How To Get Whole-house WiFi Coverage?

If you are preparing to renovate your house or upgrade your network recently, but don't know how to choose a Wifi network plan. We recommend that you choose the Wifi home networking plan that suits you based on the following three common solutions: Mesh router networking, AP panel networking, and FTTR fiber optic networking.

1. Mesh router networking: multiple routers are interconnected, and the signal "relay" covers the whole house.
2. AP panel networking: Wireless access points (APs) hidden in walls or ceilings are connected via network cables.
3. FTTR fiber networking: The fiber is directly laid to each room, and then connected to the sub-router (mainly promoted by the operator).

A mesh network is a home routing system with a "mesh topology". The main route is connected to the optical cat, and the subroute is interconnected with the main route wirelessly (or wired), and each route is both a signal transmitter and a signal repeater.

Features: Flexible networking, no need for complex wiring, suitable for families who have been renovated and inconvenient to re-draw the cables. It can be networked by wired, wireless or wired wireless, and the network has the ability to heal itself, and when a router fails, it can automatically switch to another path to transmit data. However, wireless mesh may have some signal attenuation, network latency may occur when networking with multiple routers, and there may be compatibility issues with different brands of routers.

Applicable scenarios: Suitable for most ordinary households, especially small apartments or those with low network requirements, wireless tri-band mesh is also suitable for families with certain requirements for network experience but cannot be wired.

Advantages of Mesh Routers
• Simple installation and decoration without wiring, plugged in and used.
• Flexible expansion can add nodes at any time when the signal is insufficient.
• Automatic optimization Mesh nodes will automatically select the optimal path, and the entire network will not be disconnected if one fails.
• Low cost.

Shortcomings of Mesh Routers
• In wireless mode, the bandwidth of the sub-route is discounted.
• The cross-floor signal is weak, and the attenuation is obvious in thick walls and multi-floor environments.
• Stability is slightly lower than wired, wireless interference or signal blocking can affect the experience.

Required products: Multiple routers that support Mesh function need to be purchased, such as Softel's WDR7650 Gigabit Easy Expansion Edition, etc. According to the area of the house and the layout of the room, determine the number of routers, generally two to three can cover ordinary three-bedroom apartments, and larger houses or multi-storey buildings may need more.

AP panel networking is a distributed WiFi solution based on a wired network architecture, with the core of unified management of multiple embedded AP panels through the AC controller to achieve seamless coverage of the whole house.

Features: Based on network cable connection, multiple AP panels can be managed through AC controllers, and AP panels can replace wall network panels, which are beautiful and tidy, do not affect the decoration style, and can achieve seamless roaming and high network stability. However, it is necessary to embed the network cable in advance, and the project cost is high, which requires the professionalism of construction.

Applicable scenarios: suitable for large apartments, villas or families under renovation, as well as users who require high network stability and aesthetics.

Advantages of AP panel networking

•The network is extremely stable
All AP panels are connected to AC controllers/PoE switches via network cables (usually Category 6 cables and above), and data transmission is not affected by wireless interference, with low latency and stable bandwidth. Even if multiple devices are connected simultaneously, it is not prone to stuttering or disconnection, making it suitable for high-frequency needs such as 4K video and online gaming.
•Seamless roaming experience
The AC controller manages all AP panels in a unified manner, which can achieve "automatic switching of the same WiFi name": when the device moves in different rooms, it will automatically connect to the AP panel with the strongest signal, and the switching process is not perceptive (the switching time is usually < 100ms), avoiding the trouble of manually switching WiFi, especially suitable for mobile devices such as mobile phones, tablets, and smart homes.
•High aesthetics and does not take up space
AP panels directly replace traditional wall network panels, embedded in the wall, exposing only a thin panel (usually 3-5cm thick), which is highly integrated with the decoration style and does not occupy desktop or floor space, suitable for users who have requirements for home aesthetics (such as large apartments and villas).
•Coverage is uniform and controlled
AP panels can be accurately deployed according to the number and layout of rooms (such as 1 per room), coverage without dead ends, and avoid "signal dead zones". At the same time, the AC controller can adjust the power and channel of each AP to reduce co-frequency interference and further optimize coverage.
•Scalability flexibility
If you need to add coverage areas (such as adding new rooms or study rooms) in the later stage, you only need to install additional AP panels and connect to existing PoE switches, eliminating the need for large-scale network modifications, and strong compatibility (APs of the same brand are usually plug-and-play).

Shortcomings of AP panel networking

•Relying on early wiring, the requirements for the decoration stage are high
Network cables must be embedded during decoration (Category 6 cable or fiber is recommended), and network interfaces need to be reserved for each AP panel. If the house has been decorated and no network cable is reserved, the later installation needs to be open, which will affect the appearance and increase the construction cost.
•The initial cost is high
The overall cost of AC controllers (or PoE/AC all-in-one routers), multiple AP panels, PoE switches (if there are insufficient interfaces), and auxiliary materials such as network cables and crystal heads is higher than that of a mesh router (especially if multiple APs are required for large apartments). In addition, if professional masters are required to install and debug, labor costs will also increase.
•There is a threshold for installation and commissioning
It involves network cable termination (crystal heads, modules), AC controller configuration (such as unified SSID, channel planning, power adjustment) and other steps, which have certain requirements for users' network knowledge.
•AP panels are fixed in position and have low flexibility
If the later furniture layout adjustment causes the signal to weaken in a certain area and is difficult to improve through mobile devices, you can only install additional APs or make up for it through wireless relay (which may affect stability).
•Maintenance is relatively complex
If an AP panel or line fails, it is more difficult to troubleshoot than a mesh router (it is necessary to check whether the network cable is on or off, whether the PoE power supply is normal, etc.), and it requires the assistance of professional tools (such as line testers), making it more difficult for ordinary users to repair it by themselves.

Required products: Mainly including POE/AC all-in-one router and multiple AP panels. The number of AP panels can be determined according to the number of rooms, and then the all-in-one router with the appropriate number of network ports can be selected according to the number of AP panels.

FTTR (Fiber To The Room) is a "fiber to every room" home networking method. Each room is equipped with a fiber optic ONT (optical cat), which transmits network signals via network cable or WiFi.

Features: With the main optical cat as the core, multiple slave optical cats are connected through optical fibers, and the optical fiber is extended to each room, which can provide gigabit wired and wireless network coverage, seamless roaming without perceptual switching, and the invisible optical fiber does not affect the decoration, has a long life, and is suitable for bandwidth evolution. But the cost is currently higher.

Applicable scenarios: Suitable for families with extremely high requirements for network speed and stability, pursuing the ultimate network experience, and sufficient budget, especially suitable for large apartments or villa families.

Advantages of FTTR fiber optic networking
• Fiber to the room, gigabit/gigabit speed directly to the terminal.
• Low latency, high stability, and no copper interference.
• Ideal for extremely demanding homes, with stress-free synchronization of multiple 8K TV, AR/VR, and large game consoles. 

Shortcomings of FTTR fiber optic networking

• High cost
• High construction requirements require professionals to lay fiber optic cables.

Required products: The main products are FTTR main light cats and slave light cats, such as Huawei's FTTR Starlight F30 set, which contains one main light cat and multiple slave light cats, and you can choose different numbers of light cat sets according to the number of rooms and needs.

How to choose a whole-house WiFi coverage solution?

1. For new house decoration, sufficient budget, pursuing long-term stability and beauty, you can choose AP panel networking (or FTTR, if the budget is more).
2. If you have a renovated house and have a limited budget and want to quickly solve the signal blind spot, it is recommended to choose a mesh router for networking.
3. If you need ultra-high bandwidth, multi-terminal concurrency, and do not want network latency, it is recommended to choose FTTR fiber optic networking.