AmpliFi HD WiFi Router by Ubiquiti Labs, Seamless Whole Home Wireless Internet Coverage, HD WiFi Router with Touchscreen Display, 4 Gigabit Ethernet, 1 WAN Port, Ethernet Cable, Expandable Mesh System

Will get the "take this with a grain of salt like you should" part of the review since I see it so often. Yes, I do tech support for a living and work alongside our network administrator.Having said that the reason I purchased the Amplifi HD WiFi router by Ubiquiti is that we use Ubiquiti's Unifi Wireless Access Points at work and have had zero issues with them. This router was a replacement for a Linksys AC4000 MU-MIMO TRI-BAND Router which I was never truly happy with. For comparison, I did try the Google WiFi set up and I do still have that as a "travel" router that I use when I staff a convention (so we don't have to rely on the hotel wifi...long story).Once I got the Amplifi (the Post Office "lost" the first one..be careful folks) opening the shipping box I was surprised with even the packaging of the unit so was hoping that Unifi took the same amount of care they put into the packaging and also put it into their product. I was not disappointed. Set up was a dream using the iPhone app. Follow the instructions, type in the WiFi name (I reused my current WiFi name so I wouldn't have to go around changing it on my devices and the old router/wap was off) and gave it a password. One thing to note here you probably want to uncheck the option to use the same password for both the WiFi and the router password. Give the router a separate password. Once that was done I was basically up and running.Now I went in and made changes to several settings. This is where the Amplifi holds its own with the more expensive Linksys router it replaced. It has most of the options that a good home router should have. The ability program in your choice of DNS servers. I had a high-end Netgear router 18 months ago where you couldn't do this, and the Linksys router had the "option" to set this up under Local Network as they called it but my testing never confirmed if the settings took or not. With the Amplifi I know they took because in the app there is a Diagnosis tool that tells you what they are when you run it. Being able to tweak your DHCP server settings should be standard on any router and it is on the Amplifi. In fact, it beats the previous two routers I have owned. You can choose 10.0, 172.16 or 192.168 blocks. It then gives the option to set the "subnet" as Amplifi calls it, and start and end address, and lease validity (lease time). There are options for Port Forwarding, UPnP, Turning on IPv6 (this option is off by default), putting the router into bridge mode (if you have to do this you should know what you are doing). You can also set a 5Ghz only channel if you want to direct devices to this frequency. The WiFi network does broadcast BOTH 2.4 and 5GHz frequency.These are just a few of the options I use.I know a few folks have wondered about how secure is this thing (read firewall). Contrary to other reviews I ran GRC's Sheilds up test and it found NO ports open, but it did respond to being pinged. Since I am running the test, of course, it is going to respond to being pinged. Both of the previous routers responded to the test in exactly the same way.Some of the little things that made this a worthwhile purchase. The small LCD screen on the front of the router. Why is this a little thing but a big deal? I have the screen up that tells me what the WAN IP is (what the ISP is giving me)/my Router IP is (yes I have it memorized)/that I have IPv6 turned on but it also has how many clients are on the Wifi network and that two of the Ethernet ports are active.Oh yes, there are 4 Ethernet ports on the back of this...that should be standard on any good router.There several screens that you can tap through from date/day/time to cumulative upload and download totals, the previously mentioned screen, a speed test screen which I find isn't too accurate, and a port status screen.The other little item is the Amplifi ap, at least on the iPhone. I have never been a fan of managing routers through an app. The Amplifi app is probably equal or better than the Google WiFi ap in terms of how you can manage the device. The Linksys app would be at the other end of the scale. It is atrocious.I have been running the Amplifi router for only 25 hours now and it was going to be "well I will let it run for a couple of days and then have to go back to the Linksys router and settle for it and all its problems. Nope, this is my router and you can have it when you pry it from my hands.On to the not so good as I don't' want to say bad because it's more of an annoyance than a "reason not to buy this". The web interface needs to be overhauled. It is there but the options are extremely limited compared to what is available on the ap. If I am sitting at my computer and want to make a change why should I have to run and get my phone to do it when I should be able to log into the router right from where I am.Next and this is minor, could be fixed with an update to the ap I believe and honestly I am probably one of the few who would want this feature. Under the "Family" option which shows the devices online. It would be nice to see when taping on the device then on Client Details to have it show the IPv6 address as well as the IP address. Why would I want this? Well if you have the option turned on in the first place it would be nice to see if a client is getting an address without going to the client to see if it got an IPv6 address.Coverage wise I have a one-floor condo so the router itself provides great coverage. I am also getting equal or better upload and download speeds compared to the other routers that I have had.I'm very happy with my purchase, as you can tell, and I am considering buying a second one to replace the Google WiFi "travel/convention" router.

The system is fabulous. The equipment is elegant. The Amplifi App is good - once I got used to it. Tech support was very quick and helpful by email and by chat. The setup problems I experienced were never the fault of the Amplifi equipment or the App.Here are several tips from my original confusions and errors in setting up.For adequate functionality of setting up one must use the Amplifi App on an iPad or iPhone, and to get it on an iPad one must search for iPhone only. (Apple Store's nomenclature). Bluetooth must be ON and working. Unknown to me at first, Bluetooth was not working on my iPad until I turned all restrictions to OFF.There are two basic pieces of equipment for an AmpliFi Mesh Wi-Fi System. A CUBE called an “AmpliFi HD Mesh Router”, and a STICK called an “AmpliFi MeshPoint HD” also known as a “wireless super mesh point”. The CUBE looks like a clock and has a power adaptor on a cord which plugs into wall receptacle of 110 volt AC power. The STICK plugs directly into such a wall receptacle.There are two functions needed for a system. Function 1 is Router with Internet Connection which can only be accomplished with the CUBE. A short Ethernet cable goes from the CUBE’s blue rj47 receptacle (with icon of a globe) to a cable modem which provides internet service from a cable company. Start with CUBE #1 which gets setup as Router with Internet Connection.Function 2 is Mesh Point -- a point of wireless connections. CUBE #1 provides both Functions 1 and 2. It is the both Router with Internet Connection and also the first Mesh Point of the system. One will want extra Mesh Points placed strategically to make a wider area of Wi-Fi service than that afforded by CUBE #1 alone. The extra mesh points may be either CUBEs or a STICKs or a mixture because their wireless function is the same. However, if one wants to extend a network from CUBE #1 to a place beyond wireless reach, one does that with Ethernet cable to another CUBE. The long Ethernet cable called “backbone” or “backhaul” goes to the blue rj47 jack of CUBE #2. Avoid my initial error of using a non-blue jack. Use the App toggle switch to designate CUBE #2 as dedicated for “backbone” use. It will communicate with CUBE #1 by Ethernet cable and it also becomes a Mesh Point where it is located. One may then place more Mesh Points about the areas of CUBEs #1 and #2 as needed.Before trying to use CUBE #2 for backbone use, place it in wireless range of CUBE #1 and set it up by (1) connecting to the Wi-Fi system and (2) updating the firmware of all items in the system. The firmware update is easy to do and, in my experience, necessary because the toggle for backbone use did not show up in the App until after the firmware update. The older reviews complaining of no “backbone” function are out of date. The current firmware has that function included. I found that I needed to turn the backbone toggle of #2 to ON before moving #2 out of wireless range of #1 and connecting the Ethernet from #1 to the blue jack of #2.My HP network printer worked immediately. To get my HP scanner to send to a network folder I had to tell Windows 10 that the Amplifi network is private, Windows had incorrectly guessed that it was public and that prevented scanning to my network folder. Also, Windows 10 will not work with an older network scanner unless one go to Windows "programs and features" and turns SMB1 to ON.When receiving messages from the App or the screen on the CUBE as to what one is doing incorrectly, believe them to be true. The CUBE told me when I failed to connect to the correct jack (blue) for “back bone”. The App warned me when I was trying to use an incorrect procedure for adding additional mesh points. It is easy when one gets used to it, and tech support is available if needed. Searching Google for help also works well.