WAX615

After looking at mesh networks and trying to use older Wifi 5 Nighthawk routers as Wireless Repeaters, I settled on this gem. I have a 3,000 sq ft split level home with a long living room and a garage on the end, and I can get my security cameras at the end of the garage to connect to this with no stream interruptions, even with a microwave in between. It's probably too powerful for the average person's home, but just look at the price compared to a good WiFi 6 Mesh Network. This was a great find.There are a ton of business features that I don't need but some of the better ones that I like include combining the 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz bands into one network, support for 250+ wireless devices, PoE, and data collection that is more of a novelty due to my end use being at home.This is an Access Point, not a "Router" (which depending on your networking experience means either a box that broadcasts your home internet, or a device that can assign IP addresses and direct traffic, or even more than that). Now I did see a setting in the GUI to turn on DHCP, and I don't want to turn it on and screw up my network, but I am 90% sure this device will absolutely not work for home users without a router behind it. This is effectively a big complicated antenna for your home router. The way I have this set up, is I plugged this AP into the weak WiFi 6 "router" I had, copied the Wireless Network settings, and turned off the radio on the "router" (this is an important step). The router is now able to do its routing thing while this AP connects to the wireless devices in the house. Simple install.After installing this AP, most of the lag in my network subsided, my office has 5Ghz, and my download speed increased. I am a happy customer.

I’m running a complex network with multiple VLANs (still learning, not an expert), managed switches, and pfSense firewalls. The WAX615 handles it flawlessly once configured correctly. Wireless coverage is excellent on both 2.4 and 5 GHz, and performance is solid for home and work devices.A big plus is its VLAN tagging support — I can isolate IoT, management, and work networks without bottlenecks. PoE+ power keeps the install clean with no extra adapters.One tip: this AP is unforgiving with VLAN mismatches. If your network setup is off by even one VLAN ID or tag, the AP won’t work as expected. But once configured right, it’s rock-steady with no drops.Pros:• Great WiFi 6 speed and range• Full VLAN support for network isolation• PoE+ powered, silent fanless design• Reliable once set upCons:• Needs precise VLAN configuration• Not plug-and-play for beginnersIf you want pro-level control in a home or small office setup, the WAX615 is worth it.

I was given a garbage extender from Verizon that dropped connection every hour. Bought this instead, it has been rock solid. Great product.

I've used many wireless routers and access points over the years. I've used Linksys, ASUS, and others. We all had their pros and cons , but I haven't found any faults with this.The signal strength throughout my home is incredible. The Wi-Fi 6E speed is impressive. The configuration flexibility provide lots of options without being complex.The cloud management through Netgear, called insight, is incredibly easy to use. It costs $10/year per device to manage them through the cloud. It's worth it though.I bought two for opposite ends of my home and they work together perfectly. Devices transition easily and I now have no dead spots in my house.Was previous models, I found myself continually tweaking and tuning them. These have been pretty set and forget.

2025/05/25 update:Netgear's customer support (in this situation, with an excellent customer tech support person!) saved me (or at least their sale of this network device to me)!Without this help, we would have returned the product.First of all, this Network AP can be configured TWO ways: (1) as part of Netgear's (business-oriented, cloud management, "Insight" (or more accurately, IMHO, "In$ight"); & (2) as a standalone, local Web page managed AP. We have set it up in the "local, Web page managed" mode. We have no feedback about setup and configuration as part of the "Insight" cloud managed option.With the Netgear customer tech support, we were able to set up the AP in less than one hour (after spending more than a half day trying various other options), though requiring his remote login to our system to complete the AP's setup. (Key point: We have other Netgear devices on our network so the default IP,& URL would NOT work (the only setup method in the documentation! We had to figure out the "real" IP; then the setup process was smooth, clear, and fast.The Netgear tech person gave clear instructions, was very patient, and explained the steps so we could take notes and repeat the process later/again, should it be needed (hopefully not of course).Although it is too early to evaluate the AP (we've only had it "up" for a couple of days), it does seem to be well designed and adequate for our purposes. Our network devices (cable mode, gateway/router, previous Wi-Fi routers, and now AP) are all Netgear and we have been very satisfied with their performance and configuration interfaces ("dashboards") over the years.We will leave our very negative initial review because we feel the setup instructions for "standalone, local Web browser based configuration" are so poorly explained and documented. That said, the product seems to be exactly what we were looking for (including a 2.5G network connection). But as with most products and especially consumer electronics devices, performing well far beyond the device's warranty period is what earns a "5-star review" from us.- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -initial review:VERY worst device "setup" config, process, instructions, etc., in industry!this device is supposed to be an "Access Point" but if you have any other devices on, i.e., your (Netgear) gateway, this Netgear AP settings are NOT visible (accessible). That is, we experienced computer folks (network admins!) could not make this work!Thank goodness for Amazon Prime membership's ease of return!SHAME ON Netgear! :-(