All About Mesh Wifi How and Why Does it Work?
Are you curious about Mesh Wifi and how it works? In this video I am going to give a general overview of why it works, and what you can expect from adding one to your household or small business.
Tenda Nova MW6 Mesh Wifi is powered with true Mesh technology.
With a set of three Wi-Fi satellite modules (nodes), Tenda Nova MW6 can cover your home up to 6,000 sq.ft (500 m2). The Tenda Nova MW6 will make your Wi-Fi very fast and strong. Using Smart Auto-path Selection Technology to ensure a robust wireless network and maximise a faster internet.
What is a Mesh Wi-Fi network system?
Mesh Wi-Fi or Whole Home Wi-Fi systems consists of a main router that connects directly to your modem. With a series of satellite modules, or nodes, placed around your house for full (Whole Home) Wi-Fi coverage.
Mesh Wi-Fi is connected to the existing single wireless network and shares the same SSID and password, unlike traditional Wi-Fi routers.
Let’s see whether or not the Tenda Nova MW6 can improve upon the Google design and maybe dethrone the Google Nest Mesh Wifi 3 Pack priced at $799
The Nova MW6 Whole Home Mesh Wi-Fi System by Tenda is a relatively unknown company based out of China. Tenda Nova MW6 Mesh Wi-Fi System is priced at $179 was $269 at ComputerLounge, that’s about $620 cheaper compared to the Google Nest Mesh Wifi 3 Pack.
Tenda NOVA MW6 Mesh WiFi Product Video Introduction.
NOVA MW6 is powered with true Mesh technology, a set of three units cover home up to 6,000 sq.ft with strong Wi-Fi signals. Smart Auto-path Selection Technology to ensure a robust wireless network and maximize a faster home internet.
The Google Nest Mesh Wifi NZ system
The Google Nest Mesh Wifi until now has been the King of Home Mesh Wi-Fi Systems. In 2019 and 2020 it was the number one selling mesh network product on all of Amazon.
Buy the Tenda Nova MW6 Mesh WiFi System
You will get 3 individual cubes (nodes), 1 flat Ethernet cable and 3 power adapters. Each node will cover between 500 and 2,000 square feet according to Tenda. All 3 nodes together will cover about 6,000 square feet.
I ordered this Mesh WiFi System and the delivery arrived the next day!
You will get 3 individual cubes (nodes), 1 flat Ethernet cable and 3 power adapters. Each node will cover between 500 and 2,000 square feet according to Tenda. All 3 nodes together will cover about 6,000 square feet.
It’s safe to say you will get the same coverage as the Google Nest Mesh Wifi 3 Pack range. Which is also 500 square metres and ultimately the Wifi signal will depend on the construction material of your house or apartment.
Each Tenda Nova MW6 node has two 3dBi dual band antennas
They operate on both 2.4 and 5GHz bands and they support simultaneous dual band Wi-Fi. Which is an absolute must because it means that you don’t have to switch networks as you move around the house.
Tenda Nova MW6 mesh Wifi supports IEEE802.3, IEEE802.3u for a true Wifi mesh network. Designed and built for all smart homes with internet hungry devices. You can easily connect all Wifi devices to any individual cube. Each cube is 10 x 10 x 10 cm and each cube’s weight is 499 grams, making each cube insanely light.
All the cubes display a multi colored light on the top, to show you the different statuses. There are two 1 Gigabit Ethernet ports, 1 for the LAN and 1 for the WAN/LAN cables. It’s simple to connect the power adaptor and the reset/WPS button is easy to locate.
The Tenda Nova MW6 Mesh Wi-Fi System might not be as powerful as the Google Nest Mesh Wifi system however, it is surprisingly close enough.
The set up is simple and easier compared to the Google Nest Mesh Wifi system.
All you have to do is connect one cube to your modem router with the Ethernet cable and connect the cube to the power. Next you download the Tenda Wi-Fi App off of the Google Play or App Store. Next you’ll connect the App to your Wifi network and finally you can position the 2 other nodes and connect both to the power.
1. How to set up Tenda Nova MW6 Mesh Wi-Fi System
First you need to connect a single nova cube to your modem
- Power off your modem.
- Use the included Ethernet cable to connect a LAN port of your modem to the WAN port of any nova cube.
- Use one of the included power adapters to connect the nova cube to a power source.
- Power on your modem and nova cube.
2. Install the Tenda Wifi App
- Google Play
- App Store
- Register to create an account and connect the App to your Wifi.
- Go to the WiFi network list on your mobile device, select the SSID of the nova cube, and enter its password. The SSID and password are specified on the label of the nova cube.
3. How to connect the Nova MW6 Mesh Wi-Fi to the Internet
Run the Tenda WiFi app and follow the onscreen instructions to connect the nova cube to the internet. After the nova cube is connected to the internet,
its LED should turn solid green.
- Connect the other nova cubes to the power.
- From 10 to 14 metres from another.
- In an open area for the best performance.
- Wait about 1 minute until each nova cube’s LED lights up and displays green.
- If a nova cube’s LED does not light solid green, move the unit closer to another to get it better connected.
- Tenda Nova MW6 Mesh Wi-Fi Installation Guide [PDF]
- Download Tenda Wi-Fi App User guide [PDF]
- Tenda Nova MW6 Mesh Wi-Fi Specification sheet [PDF]
Please note when you name the Mesh Wifi with password this will not replace the modem Wifi. You will still see the modem Wifi and can continue to connect to it. However, we advise you to connect all your devices to the new Mesh Wifi network. You can also set up a guest network.
To add the additional nodes to the mesh network you’d simply power them on. You don’t even need to connect an Ethernet cable. In the Tenda Wifi App you will see each individual nova node request to join the mesh wifi network. Very quickly you will have a mesh Wifi network and that is all there is to it.
Tenda Nova MW6 Mesh Wifi is simple and easy to set up and manage!
There are no barcodes to scan like the Google Wi-Fi system or weird codes to type in or anything like that. The Tenda Wifi App itself is all you will need to manage this entire mesh wifi system. You can also manage it remotely from outside of your home. There are a bunch of additional features you can get from the Tenda wifi application. Including basic parental controls meaning that you can group devices together and control the Internet access to those specific devices.
Despite the lower hardware specs versus the Google Nest Wi-Fi, the Tenda Nova MW6 Mesh Wifi performs well. Like all mesh wifi systems there are cheap and expensive options. Nova wifi system is priced at low to the mid price range. The Nova MW6 Mesh Wifi is only fractionally slower than the Google Wi-Fi system. We think the real question here is it good enough to displace Google Wi-Fi system for your average user?
We believe in this case it’s a pretty solid contender if budget and ease of use are the main focus. Tenda Nova MW6 Mesh Wifi is not only great value for money. Compared to any Mesh Wi-Fi system, on the market right now, it matches it not only performance but also many features. For anyone else who is looking for a cheap and reliable way to extend and improve their wireless network signal penetration. You should absolutely take a look at the Tenda Nova MW6 Mesh Wifi system.
The above tests were taken in a 70 metre apartment.
The modem is positioned in the main bedroom in the far corner next to the street. The issue was due to the TV room 25 metres from the modem at the opposite end of the apartment. The main bedroom and home office are right next to each other. There is a large 40 metre terrace so obviously the wifi signal dropped off in the TV room and outside on the terrace. Well not anymore thanks to the Tenda Nova MW6 Mesh Wifi!
