Wi-Fi 7 products have slowly started to gain market attention, especially in the residential market (home consumption field). The SMB/SMB/Enterprise market traditionally lags by a few quarters due to longer validation cycles. Earlier this year, Ubiquiti Networks launched their first Wi-Fi 7 access point – the U7 Pro. Today, NETGEAR Business launches the WBE750 Wi-Fi 7 access point (AP) in the Pro Wi-Fi Series for businesses that frequently use wireless Internet.
The advantages of Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) have been introduced many times before. The relatively interference-free 6 GHz band, wider channels (up to 320 MHz wide), and technical improvements to address interference and latency issues make the new standard an attractive upgrade for Wi-Fi users.
Unlike the entry-level focus of the Ubiquiti UniFi U7 Pro, which features a 2×2 configuration in the 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz bands, the WBE750 opts for a 4×4 configuration in all three bands. Correspondingly, the AP is able to support more concurrently connected clients (600 vs. 300) and apparently provides more bandwidth (18.4 Gbps vs. the theoretical 9.2 Gbps). Pricing is correspondingly higher ($700 vs $190). WBE750 also integrates an NBASE-T (10 GbE / 5 GbE / 2.5 GbE / 1 GbE) RJ-45 uplink port with PoE++ support. Each channel supports eight SSIDs.
Similar to other networking equipment vendors in the space, NETGEAR is also driving recurring subscription revenue from the product. Included in the $700 purchase price is a 1-year subscription to the single-pane cloud-based management interface (NETGEAR Insight).
NETGEAR Insight is particularly useful for professional installers who can manage multiple sites from anywhere, even from a mobile device.
The WBE750 joins many other Wi-Fi 6/6E APs in the Pro Wi-Fi series to meet a wide range of deployment requirements. Over the past few quarters, NETGEAR has launched a variety of products in its Insight management family. Therefore, they are able to provide a total network solution (gateway/router/switch/AP) that can be managed from a single pane of glass. As part of its Pro focus, NETGEAR provides installers with free site design services and expert technical support. NETGEAR’s Pro WiFi design services (network design, product selection guide, troubleshooting and training support) are designed to be a key differentiating aspect compared to other similar products in the SMB/SME market.
The WBE750 is powered by Qualcomm Solutions – the Waikiki Wi-Fi 7 chipset integrated into the Networking Pro 1220 platform.
The new WBE750 AP is available now for $700.