no brand has Has done more than Eero to popularize mesh systems. The Amazon-owned company is on a mission to make Wi-Fi as simple as possible, making it confusing for those who don’t care about setting it up. Simplicity is key, so Eero systems are easy to set up, simple to use and backward compatible with previous generations.
For the average home looking for a secure, hands-free mesh system that provides reliable Wi-Fi service, it’s impossible to ignore Eero. After testing everything else in the Eero line, I was eager to try the top-of-the-line Eero Pro 6E. This tri-band system is the first to support Wi-Fi 6E, accessing the 6 GHz band for the fastest connections (at least until Wi-Fi 7 lands).
super easy
Setup is intentionally quick and straightforward. Each Eero unit is the same shiny white rounded square that fits easily into a shelf or cabinet. Unfortunately, they are limited to two Ethernet ports rated at 2.5 Gbps and 1 Gbps. That might seem like good news if you’re lucky enough to have a multi-gigabit internet connection, but the Eero Pro 6E maxes out at 2.3 Gbps, and it’s a combination of 1.3 Gbps wireless and 1 Gbps wired connections. It does support wireless backhaul, but it’s limited to 1 Gbps. In other words, folks with multi-gigabit internet should look elsewhere. The power cable is USB-C, just for the port.
Photography: Eero
Each Eero Pro 6E router can connect at least 100 devices, covering an area of approximately 2,000 square feet. These tri-band routers support 2.4-GHz, 5-GHz, and 6-GHz connections. Eero’s wireless backhaul selects the appropriate frequency band for traffic between the main router and any nodes. If you want to encourage it to use the 6 GHz band, place them close together, ideally with a clear line of sight.
One advantage of testing the Eero Pro 6E a year after its release is that Eero has ironed out the kinks and the performance is silky smooth. Been using this mesh system for almost a month now and I haven’t had any issues. No dropped calls, no pixelated video calls, no buffering, just reliable, fast Wi-Fi.
The Eero Pro 6E surprised me in some of my speed tests. It proved to be the fastest grid I’ve ever tested when copying files from a PC connected to one node to another PC connected to another node, sending a 2.2 GB file in 1 minute and 14 seconds . Testing the 6 GHz band with my Pixel 6 Pro, the Eero Pro 6E handily beat the Wyze Mesh Router Pro and the Nest Wifi Pro (7/10, wired recommendation) at all distances (though both are much less expensive). It does well on the 5 GHz band, outperforming many of its competitors at close range on my iPhone 14 Pro, but falls off at medium and long distances.
With great coverage, the 2-pack easily covers my 1,600 sq. ft. two-story home and extends to the front driveway and backyard. But the range of the 6 GHz band is limited. When testing with my Pixel 6 Pro, I recorded some of the highest speeds I’ve seen at close range (within 10 feet from the router). But, like every other Wi-Fi 6E system I’ve tested, it drops off quickly when there’s a wall or floor between you and the router.
