Verdict
Extremely quick, notably with Wi-Fi 7 units, the Eero Max 7 exhibits us what the following era of Wi-Fi is able to. Easy to arrange and use, and with twin 10 Gigabit Ethernet ports (alongside two 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet ports), this router is a high-end beast, with a worth to match.
Professionals
- Extraordinarily quick
- Straightforward to make use of
- A number of high-speed Ethernet ports
Cons
- Costly
- No net interface
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Wi-Fi 7Runs Wi-Fi 7, delivering as much as 4.3Gbit/s, it is a super-fast mesh system. -
Ethernet portsTwo 10 Gigabit Ethernet and two 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet ports per satellite tv for pc.
Introduction
The primary Wi-Fi 7 mesh system that I’ve reviewed, the Eero Max 7 is extremely quick underneath the best circumstances and totally prepared for the way forward for house networking.
Its excessive worth and a comparatively primary set of controls could also be points too far for some. I’ve examined Eero Max 7, so listed below are my ideas.
Design and options
- Twin 10 Gigabit Ethernet ports
- Bigger than earlier Eero units
- Backwards suitable however with caveats
Earlier Eero units that I’ve reviewed, such because the Eero Professional 6E, have been comparatively small, and designed to tuck out of the way in which. The Eero Max 7 is totally different. Every satellite tv for pc is way bigger (222 x 184 x 90mm), which places them nearer in measurement to an Orbi system, such because the Orbi RBKE963.
Not solely is the Eero Max 7 bigger, but it surely’s much more costly than its predecessors: £599.99/$599.99 for one, £1149.99/$1149.99 for 2 and £1699.99/$1699.99 for 3. That’s a completely staggering sum of money for a Wi-Fi system, notably when the earlier Professional 6E prices much less for a three-pack than a single Eero Max 7.
Why so costly, you may ask? It’s all right down to the {hardware} inside, because the Eero Max 7 is full of the most recent know-how. If I take the {hardware} in first, every satellite tv for pc has two 10 Gigabit Ethernet ports and two 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet ports. That’s sufficient to deal with the quickest web speeds obtainable at the moment and for some appreciable time into the long run. And there are sufficient spare ports to offer the idea of a high-speed inner community.
The opposite large distinction is that there’s Wi-Fi 7 in-built, which delivers speeds of as much as 4.3Gbit/s wirelessly, which is a way forward of the Eero Professional 6E, which had speeds of as much as 1.6Gbit/s.
Wi-Fi 7 is an enormous enchancment over Wi-Fi 6, providing throughputs of as much as 46Gbit/s. A giant change is that it helps Multi-Hyperlink Operation (MLO), the place a shopper can use a number of hyperlinks, working on totally different frequencies, on the similar time to enhance speeds. For instance, a laptop computer might stream information utilizing a mixture of the 5GHz and 6GHz bands on the similar time; with Wi-Fi 6E and beneath, units might use one community at a time.
As well as, Wi-Fi 7 and the Eero Max 7 assist 320MHz channel widths, double the 160MHz channels on the earlier era. With 2.4GHz (2×2), 5GHz (4×4) and 6GHz (4×4) networks obtainable on the Eero Max 7, there’s a complete of 10 streams obtainable, every probably working at increased speeds than on the outdated fashions.
There’s nonetheless no devoted community for communication between satellites, so the wi-fi backhaul between units is taken out of the obtainable bandwidth. Nevertheless, you should use a wired backhaul, utilizing a chunky 10 Gigabit Ethernet port, if you happen to actually need to max out the connection between units.
The setup of the Eero Max 7 is by way of the Eero app. Should you’ve obtained an present Eero system, you possibly can technically combine the Max 7 into your present setup, and it’s backwards suitable with all present satellites. Do you have to combine and match? In all probability not.
Mixing with an older era limits what the Eero Max 7 is able to, and disables some modes, resembling 320MHz channel widths. You’d see a number of the advantages however not all of them, so consider this technique as a alternative for what you’ve obtained, moderately than an add-on.
I discover the Eero app a mixture of the good and the restricted. At its greatest, the app makes controlling your community simple, each domestically and remotely. I like the flexibility to create profiles and fix units to them, setting schedules for when every profile could be on-line.
Improve to the Eero Safe+ subscription (£99.99/$99.99 a 12 months), and also you get detailed parental controls, ad-blocking, a three-device version of Malwarebytes, and five-user variations of 1Password and Encrypt.me VPN. And, you get the Eero Web Backup, the place your Eero system can be part of a close-by Wi-Fi community ought to your web connection go down. That might be a neighbour that’s keen to mortgage you their connection or a hotspot gadget.
Join your Amazon account, and you should use the Sensible House Hub (Zigbee and Thread) to attach units on to Alexa. There’s additionally voice management, though the mixing is barely restricted and I might pause a profile, however not flip the visitor community on or off. I couldn’t pause particular person units, both; this selection is just obtainable within the US.
In any other case, there’s little or no that you are able to do, as there’s no net interface and an absence of superior options, resembling handbook choices to vary the wi-fi channels in use.
Efficiency
- Scarily quick
- Good vary
- Improves Wi-Fi 6 units
I began by integrating the Eero Max 7 with my present Eero Professional 6E system to see what would occur. It wasn’t that spectacular. Limiting the Max 7 to 80Hz channel widths, efficiency was about the identical as with a bog-standard Wi-Fi 6 system.
Setting the Eero Max 7 up as a brand-new gadget sorted issues out. Right here, it ran at 160MHz on the 5GHz band and 320MHz on the 6GHz band. I used a Xiaomi 13T Professional for testing, as this telephone has built-in Wi-Fi 7 (supporting 2.4GHz, 5GHz and 6GHz). I then used a desktop PC as an OpenSpeedTest server, wired right into a 10Gbit/s Ethernet port.
At shut vary, I noticed a mean of 1198.5Mbit/s, which is comfortably the quickest throughput I’ve seen from a wi-fi gadget. Switching to an iPhone 13 Professional (Wi-Fi 6), and throughputs have been nonetheless a formidable 800.1Mbit/s.
I’ve a Wi-Fi 6E desktop laptop, which I linked at 6GHz. Right here, I managed a throughput of 1278.3Mbit/s, which is the quickest I’ve seen from a 6GHz connection.
Transferring to the primary ground, my Wi-Fi 7 gadget managed throughputs of 1316.95Mbit/s, whereas my Wi-Fi 6 gadget managed 525.90Mbit/s. On my second ground, efficiency was unimaginable: 1127.9Mbit/s from Wi-Fi 7 and a nonetheless spectacular 439.15Mbit/s from Wi-Fi 6.
General, that is the quickest mesh system that I’ve ever examined, and it even improved on the Wi-Fi 6 efficiency of the Eero Professional 6E.
Newest offers
Do you have to purchase it?
You need one of the best Wi-Fi speeds at the moment
If you would like a future-proof mesh system that delivers the quickest Wi-Fi speeds, the Eero Max 7 is difficult to beat.
You’ve got much less elaborate wants
Should you simply need a quick, dependable mesh community for at the moment, there are many cheaper alternate options. Try our Finest Router information for extra choices.
Last Ideas
The Eero Max 7 isn’t essentially a product for at the moment, extra one which bullet-proofs your community for tomorrow, boosting bandwidth and vary, whereas guaranteeing it might deal with the quickest web speeds going.
Its excessive worth might be a little bit exhausting to abdomen for most individuals, however if you happen to’ve already obtained a Wi-Fi 7 gadget and wish the most recent know-how, this mesh system actually delivers on its guarantees. Should you’ve decrease necessities, take a look at our information to one of the best routers.
How we take a look at
In contrast to different websites, we take a look at each wi-fi router we overview totally over an prolonged time frame. We use business normal exams to check options correctly. We’ll at all times inform you what we discover. We by no means, ever, settle for cash to overview a product.
Discover out extra about how we take a look at in our ethics coverage.
Used as our major wi-fi router for the overview interval
We throughput take a look at all wi-fi units utilizing the identical tools in the identical places in order that we’ve correct comparisons
FAQs
Sure, you possibly can combine and match, though doing so might hamper the Eero Max 7’s high speeds.
No, however you’ll solely see the quickest speeds if you happen to use Wi-Fi 7 units.
