The news that drew the most attention yesterday (in the tech world) was the official, public release of the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Samsung Galaxy S8+. However – Samsung also announced the Samsung Connect Home Smart WiFi Router, a mesh WiFi solution to rival and possibly even one up Google WiFi!
Samsung Connect Home Features
While it may not have the nicest of names compared to most other brands, Samsung’s mesh WiFi offering implements some useful features, especially for those running a smart home! The wireless router that Samsung are bringing to the market implements SmartThings into the router itself, negating the need for the extra hub to be cabled in! This means you can control your compatible smart lights, Z-Wave devices, Zigbee devices and a plethora of other smart home devices (have a look at the list of devices here).
The Connect Home routers will come in a single pack, or a pack of three. There’s no details around pricing or release date yet, but we do know that there will be a “Standard” version and a “Pro” version. The difference between these appears to be that the Standard offers “Wave 1” 802.11ac (866Mbps) and 2×2 MU-MIMO antennas, whereas the Pro will offer “Wave 2” 802.11ac (1.7Gbps) with a significantly more powerful processor and improved MU-MIMO – utilizing 4×4 antennas. Both devices output simultaneous dual band signals (2.4GHz & 5GHz) and provide coverage up to 1,500 square feet. This doesn’t mean that a single unit should be used to cover your entire house – the product is designed to operate as a mesh network, meaning you should utilise two or more devices to maximise your overall coverage and throughput.
The next few months are going to be an interesting time in the home-based wireless networking market!!
