Mesh or wired access points for a small office?
Mesh works fine at home, in an office you lose too much speed and reliability. Wired APs are always better in an office, even a small one. The cabling effort is worth it.
Try this first
- 1Mesh: second and third node get their internet over wifi from the first, halving throughput and adding latency each hop. Noticeable on calls and file sync.
- 2AP via Ethernet: each AP has its own cable to the switch, no halving, predictable performance, faster roaming between APs.
- 3Concretely for a small office: pull a Cat6a cable from the switch to the ceiling AP point. A handyman or capable colleague does this in an hour through a cable tray.
- 4When mesh is ok: a freelancer home office without cable options, or a temporary pop-up office. For business in an office, wired is the default.
When to bring us in
Cable not pullable due to building or lease constraints? There are alternatives (PowerLine, EasyMesh Ethernet backhaul). We look first before quoting the priciest solution.
See also
- Wi-Fi drops randomly across the officeFirst rule out whether it is the access points or the internet connection itself. Different fix.
- One room or corner has no or bad Wi-FiNot always "add another AP"; often one is poorly positioned, or there is a metal wall in the way.
- Internet is suddenly slow for everyoneThree suspects: your provider, a colleague soaking the line, or a backup or update kicking in unexpectedly.
None of the above fits?
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Or skip the DIY entirely
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