 160mhz block everyone attempts to use so you and your neighbors stomp all over each other.

Because of this most people did not see much improvement when wifi6 came out. Wifi6e uses 6ghz where there is currently lots of radio bandwidth. This means you have a better chance to get a 160mhz radio block to yourself. But 6ghz is absorbed more easily by the walls and even the moisture in the air so it does not go as far.

Technically wifi6e is now "obsolete". Wifi7 is going to be finalized in early 2024. But it is mostly marketing for people who like bigger numbers. Wifi7 routers use even more bandwidth and will do stupid stuff like attempt to combine 2.4,5 and 6ghz radio bandwidth for even more speed. It is the main reason we have a issue today, one person is attempting to use all the radio bandwidth and everyone just stomps on each other and everyone gets poor results.

You have to really look at what things are used for. Wifi is mostly used for portable devices. None of these devices have a need to download 100gbyte game files. They don't actually "need" the bandwidth to watch tiktoc or netflix or send text message to all their friends. Most devices that truly need more bandwidth tend to be desktops and since those are easily moved you are better off looking at some kind of wire connection rather than wifi anyway.

People just think a bigger speedtest number means something. It does not make their web pages run faster or youtube play better. Years ago when you only got 10mbps on wifi it might have made a difference.

 

[JeffreyP55]

6 is older and slower maybe 4 Gbps 6E three channel is very fast but limited by distance. I have it but don't need it. I leave the wideband switch on my S23 off. Gamers can use it. I am not one of them.

 

[puffo25]

@bill001g, I appreciate very much your feedback. In essence I should be happy and stay safe (meaning, getting the best in terms of stability, performance and speed) with my current tp-link PX50 powerline WIFI 6 mesh (and eventually connect my powerline with an ethernet cable when possible), and do NOT be fool by the latest WIFI 6E solutions, correct?

 

[bill001g]

In general if you are going to buy a wifi device you might as well get wifi6e. The costs seem all about the same. I have actually seen some m.2 wifi6e cards selling less than wifi6.
If you are just wanting to "upgrade" then it takes a lot more cost benefit analyses.

The marketing guys just want to confuse....then again they are the ones that put "new and improved" on a bag of chips when all they did was reduce the amount in the bag and kept the bag the same size.

 

[puffo25]

@@bill001g, as said before, I have just returned to amazon a tp-link Deco X90 wifi 6 mesh triband AX6600 and I have purchased last week the powerline based /wifi-6 Deco mesh PX50. I am satisfied by the speed and signal strength across my house so far.

1. You said that 6E vs 6 does not necessarily means a stronger wifi signal across walls.
2. And you also said that lag and delay on powerline is NOT always the case (especially if I have a good electrical wire system in place in the house).

So in conclusion, based also on your good feedback, there is no reason to switch to a NON powerline WIFI 6E solution?
Correct?

 

[bill001g]

correct.

If you were buying a brand new pc you would want wifi6e but you would not upgrade a pc wifi card.