TP-Link EAP245 AC1750 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Ceiling Mount Access Point

The V3 update of TP-Link's EAP245 Ceiling Mount Access Point is well worth the wait. Compared to the previous version, the wiring of the access point is now invisible due to the relocation of the of the network and power ports. TP-Link also added a gigabit pass-through port in addition to the original gigabit power over ethernet port. These changes are extremely helpful, especially when used in the home, in order to keep the marital bliss intact from unsightly wiring. Excellent coverage of both channels means I dropped from two of a competing brand's access points down to just one EAP245 V3! TP-Link has multiple options for controlling the access point: Web browser, phone app, Windows or Linux client, using TP-Link's cloud service, or even a dedicated controller ... MoreThe V3 update of TP-Link's EAP245 Ceiling Mount Access Point is well worth the wait. Compared to the previous version, the wiring of the access point is now invisible due to the relocation of the of the network and power ports. TP-Link also added a gigabit pass-through port in addition to the original gigabit power over ethernet port. These changes are extremely helpful, especially when used in the home, in order to keep the marital bliss intact from unsightly wiring. Excellent coverage of both channels means I dropped from two of a competing brand's access points down to just one EAP245 V3! TP-Link has multiple options for controlling the access point: Web browser, phone app, Windows or Linux client, using TP-Link's cloud service, or even a dedicated controller box. The latter three are extremely handy if you have multiple access points. Only the Omada hardware controller is an additional cost. Did I mention I really, really like this access point? Between its ability to be easily configured, yet chock-full of enterprise grade options from band steering, bandwidth prioritization and throttling, load balancing, seamless handoff between multiple access points, multiple SSIDs, scheduling, a log server, and more, this feature rich and speedy access point is well worth themoney over any consumer grade product!

As I write this, I am looking at the EAP Controller screen for my Tp-Link EAP245. This is great stuff !! For the folks at Tp-Link, just want you guys to know that this is one sweet little AP. I have a couple of your 5-port switches and two of your older WDR series wifi routers. One of which this new AP replaced during my home network upgrade. Not because it failed, it was still working great. Now it's taking life easy as a host for an external USB hard drive. All of your products that I've used have worked very well, and this AP is no exception. I'm getting better range than I was with the old WDR4300, and the EAP Controller software allowed a really easy setup and configuration of the AP. I know I could have logged into the AP directly instead of using the ... MoreAs I write this, I am looking at the EAP Controller screen for my Tp-Link EAP245. This is great stuff !! For the folks at Tp-Link, just want you guys to know that this is one sweet little AP. I have a couple of your 5-port switches and two of your older WDR series wifi routers. One of which this new AP replaced during my home network upgrade. Not because it failed, it was still working great. Now it's taking life easy as a host for an external USB hard drive. All of your products that I've used have worked very well, and this AP is no exception. I'm getting better range than I was with the old WDR4300, and the EAP Controller software allowed a really easy setup and configuration of the AP. I know I could have logged into the AP directly instead of using the Controller, but the additional features were worth it. Uploading a floorplan of my house into the map page to get a sense of the wifi range is a pretty nice feature. Again, really, really easy. Yes, I know it doesn't take into account the studs, the drywall, etc., but it's a decent approximation. The most important feature for me was being able to configure a guest network and then isolate it with an Access Control Rule. I followed Tp-Link's web page article about Access Control and had this configured waaaay faster than I thought it would be. In case anyone doesn't realize it, you can take an old router and configure it as an AP, but the gotcha is that your wifi Guest Network cannot be isolated from the rest of your network when the router is in AP mode like it can when it functions as a router. I know you might not believe me, but look it up. There are plenty of web sites that explain why this happens. The information provided by the Controller software is great. Now I can see all the clients that are connected, how much bandwidth they're using, how long they've been on, the list just goes on and on. I plan on getting a second one of these to replace an old WDR3600 that is functioning as an AP on the other side of the house. Don't really need to, but I really like the idea of having two of these and ALL the wifi info in one place. Yes, I looked at the Ubiquiti Unifi APs. I almost bought the AP AC Lite, but compare the specs. The Tp-Link has better specs for just a few dollars more. Don't get me wrong, Ubiquiti makes great products. I should know, I bought their EdgeRouter X to complete my network upgrade. In fact, I bought the router first, and set it up with the old WDR4300 as my primary AP, just to get started. Once I had that under control, I bought the EAP245. It comes up in the client list on the EdgeRouter with its model number and MAC address. I'm powering the AP using a TrendNet POE+ unmanaged switch. Both the switch and the AP are advertised as being 802.3 af/at compliant, and apparently they are, because the EAP245 fired right up when I plugged the Cat6 cable into the switch. No, there's no Cat6 cable included with the AP, had to buy that separately, but they're cheap. The EAP 245 comes with a power adapter, so you don't NEED a POE switch, but if you've got one that's 802.3 af/at compliant, you're good to go. Anyway, if you want a more secure, more configurable alternative to consumer wifi routers, the EAP 245 and EdgeRouter X work. Very well. Together. And they're cheaper than many of the consumer grade wifi routers out there.

In its class (better than a typical home device, but not as expensive as a business class device) it only has a single competitor - from Ubiquity. I chose it because: - it can be set up directly with just a web browser, which is ideal for small installations of 2 or 3 units - it has two Gigabit Ethernet wired ports (instead of just one), which makes it very convenient if you are not able to easily pull in lots of cables for your installation, such as in an existing home - it is powered via PoE, and it's not a proprietary PoE, so I can use any standard PoE switch to do so I am not a fan of using an app for setup as the apps are really only intended for novice users. Using the cloud setup is complex and is really only warranted in larger installations. It does support ... MoreIn its class (better than a typical home device, but not as expensive as a business class device) it only has a single competitor - from Ubiquity. I chose it because: - it can be set up directly with just a web browser, which is ideal for small installations of 2 or 3 units - it has two Gigabit Ethernet wired ports (instead of just one), which makes it very convenient if you are not able to easily pull in lots of cables for your installation, such as in an existing home - it is powered via PoE, and it's not a proprietary PoE, so I can use any standard PoE switch to do so I am not a fan of using an app for setup as the apps are really only intended for novice users. Using the cloud setup is complex and is really only warranted in larger installations. It does support a setup app and it also has cloud setup, as long as one uses a separate controller. If you have to have cloud setup, the Ubiquity competitor may be a better unit, but I wouldn't know. In my opinion, Wireless Access Points such as this one are better than mesh networks or range extenders because: - the principles are well proven as almost all business grade installations are based on access points - they cost less than mesh networks or the same as wireless range extenders - they generally perform better and more predictably because the backhaul link always has to be wired The reason one would use range extenders is if one cannot install the few cables one needs for a wired backhaul. The reason one would use mesh network units is if one does not want to learn how to configure the access points, as the mesh networks are claimed to be self configuring.