Shows what Wi-Fi 7 can really do

Verdict

Yes, you read the price right: the Netgear Orbi 970 Series (RBE973S) is a staggeringly expensive mesh system that will cost you more than a massive TV. That alone will mean most people will turn away. Those that want a Wi-Fi 7 mesh system that can cope with today’s needs and tomorrow’s demands, won’t be disappointed with the stunning performance and array of fast Ethernet ports.

Introduction

There’s no messing about with the Netgear Orbi 970 Series (RBE973S): it’s a super-powered Wi-Fi 7 mesh system, with a wide range of fast Ethernet ports, built to deliver the throughputs that tomorrow’s devices and broadband connections will require.

Simple to control and manage, and with staggering throughputs, this is the ultimate mesh system for those who can afford it.

Design and Build Quality

• New tower design
• Wide range of Ethernet ports

The Netgear Orbi 970 Series (RBE973S) is available in black and also in the white version that I have on review. This is the three-pack, which comes with one router and two satellites for a staggering (£2199.99/$2299.99). Yes, you read that right.

For smaller homes, there’s a two-pack version that costs £1499.99/$1699.99 Overall, the Netgear Orbi 970 Series (RBE973S) is a lot more expensive than the Eero Max 7 system, where you can buy a three-pack for slightly more than Orbi’s two-pack.

Part of the reason the Orbi system is so much more expensive is because of the design and the tech used, including the wider range of ports available on the system. As usual, for Orbi mesh systems, the 970 series has one router and separate satellites.

Both devices look the same, using a brand-new design with Netgear going for taller towers that take up less desk space.

For the router, there’s a 10 Gigabit Ethernet port for the WAN connection, which provides enough headroom for broadband connections way into the future, and another 10 Gigabit Ethernet connection, which can be used for devices or for the backhaul.

There are then four 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet ports for devices, so it’s unlikely that you’ll also need to have an external switch.

For the satellites, you get one 10 Gigabit Ethernet and two 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet ports, which is plenty for most uses.

Features

• Parental controls and security options
• App control (with remote access)
• Web interface gives additional features

Set up of the Netgear Orbi 970 Series (RBE973S) is no different to any other Orbi system: fire up the app, scan the QR code and follow the wizard through to connect the router to your internet, configure the wireless network and get the satellites working.

Satellites can be connected via Ethernet for a wired backhaul, which provides fixed stability and speeds, and also allows you to put one at a longer range, such as in a garden office.

If you don’t have the necessary cabling throughout your home, then the satellites can be connected wirelessly. As with previous Orbi systems, there’s a dedicated backhaul. In this case, a 4×4 5GHz network, with a total throughput of 8647Mbit/s. Plus, the backhaul can be enhanced with the 6GHz network (4×4, 11,530Mbit/s), as per the Wi-Fi 7 spec.

Otherwise, both the routers and the satellites have a secondary 4×4 5GHz network running at up to 5765Mbit/s and a 4×4 2.4GHz network running at 1147Mbit/s.

Running Wi-Fi 7, the new system is not backwards compatible with the older range of Orbi devices. It’s a shame that older devices can’t be used in some form or another, but the mismatch in technologies would cause issues and potentially slow down the Netgear Orbi 970 Series.

 With the rival Eero system, the new Eero Max 7 can be added to an existing network, with the caveat that features and performance can be affected. Overall, if you’re going to upgrade to Wi-Fi 7, then a full upgrade of all devices is the most likely requirement.

With the Orbi system up and running, most control is through the Orbi app. This works locally and, if you’ve connected your system to your Netgear account, remotely. Controls are a little basic: you can see what’s connected to the system and change the Wi-Fi name and toggle the guest network.

For more advanced settings, there’s the web interface, which gives control over the 2.4GHz and 5GHz network channels (there’s no option to adjust the 6GHz band)

Similar to other Orbi systems, there are optional parental controls and security. For the parental controls, the standard version lets you create profiles for household members, assigning all of their devices to them. That then gives you a one-touch ability to pause internet connections for a person.

Pay for the higher tier (£6.99 a month or £59.99 a year, with offers often available in-app), and you can set time limits, schedules and bedtimes, as well as track internet access and add filtering. For a household with kids, the parental controls are a powerful, if not expensive, tool

Netgear Armor is also available and has a one-month trial. Powered by BitDefender, Armor provides network-wide security scanning, and spam blocking. You also get BitDefender as a download for any PCs and phones you have.

It’s a neat integration that makes sure you’re protected inside and out of your home network, even if it is a little expensive.

Performance

• Exceptionally fast with Wi-Fi 7
• Good performance at range

I test Wi-Fi 7 devices using a Xiaomi 13T Pro phone, as it’s the only Wi-Fi 7 device that I have. Despite having been around for a year, there are still relatively few Wi-Fi 7 devices available.

Using Wi-Fi 7, a device can connect using the 5GHz and 6GHz channels together, for improved speeds. Running an OpenSpeedTest server on a computer wired to the Orbi router, I found speeds at close range averaged 2334.50Mbit/s.

Moving 5m away, up to the first floor of my house, and near a satellite placed in the landing, I got speeds of 2047.42Mbit/s. Both results are incredible and are the fastest Wi-Fi 7 speeds that I’ve seen.

Moving onto the second floor, speeds dropped to 1563.60Mbit/s, which is still fast. Based on the graph below, that’s not a huge amount different from the speeds I got with the Eero 7 Max; however, the Orbi’s speeds are more evenly split, with similar download and upload speeds. In contrast, the Eero Max 7 was comparatively slow for uploads and faster for downloads.

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