Whatever mesh system you get, make sure it supports wired backhaul. Wired will beat wireless everytime and it would be a shame not to leverage your existing wired investment. It's not exclusive: You could have two talking to each other over a wire and to a third one via wireless.
The big advantage of a mesh system is *supposed* to be
a. the one time setup/configuration automation, and
b. the handoff, during everyday operation, of a wireless client from one AP to the next as you physically move around.
Some mesh systems are better at the handoff than others. AP handoff is a feature you will most likely engage if you are using a phone with WiFi calling and you move around the house. Yes, you *could* need it if you are in the middle of working with a laptop and decide to move to a different room. But my observation is that most people tend to use their laptop in the same place, and don't move from one room to another in the middle of a working session. Who knows, maybe covid has affected that more (e.g., "Hey, I'm starting a Zoom session in 5 minutes and I need you out of here").
I use two TP Link EAP225v3 AP units connected via wireless backhaul. It is a business class AP. I turn off the antennas on my old router, let it still do DHCP. The two APs then cover wireless duty in my house with ease. They can run standalone or in a mesh. I do run then as a mesh, which means I need to deploy the software controller for install and changes (I don't need to run the controller at other times, unless my geek self gets curious about connection stats).
The upside:
1.
very fast speeds,
2. Low price (currently $59), you can add another unit anytime.
Here is a review of the $96 successor (EAP245v3) and with a chart comparing real world testing to other mesh units, including the Eepro.
TP-Link EAP245 v3 Review: A Valuable Access Point | Dong Knows Tech
| | TP-Link EAP245 v3 Review: A Valuable Access Point | Dong Knows TechCosting less than $100, the TP-Link EAP245 v3 access point is an excellent buy to extend your network via PoE. G... |
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The downside is that the controller used for setup and configuration changes is not Mac native. Linux, Windows, or cloud are your options. I would consider that a no-go normally, but honestly, the number of times I run the controller in a year is <5, and only due to idle geek curiosity. As I said, the old router runs DHCP, so any static assignments are done there. The only reason to run the mesh controller is to add another AP or fiddle with the sensitivity knobs to see how you can affect handoffs. The defaults are fine.
You can do geeky things like turn on band steering (literally, steering connections to 5GHz if they support it). After a while, you realize you don't care that much, the setup just works.
Full disclosure: I have had to reboot my EAP225v3 APs 2 or 3 times in the last two years I've owned them. Maybe I'm getting lazy in my old age but sometimes I just want to get back online and I don't have time for the deep dive.