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TP-Link Tri-Band WiFi 7 BE22000 Whole Home Mesh System (Deco BE85) | 12-Stream 22 Gbps | 2× 10G + 2× 2.5G Ports Wired Backhaul, 8× High-Gain Antennas | VPN, AI-Roaming, 4×4 MU-MIMO, HomeShield(2-Pack)

3.9 3.9 out of 5 stars 75 ratings

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WiFi 7 BE22000, 2-Pack

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About this item

  • 【Ultimate BE22000 Tri-Band Wi-Fi 7 Speeds】Deco BE85 is designed with the latest Wi-Fi 7 technology, featuring Multi-Link Operation, Multi-RUs, 4K-QAM, and 320 MHz channels. With speeds of 11520 Mbps on the 6GHz band, 8640 Mbps on the 5GHz band, and 1376 Mbps on the 2.4GHz band, the 2 pack mesh connects over 200 devices without dragging down performance and delivers unparalleled Wi-Fi performance.
  • 【Pro-Grade Dual 10G WAN/LAN Ports】Equipped with two 10G WAN/LAN ports—one RJ45 port and one SFP+ Fiber/RJ45 Ethernet combo port—Deco BE85 provides flexible support for both fiber and copper connections. The additional two 2.5G ports and a USB 3.0 port make it an ideal solution for future-proofing your home network.
  • 【Simultaneous Wireless + Wired Backhaul】Through TP-Link's self-developed technology, Deco BE85 can connect to wireless and wired backhaul simultaneously, taking full advantage of the WiFi 7 technology and giving you a faster speeds and wider coverage.
  • 【AI-Driven Seamless Roaming】The Deco Mesh forms a unified network with a single network name. With built-in AI-Roaming technology, it creates the ideal WiFi solution with its advanced algorithms and self-learning. Walk through your home and enjoy seamless streaming at the fastest possible speeds.
  • 【TP-Link HomeShield】TP-Link's premium security service keeps your home network safe with cutting-edge network and IoT protection. Free features: 1. Basic Network Security including Security Scan and IoT Device Identification 2. Basic Parental Controls 3. Quality of Service 4. Basic Weekly/Monthly Reports. Visit TP-Link website for more information.
  • 【VPN Clients and Server Supported】Allow devices in your home network to access remote VPN servers without needing to install VPN software on every device. Deco BE85 can run both the VPN and ordinary internet connections at the same time, delivering security and flexibility.
  • 【Easy Set Up and Management】 Set up and manage your mesh router in minutes with the free Deco App available for both Android and iOS devices.

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TP-Link Tri-Band WiFi 7 BE22000 Whole Home Mesh System (Deco BE85) | 12-Stream 22 Gbps | 2× 10G + 2× 2.5G Ports Wired Backhaul, 8× High-Gain Antennas | VPN, AI-Roaming, 4×4 MU-MIMO, HomeShield(2-Pack)
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Customer Ratings
User interface
3.8
3.8
4.1
4.1
4.2
4.5
WiFi signal
3.7
3.7
4.4
4.4
4.5
4.4
Tech Support
3.2
3.2
4.0
4.0
4.0
4.0
Value for money
2.8
2.8
4.2
Mobile App
4.2
4.2
4.5
Sold By
Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Amazon.com
JMBO Sales
DealPointStore
connectivity tech
Wi-Fi, Ethernet, USB
Wi-Fi, Ethernet, USB
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi Built In
Ethernet
number of ports
4
4
4
4
3
data transfer rate
22000 megabits per second
22000 megabits per second
1000.0 megabits per second, 5300.0 megabits per second
wireless standard
802 11 BE, 802 11 AX, 802 11 AC, 802 11 N, 802 11 G
802 11 BE, 802 11 AX, 802 11 AC, 802 11 N, 802 11 G
802 11 BE, 802 11 AX, 802 11 AC, 802 11 N, 802 11 G
802 11 BE, 802 11 AX, 802 11 AC, 802 11 N, 802 11 G
2.4 ghz radio frequency, 5 ghz radio frequency
802 11 AX
frequency band class
tri band
tri band
tri band
tri band
single band
tri band
lan port bandwidth
10 Gbps
10 Gbps
2.5 Gbps
2.5 Gbps
5 ghz
10/100/1000 megabits per second

From the manufacturer

1
1
Wi-Fi

WiFi 7, WiFi Like Never Before

WiFi 7 includes the new 6 GHz band, which is exclusive to 6 GHz devices, eliminating interference from legacy devices. The additional 3× 320 MHz channels enable more simultaneous transmissions at the highest possible speeds. 4K-QAM brings 20% higher theoretical transmission rates than 1024-QAM. Also, Multi-RU and MLO make full use of every resource and deliver a more reliable network.

1

Designed for Performance

1

Ready for a Future of Multi-Gig Connectivity

Equipped with two 10 Gbps WAN/LAN ports — one RJ45 port and an RJ45/SFP+ combo port — the Deco BE85 provides flexible support for both fiber and copper connections. The additional 2.5 Gbps ports and USB 3.0 port make it an ideal solution for future-proofing your home network.

1

Designed for Performance

TP-Link’s in-house component research and thorough hardware selection ensure the quality and value of the entire Deco BE85 system. Everything comes together to form the perfect Mesh device.

1

Simple. Easy. Yet Powerful.

Setup and manage your network anytime and anywhere on the user-friendly TP-Link Deco app.

1

Easy Management

Manage your WiFi at home or away on the Deco app. See every connected device, prioritize your own, and set up a guest network.

1

VPN Client and Server Support

Allow devices to access remote VPN servers without needing to install VPN software on every device. Run VPN and Internet at the same time.

1

All Decos Work Together

Deco BE85 is compatible with every other Deco model to form a Mesh network. Expand Mesh WiFi coverage anytime by adding more Decos.

Product guides and documents

What's in the box

  • 2x Deco BE85 units
  • 1 RJ45 Ethernet cable
  • 2 Power adapters
  • Quick Installation Guide
  • Looking for specific info?

    Product information

    Warranty & Support

    Manufacturer’s warranty can be requested from customer service. Click here to make a request to customer service.

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    TP-Link

    TP-Link Tri-Band WiFi 7 BE22000 Whole Home Mesh System (Deco BE85) | 12-Stream 22 Gbps | 2× 10G + 2× 2.5G Ports Wired Backhaul, 8× High-Gain Antennas | VPN, AI-Roaming, 4×4 MU-MIMO, HomeShield(2-Pack)


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    Product Description

    Get ready for lightning-fast WiFi with Deco BE85 mesh system, utilizing the latest WiFi 7 technology for unprecedented speed and efficiency. Tri-band channel with WiFi 7 exclusive features, 8 high-performance antennas, and 2 internal cooling fans ensure reliable connections and maximum performance. Connect to wireless and wired backhaul simultaneously, while enjoying flexible support for both fiber and copper connections on 10 Gbps speeds. Expandability options include 2 x 2.5 Gbps ports and 1 x USB A 3.0 port. Get the Deco BE85 for unmatched WiFi performance.

    Customer reviews

    3.9 out of 5 stars
    3.9 out of 5
    75 global ratings

    Customers say

    Customers like the ease of setup and stability of the networking router. They mention that the TP Link app, Deco, is very user friendly and the system is stable. Some have issues with quality, and interface. Opinions are mixed on performance, connectivity, and value.

    AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

    11 customers mention11 positive0 negative

    Customers find the setup of the networking router to be extremely easy. They say the TP Link app, Deco, is very user friendly and convenient. They also mention that the app seems a little easier to navigate than the Google Home app. Overall, customers are satisfied with the interface.

    "...Very convenient. Note here that no SFP+ module is provided with the product, so you need to provide your own...." Read more

    "...Link app, Deco, is very user friendly and I am more than satisfied with the interface. The reach of TP Link BE85 is impressive...." Read more

    "...The installation was as easy as expected with the Deco app...." Read more

    "...But at least the mobile app is user friendly." Read more

    6 customers mention6 positive0 negative

    Customers are satisfied with the stability of the networking router. They say that it has a solid system, and the connections hold well. They also mention that the modem itself is rock solid, and that the TP Link BE85 has cutting-edge component build quality.

    "...This will solidify the reliability and speed between the two routers but you will loose the ability to connect your 6Ghz compatible clients...." Read more

    "...The TP Link BE85 has cutting edge component build quality in comparison to..." Read more

    "...I am very happy with this purchase. The system is stable and connections hold well...." Read more

    "Solid system - With a wired back channel not an advantage to moving up a notch.3 units in a multi story house...." Read more

    23 customers mention14 positive9 negative

    Customers are mixed about the performance of the router. Some mention it gets amazing initial speeds, the 6GHz band offers higher speeds and reliability compared to the other two traditional bands, and the coverage and speed is as advertised. Others say that it's very fast, unreliable, and slows internet connection.

    "...The latter is the new kid on the block. The 6Ghz band offers higher speeds and reliability compared to the other two traditional bands and Deco BE85..." Read more

    "...a couple of weeks after I got this system and version 3.7.14 works very well...." Read more

    "...They were unhelpful, unresponsive, and seemed to have no knowledge of their own product...." Read more

    "At first I loved this thing because it got me amazing initial speeds, fully leveraging and perfectly distributing my multi-gig internet service...." Read more

    21 customers mention9 positive12 negative

    Customers are mixed about the connectivity of the router. Some mention that it has great signal, short distance signal, and amazing performance and WiFi coverage. However, others say that it constantly drops connections, making it nearly impossible to use for anything. The system was never stable in terms of signal, making devices constantly disconnect and reconnect.

    "...Netgear replaced the router. But the system was never stable in terms of signal. The signal on the Orbi Pro 6 had frequent drops...." Read more

    "...some of the tests I performed using WiFi 6E. The BE85 comes with three wireless bands: 2.4Ghz, 5Ghz and 6Ghz. The latter is the new kid on the block...." Read more

    "...The instability of this product is mind-boggling. It constantly drops connections, making it nearly impossible to use for anything beyond sending an..." Read more

    "...They all have 4 multi-gigabit ethernet ports. I have three of my older devices on ethernet and the speed up and down is over a gigabit on each...." Read more

    7 customers mention3 positive4 negative

    Customers are mixed about the value of the networking router. Some mention that it's worth the investment, while others say that it is pricey.

    "...Coverage and speed is as advertisedCons- Pricey-..." Read more

    "...very pleased with the performance of the product and they are worth the investment if you're looking for an excellent mesh wifi setup." Read more

    "...Wish the price was less, but the cost of being on the leading edge" Read more

    "Powerful and Stable TP Link Deco BE85 Wifi 7 Mesh System at Great Price..." Read more

    5 customers mention0 positive5 negative

    Customers are dissatisfied with the quality of the networking router. They mention that it's a terrible product with poor app quality. Some customers also mention that the router is not a cheap router system and is a total waste of money.

    "...It is not a cheap router system but it does track well with the pricing of competing WiFi7 routers out there (Netgear Orbi, Linksys Velop)...." Read more

    "...It's a terrible product with terrible customer support, and you'd be better off investing your money in a more reliable and reputable brand." Read more

    "...I purchased 8 of these things-- what a total waste of money. I do not think I have ever experienced a less reliable system." Read more

    "Constant dropouts, missing feature, poor app quality..." Read more

    4 customers mention0 positive4 negative

    Customers are dissatisfied with the web interface of the networking router. They mention that it's very basic, lacking in features, and provides limited information.

    "...me with all TP-Link Deco routers is the fact that the web interface is very basic with not many configurable options...." Read more

    "...The web UI is seriously lacking though, forcing you to use their mobile app so they can harvest more user data from you...." Read more

    "...honeymoon ended one day, and in the middle of working from home...no internet. light on the bottom of the Deco is red...." Read more

    "...Need to install deco app and configure and maintain. Web interface is mostly limited info only...." Read more

    3 customers mention0 positive3 negative

    Customers find the networking router difficult to maintain and use for anything other than sending an email. They also say it drops connections and is not a hands-off system.

    "...It constantly drops connections, making it nearly impossible to use for anything beyond sending an email or two...." Read more

    "...This is NOT a hands-off system...." Read more

    "...Makes it easier for rookies to maintain but not for advanced users. I will be switching to Asus as soon as they release their wifi-7 routers." Read more

    Great choice for high speed network
    5 Stars
    Great choice for high speed network
    TP-Link is no stranger to creating home (and enterprise) network equipment. In the home router arena, the company has been developing the Deco line of mesh routers for some time now. In this review, I will be expressing my thoughts and impressions about the Deco BE2200 (BE85) Tri-band WiFi7 2-pack mesh router system. The product I bought is the 2-pack, but TP-Link sells this mesh system a a 3-pack as well. Of course, the 3-pack will cost you a hefty $1,500 so I think most customers will go for the 2-pack package. The latter is not too cheap either and you will have to cough up $1,000 to get it, so the expectations from this product are quite high. The BE85 brings some great technology features to the home network. First and foremost, WiFi 7. This wireless technology promises amazing network speeds to the range of over 10Gbps under ideal conditions. WiFi 7 is a very new wireless standard and there are very few client devices out there supporting it now. For this review, I did not have access to a WiFi 7 client, but I did have the next best thing in my possession: a WiFi 6E device, the latest MacBook Pro M2 Max. Later in this review I will talk about some of the tests I performed using WiFi 6E. The BE85 comes with three wireless bands: 2.4Ghz, 5Ghz and 6Ghz. The latter is the new kid on the block. The 6Ghz band offers higher speeds and reliability compared to the other two traditional bands and Deco BE85 makes good use of it. This band can be used either for connecting 6Ghz compatible clients (such as my Macbook Pro) or to connect the two mesh routers via a backhaul channel using the 6Ghz frequency exclusively to isolate their connection from noise and interference. It’s worth mentioning that you can use 6Ghz either for client connections or as a backhaul between the routers, but not at the same time. Speaking of backhaul connection, that can of course be established using a wired connection as well. Another great feature that this router system brings along is the 10Gbps ethernet (RJ45/SFP+) ports. As a power user and having my own home lab, this is the feature I was mostly exited about. Each router offers two 10Gbps wired ports, one dedicated and one combo port. The combo port is a fantastic feature and fellow users that use fiber optics with SFP+ modules will appreciate this as much as I do. So, the combo port is actually two ports: an RJ45 and a SFP+ port sitting on top of the same bus. That means that you can use only one port at a time, but you do have the option to connect either an RJ45 cable or a fiber with an SFP+ module. I have opted for the latter since I connect the router to my optical 10Gbps switch. Very convenient. Note here that no SFP+ module is provided with the product, so you need to provide your own. Port connectivity doesn’t end with the two 10G ports. The routers have two more surprisingly fast RJ45 ports ranked at 2.5Gbps. This is great for those of you that have an internet service of over 1Gbps speed but don’t want to waste a 10Gbps router port for it. I have connected my 1Gbps internet modem to one of the 2.5Gbps router port and I still have plenty of ports for fast or faster connections. Excellent! Finally, TP-Link equipped this the routers with a USB 3.0 port for network sharing, making sure that the USB technology of these routers will be up to date for a while since it operates with the 3.0 standard. Installation and setup of the routers is quite easy via the Deco smartphone application. Being a user of a Deco mesh system before, I already had the Deco app on my phone. All I had to do is plug in the routers and add a new network in the Deco app. The two new routers showed up very quickly and without any issues or delays. The router does provide a web interface that you can load on your internet browser but it’s mostly for viewing basic configuration. It’s been a pet peeve of mine that TP-Link doesn’t provide a full web GUI and I will repeat again my request to develop one. Their Deco app is great and offers multiple options but power users that configure their routers heavily will always prefer a web GUI that can be used on their computers. My testing focused mostly on seeing how good the WiFi performance can be in daily, non optimal, conditions. Theoretical speeds are good and serve the purpose of validating that the product contains the technological standards that it claims, but I was more interested in seeing what I can expect in practical terms in a home office environment where isolation (walls), interference and wireless noise is inevitable. The Deco BE85 is connected, via the SFP+ port, to a TL-SX3008F JetStream 10Gbps fiber switch. My network storage server is also connected to this switch via a Mellanox CX-3 network card over 10Gbps fiber to ensure 10G network traffic speeds. To avoid disk read/write bottlenecks, I have two storage configurations on the storage server: small superfast storage using M2 SSD disks and a fast storage config using 4 SATA3 disks in a Raid0 configuration that provides maximum performance. My 10G client is my Mac Studio M1 Max, whilst my WiFi 6E client is my Macbook Pro M2 Ultra. To calibrate the testing environment and make sure that there are no bottlenecks, I tested a file transfer over the Cat8 wired connection to my Mac Studio. As you can see in the attached image, I comfortably reached 10Gbps. Now it was time to test the wireless connection with my Macbook Pro. There are two kinds of tests I performed to test the wireless connection: 1) sitting next to the router for maximum proximity, and 2) sitting in my home office, having walls, interference and noise that you would normally expect in the average office or home environment. You can see the results of my tests in the attached pictures with annotations on the pictures. Here are some of my takeaways:1)     Next to the router, using WiFi 6E (6 Gghz) I can see the highest speeds: 1.25Gbps. There is still potential noise since the router is still in the house, but the very close proximity of my Macbook Pro to the router is the best case scenario in testing this in a home environment. To put things in perspective, this is faster than your average Gigabit ethernet wired connection.2)     Sitting right next to the router, I also tried the 5Ghz band. The measured speed wasn’t bad but definitely lower than the 6Ghz band. It averaged around 1Gbps which is still great. This showcases that the Deco BE85 is a great router even for client devices that don’t use the latest WiFi standards. 3) On the other corner of the router room (it’s a big room with furniture and electronics) I maintained a 1Gbps throughput over 6Ghz WiFi. 4) On the first floor of the house (both Deco routers located on the second floor) the speed didn’t seem to be affected much. I still measured a healthy 1Gbps of throughput which is much more than what’s needed for typical living room/bedroom applications (movie streaming in 4K, YouTube, gaming or productivity). 5) Last but not least, my most common use case: sitting in my office where I work on a daily basis, with many active terminal sessions and file transfers. In between the test computer (MacBook Pro M2) and the router, there are walls, furniture and plenty of noise and interference from electronics, power wires inside the walls, mobile devices etc. I was expecting the speed to drop and that’s what happened, but it didn’t drop as much as I thought it would. I still got a good 400Mbps-700Mbps with most of it trending upwards to the 700Mbps level. That exceeded my expectations compared to my previous Deco setup.Overall I think the BE85 WiFi performed great in my realistic, daily use cases. Sure, it didn’t reach the many Gigabits that the WiFi standard promises but one thing to keep in mind is that those measurements are theoretical maximums that can be achieved only in strictly controlled, completely noise-free and interference-free environments, with high quality fine tuned hardware and software. The every day user should not expect to see such speeds very often.A couple of things regarding the other aspects of the BE85 before I conclude my review. 2.4G and 5G networks are grouped together, while the 6G network is separate. You can disable only the 6G network but not the 2.4G/5G group. You can create an IoT (Internet of Things) network dedicated to your smart home devices (smart switches, lights etc.), which is neat for network separation. One big thing is the Operation Mode: you can choose between Router or Access Point. The latter will turn the BE85 on WiFi access points only, if you’re using your own router. In my case, I’m using a router based on OpenWRT so I turned my BE85 into access points and it works great. As mentioned above, you can use the 6Ghz wireless channel as a backbone between the two routers. This will solidify the reliability and speed between the two routers but you will loose the ability to connect your 6Ghz compatible clients. The only way to have 6Ghz for clients, while having super fast backbone connection between the two routers, is to use a wired backbone (preferably 10Gbps). Guest network is now a given and it can be enabled/managed very easily via the Deco app. The BE85 can support over 100 clients, something that very few users will ever need. I can confirm that it works well with the 55-60 clients that I currently have at home.Since no product is perfect, including this great mesh router system, there are a couple of quirks that I need to mention. The first one that bothers me with all TP-Link Deco routers is the fact that the web interface is very basic with not many configurable options. The only way to configure the routers is via the smartphone Deco app, which is great but not suitable for power users (imagine doing large scale access control with client MAC devices via the smartphone app/screen). I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: TP-Link needs to cater to power users, especially for a $1,000 product.The second quirk I’ll talk about is client WiFi compatibility: for some reason the hub of my home security system doesn’t like the BE85 and most of the times can’t connect to the WiFi. I am not sure why but I suspect it’s hardware related since the same hub was connecting fine with my previous Deco system. Other than that, I have no real complaints about the BE85.Overall the Deco BE85 this is a great mesh router system that will satisfy most, if not all, needs of the home user. It offers plenty of technology, performance and features. It is not a cheap router system but it does track well with the pricing of competing WiFi7 routers out there (Netgear Orbi, Linksys Velop). If you are in the market for a solid, WiFi7 and 10Gbps capable router system, you should definitely consider the Deco BE85.
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    Top reviews from the United States

    Reviewed in the United States on December 13, 2023
    Style: WiFi 7 BE22000, 2-PackVerified Purchase
    Customer image
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great choice for high speed network
    Reviewed in the United States on December 13, 2023
    TP-Link is no stranger to creating home (and enterprise) network equipment. In the home router arena, the company has been developing the Deco line of mesh routers for some time now. In this review, I will be expressing my thoughts and impressions about the Deco BE2200 (BE85) Tri-band WiFi7 2-pack mesh router system.
     
    The product I bought is the 2-pack, but TP-Link sells this mesh system a a 3-pack as well. Of course, the 3-pack will cost you a hefty $1,500 so I think most customers will go for the 2-pack package. The latter is not too cheap either and you will have to cough up $1,000 to get it, so the expectations from this product are quite high.
     
    The BE85 brings some great technology features to the home network. First and foremost, WiFi 7. This wireless technology promises amazing network speeds to the range of over 10Gbps under ideal conditions. WiFi 7 is a very new wireless standard and there are very few client devices out there supporting it now. For this review, I did not have access to a WiFi 7 client, but I did have the next best thing in my possession: a WiFi 6E device, the latest MacBook Pro M2 Max. Later in this review I will talk about some of the tests I performed using WiFi 6E. The BE85 comes with three wireless bands: 2.4Ghz, 5Ghz and 6Ghz. The latter is the new kid on the block. The 6Ghz band offers higher speeds and reliability compared to the other two traditional bands and Deco BE85 makes good use of it. This band can be used either for connecting 6Ghz compatible clients (such as my Macbook Pro) or to connect the two mesh routers via a backhaul channel using the 6Ghz frequency exclusively to isolate their connection from noise and interference. It’s worth mentioning that you can use 6Ghz either for client connections or as a backhaul between the routers, but not at the same time. Speaking of backhaul connection, that can of course be established using a wired connection as well.
     
    Another great feature that this router system brings along is the 10Gbps ethernet (RJ45/SFP+) ports. As a power user and having my own home lab, this is the feature I was mostly exited about. Each router offers two 10Gbps wired ports, one dedicated and one combo port. The combo port is a fantastic feature and fellow users that use fiber optics with SFP+ modules will appreciate this as much as I do. So, the combo port is actually two ports: an RJ45 and a SFP+ port sitting on top of the same bus. That means that you can use only one port at a time, but you do have the option to connect either an RJ45 cable or a fiber with an SFP+ module. I have opted for the latter since I connect the router to my optical 10Gbps switch. Very convenient. Note here that no SFP+ module is provided with the product, so you need to provide your own. Port connectivity doesn’t end with the two 10G ports. The routers have two more surprisingly fast RJ45 ports ranked at 2.5Gbps. This is great for those of you that have an internet service of over 1Gbps speed but don’t want to waste a 10Gbps router port for it. I have connected my 1Gbps internet modem to one of the 2.5Gbps router port and I still have plenty of ports for fast or faster connections. Excellent! Finally, TP-Link equipped this the routers with a USB 3.0 port for network sharing, making sure that the USB technology of these routers will be up to date for a while since it operates with the 3.0 standard.
     
    Installation and setup of the routers is quite easy via the Deco smartphone application. Being a user of a Deco mesh system before, I already had the Deco app on my phone. All I had to do is plug in the routers and add a new network in the Deco app. The two new routers showed up very quickly and without any issues or delays. The router does provide a web interface that you can load on your internet browser but it’s mostly for viewing basic configuration. It’s been a pet peeve of mine that TP-Link doesn’t provide a full web GUI and I will repeat again my request to develop one. Their Deco app is great and offers multiple options but power users that configure their routers heavily will always prefer a web GUI that can be used on their computers.
     
    My testing focused mostly on seeing how good the WiFi performance can be in daily, non optimal, conditions. Theoretical speeds are good and serve the purpose of validating that the product contains the technological standards that it claims, but I was more interested in seeing what I can expect in practical terms in a home office environment where isolation (walls), interference and wireless noise is inevitable. The Deco BE85 is connected, via the SFP+ port, to a TL-SX3008F JetStream 10Gbps fiber switch. My network storage server is also connected to this switch via a Mellanox CX-3 network card over 10Gbps fiber to ensure 10G network traffic speeds. To avoid disk read/write bottlenecks, I have two storage configurations on the storage server: small superfast storage using M2 SSD disks and a fast storage config using 4 SATA3 disks in a Raid0 configuration that provides maximum performance. My 10G client is my Mac Studio M1 Max, whilst my WiFi 6E client is my Macbook Pro M2 Ultra.
     
    To calibrate the testing environment and make sure that there are no bottlenecks, I tested a file transfer over the Cat8 wired connection to my Mac Studio. As you can see in the attached image, I comfortably reached 10Gbps. Now it was time to test the wireless connection with my Macbook Pro.
     
    There are two kinds of tests I performed to test the wireless connection: 1) sitting next to the router for maximum proximity, and 2) sitting in my home office, having walls, interference and noise that you would normally expect in the average office or home environment. You can see the results of my tests in the attached pictures with annotations on the pictures. Here are some of my takeaways:
    1)     Next to the router, using WiFi 6E (6 Gghz) I can see the highest speeds: 1.25Gbps. There is still potential noise since the router is still in the house, but the very close proximity of my Macbook Pro to the router is the best case scenario in testing this in a home environment. To put things in perspective, this is faster than your average Gigabit ethernet wired connection.
    2)     Sitting right next to the router, I also tried the 5Ghz band. The measured speed wasn’t bad but definitely lower than the 6Ghz band. It averaged around 1Gbps which is still great. This showcases that the Deco BE85 is a great router even for client devices that don’t use the latest WiFi standards.
    3) On the other corner of the router room (it’s a big room with furniture and electronics) I maintained a 1Gbps throughput over 6Ghz WiFi.
    4) On the first floor of the house (both Deco routers located on the second floor) the speed didn’t seem to be affected much. I still measured a healthy 1Gbps of throughput which is much more than what’s needed for typical living room/bedroom applications (movie streaming in 4K, YouTube, gaming or productivity).
    5) Last but not least, my most common use case: sitting in my office where I work on a daily basis, with many active terminal sessions and file transfers. In between the test computer (MacBook Pro M2) and the router, there are walls, furniture and plenty of noise and interference from electronics, power wires inside the walls, mobile devices etc. I was expecting the speed to drop and that’s what happened, but it didn’t drop as much as I thought it would. I still got a good 400Mbps-700Mbps with most of it trending upwards to the 700Mbps level. That exceeded my expectations compared to my previous Deco setup.

    Overall I think the BE85 WiFi performed great in my realistic, daily use cases. Sure, it didn’t reach the many Gigabits that the WiFi standard promises but one thing to keep in mind is that those measurements are theoretical maximums that can be achieved only in strictly controlled, completely noise-free and interference-free environments, with high quality fine tuned hardware and software. The every day user should not expect to see such speeds very often.

    A couple of things regarding the other aspects of the BE85 before I conclude my review. 2.4G and 5G networks are grouped together, while the 6G network is separate. You can disable only the 6G network but not the 2.4G/5G group. You can create an IoT (Internet of Things) network dedicated to your smart home devices (smart switches, lights etc.), which is neat for network separation. One big thing is the Operation Mode: you can choose between Router or Access Point. The latter will turn the BE85 on WiFi access points only, if you’re using your own router. In my case, I’m using a router based on OpenWRT so I turned my BE85 into access points and it works great. As mentioned above, you can use the 6Ghz wireless channel as a backbone between the two routers. This will solidify the reliability and speed between the two routers but you will loose the ability to connect your 6Ghz compatible clients. The only way to have 6Ghz for clients, while having super fast backbone connection between the two routers, is to use a wired backbone (preferably 10Gbps). Guest network is now a given and it can be enabled/managed very easily via the Deco app. The BE85 can support over 100 clients, something that very few users will ever need. I can confirm that it works well with the 55-60 clients that I currently have at home.

    Since no product is perfect, including this great mesh router system, there are a couple of quirks that I need to mention. The first one that bothers me with all TP-Link Deco routers is the fact that the web interface is very basic with not many configurable options. The only way to configure the routers is via the smartphone Deco app, which is great but not suitable for power users (imagine doing large scale access control with client MAC devices via the smartphone app/screen). I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: TP-Link needs to cater to power users, especially for a $1,000 product.
    The second quirk I’ll talk about is client WiFi compatibility: for some reason the hub of my home security system doesn’t like the BE85 and most of the times can’t connect to the WiFi. I am not sure why but I suspect it’s hardware related since the same hub was connecting fine with my previous Deco system. Other than that, I have no real complaints about the BE85.

    Overall the Deco BE85 this is a great mesh router system that will satisfy most, if not all, needs of the home user. It offers plenty of technology, performance and features. It is not a cheap router system but it does track well with the pricing of competing WiFi7 routers out there (Netgear Orbi, Linksys Velop). If you are in the market for a solid, WiFi7 and 10Gbps capable router system, you should definitely consider the Deco BE85.
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    Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2024
    Style: WiFi 7 BE22000, 3-PackVerified Purchase
    Reviewed in the United States on November 5, 2023
    Style: WiFi 7 BE22000, 3-PackVerified Purchase
    Customer image
    1.0 out of 5 stars Do not buy!!!!!!
    Reviewed in the United States on November 5, 2023
    I had the unfortunate experience of dealing with the TP-LINK BE85 WiFi 7 mesh system, and it was an absolute nightmare. The instability of this product is mind-boggling. It constantly drops connections, making it nearly impossible to use for anything beyond sending an email or two.

    To make matters even worse, their customer service is a complete disaster. I reached out for assistance with the connectivity issues, and it was like talking to a brick wall. They were unhelpful, unresponsive, and seemed to have no knowledge of their own product. It's as if they just didn't care about their customers at all.

    As for the hardware itself, it's nothing but complete junk. The build quality is poor, and it feels like it could fall apart at any moment. The range and speed of the WiFi signal are abysmal, and it struggles to cover even a small area effectively.

    Save yourself the frustration and avoid the TP-LINK BE85 WiFi 7 mesh system at all costs. It's a terrible product with terrible customer support, and you'd be better off investing your money in a more reliable and reputable brand.
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    16 people found this helpful
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