MeshWifi
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Mesh WiFi startup Eero is now officially part of Amazon
Amazon has officially acquired Eero, the three-year old mesh WiFi startup based in San Francisco. Like other mesh WiFi systems, Eero's routers can be placed throughout the home, allowing users to avoid the "dead zones" that can occur when relying on a single router.
Samsung's new mesh routers use Plume's WiFi optimization tech
Mesh WiFi systems, like those from Eero, Netgear, Google and many others, have quickly become the preferred way to blanket a home in internet coverage. It provides a simple way to reach all corners of a house, something that's needed with the growing number of WiFi-enabled smart home devices. Samsung, which bought home automation platform SmartThings back in 2014, is tackling both mesh WiFi and smart home connectivity with its new, simply-named SmartThings WiFi mesh network system. As the name suggests, this system consists of multiple access points you can spread throughout your home to provide strong WiFi coverage. And like last year's Samsung Connect Home router, the new model also includes a full SmartThings hub, a helpful feature for people trying home automation for the first time.
TP-Link squeezed a smart home hub into its new mesh WiFi router
Mesh WiFi routers are no longer all that special, so how do you stand out? If you're TP-Link, you roll in a smart home hub. It just introduced a Deco M9 Plus router that builds on last year's model with a hub for ZigBee- and Bluetooth-based devices like light bulbs and thermostats. If you're not fond of connecting dedicated hubs and bridges but still want good whole-home networking coverage, this might scratch your itch. TP-Link is promising compatibility with Alexa and IFTTT commands when steering your household gadgets.
Plume launches SuperPod, its second-generation mesh WiFi puck
Plume is a WiFi company that offers a collection of wall socket-mounted nodes designed to sit in every room of your home. Don't worry if you haven't heard of it, as you're more likely to recognize Plume's rebranded hardware as Comcast's XFI gear. And a couple of years after launching its first-generation technology, Plume is back with an updated wall plug, and a whole new way to buy it.
Mesh WiFi startup Eero lays off a fifth of its workforce
Mesh WiFi pioneer Eero has laid off 30 employees in a bid to "focus on its core business". The company, which launched in 2015, has played a pivotal role in changing the face of home WiFi with products that blanket spaces in coverage, designed to replace old-school systems of routers and extenders.
TP-Link jumps aboard the mesh WiFi bandwagon
Mesh networking is a pretty big trend in home WiFi these days. Google, Netgear, Plume, Eero and Linksys are all current offering routers that make it super simple to add another router and expand your WiFi coverage, and now TP-Link is getting in on the action. The "Deco M5" system consists of three access points for your WiFi-enabled devices to switch between, depending on which one is offering the best speeds at any given time.
North American Eagle project pumps out WiFi, takes aim at land speed records
Most folks would be content if their jet-powered vehicle did nothing but break land speed records, but not so with the team behind the North American Eagle project. They've gone and also stuffed some WiFi equipment inside the nose of the vehicle, which they hope will be able to transmit data back to an experimental mesh WiFi network set up around the dry lake bed while the vehicle is in the process of breaking the sound barrier. That hasn't happened just yet, but the vehicle itself has already topped speeds of 400 miles per hour -- which is only half of what the team eventually hopes to reach.
Tropos rolls out new line of 802.11n outdoor mesh routers
Looking to give your massive outdoor wireless network a bit of boost? Then you might want to consider one of Tropos' new 802.11n mesh routers, which offer a little something for anyone with upwards of $3,000 to spend. At the top of the heap is the dual-band Tropos 7320 (pictured above), which boasts a modular design that can accommodate a whole range of antennas to suit your needs, and the ability to be powered by either a regular power adapter, Power over Ethernet, or an optional built-in battery backup module. The mid-range Tropos 6320 hangs onto most of those features but drops the modular antennas, while the basic Tropos 6310 goes one step further by ditching the dual-band capabilities in favor of plain old 2.4GHz. If that's all a bit too much for your needs, however, you may just want to snag one of Tropos' previous 802.11a/b/g routers, which have all been given a 29% price cut to make way for the new models.
Meraki announces solar-powered WiFi kit
Solar-powered WiFi isn't exactly anything new, but upstart Meraki looks to be doing its best to make it more accessible to the general public, today announcing a new outdoor wireless repeater with a solar panel to keep it running. Designed to be used with Meraki's existing Mini WiFi router, the repeater will let you beam a signal up to 700 feet away which, at just $99 a pop, would make a neighborhood-wide WiFi network a relatively low-cost affair. Unfortunately, there's no word just yet on what the solar panel accessory will cost, although Meraki says it'll "clearly be the most affordable option on the market." We shouldn't have to wait too much longer for that key detail, however, as the entire kit's set to ship sometime late this summer.
