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Introducing a new kind of Wi-Fi system

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Re: Introducing a new kind of Wi-Fi system

#191

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why does IPv6 availability matter here? The amount of users that need, want or even directly benefit from IPv6 is vanishingly small.

I disagree. Directly, yes, the average user doesn't care. But application developers care; peer-to-peer protocols become a lot trickier with IPv4 due to the pervasive deployment of NAT; two machines ostensibly on the Internet can't connect to each other, requiring instead the use of STUN servers, which then requires infrastructure somewhere, or just doing it client-server, or some mix like having "supernodes" (like S…

Yes, but until you have the percentage of overall IPv4 usage down to less than 5%, 10%, or even being generous say 15%, developers will still have to deal with those things (NATs, STUN, TURN, etc) anyway.

IPv6 has been around for almost 20 years now, and is only recently cracking 10% (and I wonder how much of that 10+% is also dual stack). IPv4 sure as hell isn't going away in my lifetime. Who knows, maybe the lifetime of my kids too. What a mess!

Re: Introducing a new kind of Wi-Fi system

#192
post #78

I'm a little concerned that an android device is listed as _required_... i would hope all functions of the wifi devices can be configured/administrated from the web or just an internal browser pointed to the device(s).

That's the one thing I hate about my Apple airport - great wifi, but I need a fscking app in order to configure it.

Re: Introducing a new kind of Wi-Fi system

#193

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wait, OnHub doesn't support IPv6?! That's inexcusable. There's no reason IPv6 couldn't "just work" too. Google Wifi had better support IPv6 at launch.

If you require IPv6 so crucially, you probably shouldn't be using consumer grade gear.

That kind of thinking is 10 years out of date. Consumer broadband routers sent to subscriber homes for free support IPv6.

Re: Introducing a new kind of Wi-Fi system

#194
post #42

Lots of vendors already offer this. It's pretty standard for commercial WiFi units. It's just slightly more expensive than dumb routers. * Eero: https://eero.com/ * Ubuquiti: https://www.ubnt.com * Cisco: http://www.cisco.com (sized for larger buildings) Does this new Google device come with the Google Fi feature which backhauls all your traffic to Google via a VPN?

Little known, you can do wireless extending (main + one hop end nodes + clients) or WDS mesh (main + one hop relay + one hop end nodes + clients) with Airport:

Overview : https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202076

Extending: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204617

WDS: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4262

While the wireless distribution mode drops speed (as does Ubiquiti etc.) it's still faster than a DoCIS 3 cable modem, and the Airport Express for end nodes is cheap.

Re: Introducing a new kind of Wi-Fi system

#195
post #3

Serious question: whose WiFi is not working, to the degree that they think, "I really need to get a modern router to make this Internet thing actually work." I'm seeing about a dozen fancy modern wifi routers all trying to solve a problem I'm not sure exists.

Just talk to anyone who uses BT in the UK. Their HomeHub is atrocious. I replaced mine with a Draytek modem and high end Asus router and not only have my speeds gone up, I now get emails from no-IP asking me to manually renew my dynamic DNS domains because the connection routinely stays up for months (as opposed to days) at a time. Edit: Oops, I should probably say something about improved wifi as well, as that was t…

Yep, I'm on BT with a 200mb fiber connection, and I use to use the default HomeHub. It was failing daily, the speed would drop to like 3mb, and you had to restart the router to get a proper speed again, connection would not always work. Just like you I bought a high end ASUS modem (120£, way more that I ever paid for a modem) but it was totally worth it. The wifi connection is now always top of the range, it has never needed reconnection, it changes everything. Definitely don't regret.

Re: Introducing a new kind of Wi-Fi system

#196
post #150

Earlier quoted context omitted.

None of those technologies you listed make it harder for Google to collect information from you, but instead make it harder for 3rd parties to intercept that data in transit.

If they were attempting to collect information via your router, those technologies would absolutely hamper them.

Exactly right

Re: Introducing a new kind of Wi-Fi system

#197

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Yet another device Google will sell, and then discontinue in 24-36 months. You don't know that.

Besides acquired products (Nest) and Android phones, Google has a pretty poor track record of long term hardware support. I can still get firmware updates for my 4 year old Linksys router. I've been burned, and I refuse to purchase yet another Google device for a market they're just testing the waters in. I'd rather spend my money with someone who needs it to support their product, and that product is their business…

To be clear, you're saying they're just testing the waters with Chromium? Or with Fiber, which makes its own hardware STB/routers, or with this whole internet performance thing in general?

Chrome devices have 5 years of updates guaranteed. I have a cr-48 from 2010 which still gets updates (currently on -dev 56). How many times has there been a story on HN about RCEs unpatched for months or years in consumer routing gear? The fact that you purchased that hardware doesn't seem to be sufficient incentive based on the record. But when you have an incentive of a secure and performant internet, and also have the talent, infrastructure, and existing codebase to make something work and work well, you have economies of scope that make supporting it much easier and cheaper.

Re: Introducing a new kind of Wi-Fi system

#198

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>That's inexcusable Except it's not, we live in an IPv4 world. Edit: How are you guys downvoting me on your v6 connections? HN only supports v4.

Maybe you haven't checked lately but we live in a world where IPv6 adoption is over 10% (over 25% in the US) after doubling each year for the past 6 years. https://www.google.com/intl/en/ipv6/statistics.html

Projection:

Jan 2016 -> 10% Jan 2017 -> 20% Jan 2018 -> 40% Jan 2019 -> 80% Jan 2020 -> 100%

Seems quite good to me.

Re: Introducing a new kind of Wi-Fi system

#199

My Airports work just fine and have worked for years. I think that the WiFi issues are mostly that people are only willing to pay like $50 for their WiFi router. At this price point I'm not sure it changes anything.

If you try to use multiple Airport routers together without Ethernet you get severely reduced bandwidth. These routers (and other similar products) have multiple radios which allow mesh networking without reducing bandwidth as much. In a large house where running cable isn't an option having a mesh network can solve a lot of issues. In a small apartment a single access point is probably sufficient.

They have multiple radios and my bandwidth is basically capped by my comcast internet at around 180 Mbps which I get everywhere in the house with 2 airports, one extending the other.

Re: Introducing a new kind of Wi-Fi system

#200
post #159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you require IPv6 so crucially, you probably shouldn't be using consumer grade gear.

I've been using IPv6 on a consumer-grade cable modem connection with a Cisco DPC3008 modem and a previous-generation Apple Airport extreme since 2012. There weren't even any difficulties getting it working.

There aren't any difficulties if you don't get it working either (yet). The Internet still works with no issues.
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