Improving your home Wi-Fi network, while putting Alexa and your favourite music at your beck and call, Netgear's Orbi Voice demands too many compromises in return for convenience.
If you've worked through the usual home Wi-Fi troubleshooting tips with no luck then a mesh network might be the answer.
The Orbi Voice is a Netgear Orbi mesh Wi-Fi hub and an Alexa smart speaker combined.
They rely on a few wireless hubs, working in unison around your home to create a single Wi-Fi network.
Your wireless devices seamlessly roam between hubs as you move around the house, just like your phone roams between mobile towers.
Strike up the band
There are several mesh Wi-Fi networks on the market and Netgear’s Orbi range stacks up well against competition from the likes of Linksys, D-Link and Google.
The Orbi gear is on the expensive side because it's a "tri-band" system. This means it runs 2.4 and 5GHz networks side-by-side, which appear as a single 802.11ac Wi-Fi network to your devices. Alongside this it adds an extra invisible 5GHz network.
The hubs use this third invisible network to talk among themselves, which reduces the load on the main network. This is handy if you tend to push your Wi-Fi network to the limit but, to be fair, your average user wouldn't notice the difference compared to a cheaper dual-band system without that hidden network.
The Orbi Voice works with standard Orbi hubs.
Boost your coverage
Most mesh Wi-Fi systems come with three hubs, with the option to add more, but the $799 Orbi Voice only includes two. That's a bit on the expensive side for two hubs but of course, in return, one hub is also an Alexa-powered Harman/Kardon smart speaker. If you already have an Orbi mesh system, you can buy just the smart speaker hub for $499.
As a mesh network the Orbi doesn't disappoint, although it was a hassle to set up. It took 30 minutes of attempted firmware updates and restarts before the temperamental satellite Orbi hub in the kitchen would stay connected to the primary Orbi hub plugged into the broadband modem.
Once it's up and running, the mesh network does a great job of extending your Wi-Fi network, as long you place the hubs with care to ensure they still have a strong link to each other. That said, large homes — particularly multi-story homes — would likely benefit from a third hub to ensure you get a strong Wi-Fi signal in the furthest corners of your home.
Each hub features two Ethernet ports for connecting wired devices, which is handy if you need to get internet access to devices which lack Wi-Fi. The primary hub also features a USB2.0 port for connecting a printer so you can print from devices around the house.
Belt out a tune
In theory, combining a mesh hub and smart speaker is a great idea, saving valuable space on the kitchen bench, but in practice your money might be better spent on standalone smart speakers.
For starters, the best spots for Wi-Fi mesh hubs in your home — to get the strongest coverage — might not be the best spots for wireless speakers. If you're forced to compromise on their location then it would have been best to keep them separate.
Remember, only the satellite Orbi hub is a speaker, which doesn't help if you want to listen to music in the same room as the primary hub.
Then there's the fact that the Orbi smart speaker only works with Amazon's Alexa smart assistant. While Alexa is getting smarter, she still lags behind Google Assistant in Australia when it comes to a few key features such as the ability to recognise individual voices in your home.
When it comes to playing music, you're dependent on a handful of audio sources like Amazon Music, Spotify, iHeartRadio, TuneIn and Deezer. You can't stream from your phone via Bluetooth, Chromecast or AirPlay.
Fire up some music and the sound quality is disappointing, especially considering the speaker bears the respected Harman/Kardon badge. It's fine for casual listening but those with an ear for detail will find their music sounds a little brash while lacking in bass.
It's not terrible, still sounding better than a standard Google Home or Amazon Echo, but you're entitled to expect more considering the price tag. It falls far short of a Sonos One smart speaker, which supports both Google Assistant and Alexa while linking to a much wider range of streaming services. Meanwhile, Apple fans will get much better sound from a HomePod.
The Orbi Voice sond quality is disappointing, despite the branding.
So what's the verdict?
Mesh Wi-Fi networks are great but it's hard to get excited for Netgear's Orbi Voice considering the high price tag, limited functionality and mediocre sound quality.
Even if you're wedded to Amazon's Alexa, your money would be much better spent on a Sonos One smart speakers and a standalone mesh Wi-Fi network from Netgear or one of its rivals.
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