It’s cold outside, the house is packed with family, and it’s not just your fraying nerves that the holidays put strain on. Will nobody think of the Wi-Fi network? According to my own extensive anecdotal data, a smooth and steady supply of Wi-Fi can make for a harmonious home, not just for the holidays, but year-round. Netgear has a blizzard of Black Friday bargains on its best mesh systems, including my top pick for most folks: the Orbi 770 Series.
You can find more tempting discounts in our Absolute Best Black Friday Deals roundup and our Black Friday liveblog, running right through the weekend.
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Photograph: Simon Hill
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Photograph: Simon Hill
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Photograph: Simon Hill
Quite simply the best Wi-Fi 7 mesh for most homes right now, the Orbi 770 Series is easy to set up and use, delivers stable and speedy performance, and boasts expansive coverage. It’s the sweet spot in the Netgear lineup for most folks, and a great way to step up to Wi-Fi 7. This tri-band mesh offers three bands (2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz) as a unified network that’s available for devices and as backhaul (traffic between the main router and satellites).
You can expect lightning-fast speeds at short range, but also expansive coverage for more than 100 devices. A two-pack will be enough for most homes, and easily delivered for my old 1,600-square-foot house, extending a strong Wi-Fi signal into my backyard. If your home is bigger or older with thicker walls, like my new house, the three-pack is a better buy. The main router has a 2.5 Gbps WAN and three 2.5 Gbps LAN ports, while the satellites make do with two 2.5 Gbps LAN ports apiece.
You can get $170 off the Netgear Orbi 770 Series right now, and a free wall mount when you use the code MOUNT at checkout.
If you’re lucky enough to have an internet connection faster than 2.5 Gbps, consider the next system up: the Orbi 870 Series. It jumps to a 10-Gbps WAN/LAN port and doubles the bandwidth on the 5-GHz and 6-GHz bands, making it suitable for the busiest of homes. My experience with the 870 Series was flawless, and it managed four simultaneous movie streams and online gaming sessions with ease. You can get $400 off the Netgear Orbi 870 Series system, and once again, Netgear is offering a free wall mount with the checkout code MOUNT.
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Photograph: Amazon
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Photograph: Simon Hill
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Photograph: Simon Hill
If you’re feeling flush, consider Netgear’s flagship Orbi 970 Series. This extremely fast and reliable quad-band mesh router boasts one 2.4-GHz band, two 5-GHz bands, and one 6-GHz band (one of the 5-GHz bands is reserved for wireless backhaul). Port-wise, the main router has two ample 10-Gbps ports and a whopping four 2.5-Gbps ports, and the satellites have a 10-Gbps port and two 2.5-Gbps ports each.
This system is ideal for large properties (a trio will cover up to 8,200 square feet), with multi-gig internet connections, and a whole mess of devices (it can cope with 200 connected gadgets). I struggle to recommend the 970 Series at its regular price, and most folks won’t notice the difference between this and one of the cheaper Orbi systems, but the Black Friday discount is $700 off, and you can snag a free wall mount with the checkout code MOUNT.
