Why you can trust TechRadar
We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.
Eero 7: One-Minute Review
The Amazon-owned Eero got off to an early start in the Wi-Fi 7 market when it launched the high-end – and rather expensive – Eero Max 7 in 2023. That was followed by the Eero Pro 7 earlier this year, and now Eero has launched its most affordable Wi-Fi 7 mesh system in the form of the Eero 7.
But, like a number of ‘affordable’ Wi-Fi 7 routers and mesh systems that have been launched in recent months, the Eero 7 has to make one important compromise in order to keep the price down. This means that it lacks support for the high-performance 6.0GHz frequency band and limits itself to basic dual-band Wi-Fi 7 that just uses the older 2.4GHz and 5.0GHz bands.
That compromise means that the Eero 7 isn’t as fast as its tri-band Wi-Fi 7 rivals that also support the 6.0GHz band. However, it’s worth remembering that the Wi-Fi 7 standard doesn’t just focus on speed. It’s also designed to provide greater reliability when connecting to lots of different devices, such as smart lights and speakers that you may have in your home, as well as your personal computers and mobile devices.
So while the Eero 7 may not be the fastest mesh system around, it still provides an affordable mesh Wi-Fi system for people who need to reliable Wi-Fi that can reach into every corner of their home.
Price & Availability
- How much does it cost? $349.99 / £349.99
- When is it available? Now
- Where can you get it? Available in the US and UK
Eero states that each Eero 7 mesh router can cover an area of 2,000sq.ft, and we like the fact that it allows you to buy one, two or three Eero 7 units as required. This allows you to choose the option that suits you best, and also provides more competitive pricing for the two-pack and three-pack options.
You can also mix and match different Eero models, perhaps buying a single Eero 7 as a low-cost add-on for an existing Eero mesh system.
Prices start at £169.99/$169.99 for a single Eero 7, or £279.99/$279.99 for a two-pack mesh system. However, we tested the three-pack option, which costs £349.99/$349.99.
That’s certainly a lot less expensive than the Eero Pro or Max, which cost £699.99/$699.99 and a whopping £1699.99/$1699.99 respectively for a three-pack – although, of course, their tri-band Wi-Fi is a lot faster than that of the dual-band Eero 7.
The Eero 7 is currently available in the US and UK, but – as often seems to be the case – Australia has to wait for the latest Wi-Fi 7 products to arrive. However, the Eero Max 7 has recently gone on sale in Australia, so hopefully the Eero 7 and Pro 7 will soon be available as well.
Value: 4 / 5
Eero 7: Design
- Compact (and sturdy) design
- Two 2.5Gb Ethernet ports
- Powered via USB-C
Unlike the larger Pro and Max models, the Eero 7 sticks with the now-familiar white plastic and curvy space-pod design that the company has used for several years. The Eero 7 models are slightly larger than their predecessors, but they’re still fairly compact, standing just 64.1mm high, and 130mm wide and deep, so it’s easy to place the routers on any convenient shelf or worktop when you’re setting the system up.
They’re pretty solidly built too – I actually dropped one while unpacking the box, but it worked with no problems as soon as I plugged in the power supply.
Each router has two 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet ports on the back, and these are ‘auto-sensing’ ports, which means that they can be used either to connect to your existing broadband router or modem, or to provide a wired network connection for devices such as a gaming PC or console.
Each router also has a USB-C port on the back, although this is used for the mains power supply, rather than connecting a shared network drive.
Most of the Eero’s rivals provide more Ethernet ports, but that probably won’t be a problem for most home users, and we like the fact that the Eero’s 2.5Gb ports support high-speed broadband connections. However, we’re a little unhappy with Eero’s description of the routers’ performance.
The Eero 7 is quoted as having a ‘BE5000 speed rating’, which many people might interpret as meaning a Wi-Fi speed of 5000Mbps (or 5.0Gbps). In fact, a closer look at the tech specs for Eero 7 reveals that the dual-band routers only support a far more modest Wi-Fi speed of 1.8Gbps.
To be fair, that’s still more than fast enough for most domestic broadband connections, but we can’t help thinking that Eero is overhyping the speed a bit.
Design: 4 / 5
Eero 7: Features
- Well-designed app
- Quick set-up
- Limited parental controls
Image 1 of 2
The Eero 7 is certainly well designed, but the low price of this dual-band mesh system does mean that it’s a little sparse on features.
Getting started is fairly straightforward – although poor documentation does mean that we noticed one potential hiccup. There’s no manual provided with the Eero 7, and the Eero app (for iOS/Android) starts by telling you to connect an Eero ‘gateway’ – without explaining what the term ‘gateway’ actually means.
In fact, the ‘gateway’ is simply the first Eero router that you connect to your existing broadband modem or router using an Ethernet cable (included in the box), and any of the Eero routers can act as the gateway.
Once that’s out of the way, setting up the new Eero 7 mesh network is a piece of cake.
You’ll need to turn on Bluetooth on your mobile device, and the Eero app then uses Bluetooth to connect to the Eero routers and link them together to create your new mesh network.
It gives tips on where to locate each router, and can even run a test to check the strength of the Wi-Fi signal as you place the routers in different spots around your home.
To keep things simple, the Eero app combines the 2.4GHz and 5.0GHz frequencies into a single network, and also provides an option to create a guest network if required.
However, additional features, such as parental controls and content filters, VPN and malware protection, do require an additional Eero+ subscription. There’s a two-month free trial available for the Eero+ service, but after that it costs £9.99/$9.99 per month or £99.99/$99.99 per year (and renews automatically at the end of the trial period, so watch out for that).
So while the Eero 7 provides impressive ease of use, there are rival routers and mesh systems that provide a wider range of features without charging for an additional subscription.
Features: 3 / 5
Eero 7: Performance
- Good Wi-Fi range and coverage
- 1.8Gbps Wi-Fi 7
- Dual-band only (2.4GHz/5.0GHz)
With no support for the 6.0GHz frequency band, the Eero 7 clearly can’t match the performance of some of its more expensive tri-band rivals. Even so, its 1.8Gbps Wi-Fi speed is more than fast enough to work with most domestic broadband services, and it didn’t have any trouble dealing with an annoying wi-fi deadspot that we have in our building.
Our aging office router falls well short of the maximum 150Mbps provided by our office broadband connection, generally falling to 120Mbps even for devices that are nearby in the same room. Our old router also struggles to reach an office located at the back of the building, leaving us with a Wi-Fi deadspot where we have to rely on a set of PowerLine adaptors to provide a wired connection instead.
The Eero dealt with both scenarios admirably, immediately bumping our Wi-Fi speed right up to 150Mbs for devices in the same room when running the Ookla Speed Test, and also for large file downloads from Steam. It wasn’t bothered by our office deadspot either, effortlessly maintaining that 150Mbs speed as we picked up our laptop and walked along the corridor to that back office. There’s no doubt that the low cost of the Eero 7 means that its features and performance are fairly basic – but at least it gets the basics right, providing respectable performance and welcome ease of use for home users who simply want to upgrade an older router that still has Wi-Fi 5 or 6.
Performance: 3 / 5
Should you buy the Eero 7?
|
Attributes |
Notes |
Rating |
|---|---|---|
|
Value: |
It may not be particularly fast, but the Eero 7 is very competitively priced, especially for larger homes that need a two-pack or three-pack mesh system. |
4 / 5 |
|
Design: |
The curvy design of the Eero 7 routers is quite eye-catching, but it also means that they’re compact and easy to place in convenient spots around your home. |
4 / 5 |
|
Features: |
The Eeero app gets you started quickly and easily, but it’s fairly basic and requires an additional subscription for parental controls and other features. |
3 / 5 |
|
Performance: |
The lack of support for the 6.0GHz band means that the Eero only provides modest performance – but it should still be fine for most home broadband connections. |
3 / 5 |
|
Average Rating: |
It’s not particularly fast, but the Eero 7 is a very affordable mesh systems for larger homes that need to boost their wi-fi coverage |
3.5 / 5 |
Also Consider
If our Eero 7 review has you considering other options, here are a few good choices.
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/tNeEKMG55ejYc72MkNAiwk-1200-80.jpg
Source link
