ᐅ Wi-Fi Access Points – Which Ones to Choose?

Good morning everyone,

I completely forgot to plan for Wi-Fi access points, which is a bit annoying now. I need to retrofit something and am looking for the right access point to meet my needs.

I’ve read a lot about Ubiquiti access points, which would actually be quite good for my requirements since they support PoE (Power over Ethernet). However, what I don’t like is that I want to set up a nightly shutdown that I can also disable easily via an app when needed. Unfortunately, I can’t find this feature on Ubiquiti devices.

As alternatives, there are various Fritz!Box access points or the TP-Link Deco M4.

How have you solved this?

Best regards

If you only have a few APs, it makes sense to use injectors or a small PoE switch. You can control them by turning the power supply on and off. A switched socket via KNX is possible. A Wi-Fi wall outlet is difficult to use. Wireless control could also be an option, but I assume you want to switch off due to radiation concerns?

With UniFi, you can schedule the Wi-Fi to turn on and off. The access point itself remains active.

rick2018 schrieb:

Wireless could be an option too, but I guess you want to turn it off because of radiation?

I have an EnOcean system installed in the house, but it only works when pressing a button. Since the access point is located in the neighboring room of the bedroom, I would like to have this night shutdown. Actually, I only need 2, because I can supply the basement with the router. It’s mainly important for me on the upper floor. So would 2 injectors be the better choice for the 2 access points? Or should I disable the Wi-Fi on my 7590 and rather use 3 access points?

So ideally, connect the Unifi to a PoE switch and then power the switch with a smart relay actuator?

I would recommend using all three from Unifi. This way, you have the same features throughout, such as multiple Wi-Fi networks. Connect the relay actuator directly to the power supply of the POE switch or injectors if used. Depending on the access point and the package, these may or may not be included. If not, you can buy a small POE switch for less money and only have one power plug.

If you use a Unifi switch, you can also easily turn the POE on or off for each port individually through the app. However, scheduling this is not currently supported.

With the FritzBox solution, we would be looking at around 200€ in costs. The Unify access points are significantly more expensive... Is the Lite version sufficient?

Range is always a tricky subject. I definitely wouldn’t use the Lite version. Either go for the new In-Wall models or the NanoHd.
The Lite has low throughput on both 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz and no 4x4 MIMO...
If you don’t want to spend much, use the APs from AVM. They are faster and can be managed through the Fritzbox.
Based on your questions, I think you probably wouldn’t use most of the advanced features or aren’t very deep into the topic. Therefore, a consumer product is likely the better choice.