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Amplifi Alien Wi-Fi 6 Router

amplifi.com

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Re: Amplifi Alien Wi-Fi 6 Router

#11

Post by gouggoug »

cmer wrote: post #5

Ok I'll sound like such an amateur, but that's one nice router. Probably the nicest one I've ever seen. I hope it's a commercial success. Unifi/Amplifi makes good hardware.

Since you mention Unify,

I've come to absolutely despise the Unifi (from Ubiquity) wifi routers and avoids them at all cost, here's why:

In order to set them up, you need to download a terribly confusing software (the "Unify controller") that has never worked well on my mac os machines.

Said software then needs to "adopt" the wifi routers you want to configure. The configuration is then saved onto your computer (as opposed to "applied" to the wifi router).

This means, you can not easily manage your access points from any computer. You need to set up a permanent machine to host the configuration, or, you need to somehow move the configuration from computer to computer.

To add insult to injury, if like me you happen to loose the configuration files, "re-adopting" the access point will force you to take your router offline, which is less than amazing for an enterprise product that an entire office depends on to get work done.

Once you've gone through the hoops of download, installing, debugging the proprietary software, you have to deal with its utterly confusing UI.

Re: Amplifi Alien Wi-Fi 6 Router

#12

Post by xnyan »

LeoPanthera wrote: post #10
noodlesUK wrote: post #8

Does this mean that the unifi line is getting wifi 6 some time soon? I can’t really see why anyone who wants such a router would use amplifi now things like the Unifi dream machine exist (which are fantastic).

The Unifi machines don't pass the "mom" test. I would never give something that has anything like the Unifi management UI to my parents.

Out of curiosity, what network administraton tasks does your mom do?

Re: Amplifi Alien Wi-Fi 6 Router

#13

Post by zamadatix »

gouggoug wrote: post #11
cmer wrote: post #5

Ok I'll sound like such an amateur, but that's one nice router. Probably the nicest one I've ever seen. I hope it's a commercial success. Unifi/Amplifi makes good hardware.

Since you mention Unify, I've come to absolutely despise the Unifi (from Ubiquity) wifi routers and avoids them at all cost, here's why: In order to set them up, you need to download a terribly confusing software (the "Unify controller") that has never worked well on my mac os machines. Said software then needs to "adopt" the wifi routers you want to configure. The configuration is then saved onto your computer (as o…

I think unifi is meant to be managed via cloud/cloud key. They also have the dream machine which is an all in one for smaller deployments.

Re: Amplifi Alien Wi-Fi 6 Router

#14

Post by AdrianB1 »

What is the use of the display on a Wi-Fi router? I did not touch mine since I have installed it and the next time I will touch it will be when I will replace it. It is as fire and forget as possible.

Re: Amplifi Alien Wi-Fi 6 Router

#15

Post by gouggoug »

zamadatix wrote: post #13
gouggoug wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Since you mention Unify, I've come to absolutely despise the Unifi (from Ubiquity) wifi routers and avoids them at all cost, here's why: In order to set them up, you need to download a terribly confusing software (the "Unify controller") that has never worked well on my mac os machines. Said software then needs to "adopt" the wifi routers you want to configure. The configuration is then saved onto your computer (as o…

I think unifi is meant to be managed via cloud/cloud key. They also have the dream machine which is an all in one for smaller deployments.

A few years back, they did not offer the cloud solution and only offered that "controller" software. I haven't tried their cloud solution, but it's in my opinion not ideal to depend on a cloud solution to configure my internet access.

Re: Amplifi Alien Wi-Fi 6 Router

#16

Post by LeoPanthera »

xnyan wrote: post #12
LeoPanthera wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The Unifi machines don't pass the "mom" test. I would never give something that has anything like the Unifi management UI to my parents.

Out of curiosity, what network administraton tasks does your mom do?

None and this is exactly the point. If it has anything much more than "on" and "off" then it's not going to be accepted.

Re: Amplifi Alien Wi-Fi 6 Router

#17

Post by walrus01 »

I use ubiquiti stuff but I absolutely don't want to combine the functions of router and wifi. There is value in having the two things separated. I can make changes on the router without rebooting the APs, and vice versa. Or I can add additional APs hanging off the small managed Mikrotik switch that the router's LAN interface is connected to.

For up to about a 800 Mbps residential internet connection, the NAT and routing abilities of a $49 Edgerouter-X (model ER-X) are more than sufficient. If you have true symmetric gigabit service you'll probably be looking at one of the slightly larger edgerouter models. It runs an OS that is derived from Vyatta, you can ssh into it, it's a little embedded debian linux box inside.

The $79 Unifi AP AC Lite (802.11ac, dual band, 2x2 MIMO) is sufficient for my purposes. If I really wanted 3x3 and ac wave2 I suppose I could buy some $199 APs. But I really don't see the need just yet.

This thing looks like a slick consumer product which is designed to be more easy to use than the average HN reader needs. As competition for Google's home wifi gateway/router device, sure... I suppose it has its place.

Re: Amplifi Alien Wi-Fi 6 Router

#18

Post by blacksmith_tb »

gouggoug wrote: post #11
cmer wrote: post #5

Ok I'll sound like such an amateur, but that's one nice router. Probably the nicest one I've ever seen. I hope it's a commercial success. Unifi/Amplifi makes good hardware.

Since you mention Unify, I've come to absolutely despise the Unifi (from Ubiquity) wifi routers and avoids them at all cost, here's why: In order to set them up, you need to download a terribly confusing software (the "Unify controller") that has never worked well on my mac os machines. Said software then needs to "adopt" the wifi routers you want to configure. The configuration is then saved onto your computer (as o…

They don't require a controller, though - I have a Unifi AP at home, it can be managed from an app on my phone, zero setup needed. But having a controller means being able to push configuration changes to multiple devices at once etc. (which I don't need in a small house, but would be handy in an office). I also have a Mikrotik router, which is not 'friendly' compared to consumer routers, but can certainly do a lot more.

Re: Amplifi Alien Wi-Fi 6 Router

#19

Post by altmind »

It feels like ubnt tries to capture the audience of what airport extreme used to be - mesh networks, self-contained device, minimal config, telemetry and services lock-in. The same for unifi dream machine pro.

They are almost explicit that these devices are not for tech entusiasts, who used to be their largest customer base.

Re: Amplifi Alien Wi-Fi 6 Router

#20

Post by tinus_hn »

LeoPanthera wrote: post #10
noodlesUK wrote: post #8

Does this mean that the unifi line is getting wifi 6 some time soon? I can’t really see why anyone who wants such a router would use amplifi now things like the Unifi dream machine exist (which are fantastic).

The Unifi machines don't pass the "mom" test. I would never give something that has anything like the Unifi management UI to my parents.

The point is that you can manage it remotely and they have exactly 0 buttons to push. They don’t have to manage anything at all.
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