Tuesday, December 3, 2024
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Looking for an AirPort alternative? LinkSys has expanded its Velop home mesh Wi-Fi system

Since Apple has ended development of its AirPort line of wireless routers, those looking for an alternative may be interested in this news: Linksys has announced the availability of its latest addition to the Linksys family of Velop Whole Home WiFi Mesh Systems.

The new Velop Dual-Band Mesh WiFi System. Pricing is $129.99 for a one-pack, $199.99 for a two-pack, and $299.99 for a three-pack. Linksys is Apple’s recommended company for AirPort product alternatives.

The new Velop Dual-Band Series is a smaller and more affordable WiFi System that is designed and built as the world’s first mass-market flexible WiFi System, according to Justin Doucette, senior director of product management at Linksys. It also provides all the same software features found in the Velop Tri-Band offerings including Intelligent Mesh, advanced parental controls, website blocking, Amazon Alexa compatibility, as well as ease of use and set up with the Linksys App but in a smaller form factor with Dual-Band technology at a more affordable price, he adds.

Both Dual-Band and Tri-Band nodes are 100% interoperable and interchangeable and allow for upgradability based on a customers’ need. Velop Dual-Band nodes stand about two inches shorter than the Velop Tri-Band solution and are small enough to be placed anywhere. And coming soon (planned for June) is a Velop Wall Mount to put Velop in high locations on the wall or remove from shelves for a clutter-free environment. 

The nodes work together as a WiFi system to provide wireless connectivity throughout the home. Each Velop “node” is a Dual-Band AC1300 device that can act as a parent node or client node to deliver WiFi all around the home while providing future proof technology customers need as they bring new and more devices into the home, says Doucette. 

Individual nodes may be connected wirelessly or by Ethernet for the fastest, most reliable connection. The system uses only one WiFi network name and password to give users seamless and highly secure WiFi.

Velop Dual-Band leverages Linksys Intelligent Mesh Technology, which is an evolution in Home WiFi engineering that combines Linksys software and hardware to deliver WiFi via the fastest path to the Internet, sys Doucette. Intelligent Mesh Technology helps provide better speed at distances, improved client handling between nodes, and dynamic improvements to back-haul to always ensure the best connection to the Internet, he adds.


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Dennis Sellers
the authorDennis Sellers
Dennis Sellers is the editor/publisher of Apple World Today. He’s been an “Apple journalist” since 1995 (starting with the first big Apple news site, MacCentral). He loves to read, run, play sports, and watch movies.