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In late 2023, Amazon was one of the first companies to launch a mesh Wi-Fi 7 router by launching the Eero 7 Max. Being an early adopter of a new wireless standard can bring you significant performance gains over previous generations, but you pay a steep price for that privilege. The Eero 7 Max launched for $599 for a single wireless node, $1,149 for two nodes, and $1,599 for three nodes.
For those who want to try Wi-Fi 7 mesh but don’t want to spend a lot, Amazon has a new entry-level product that is priced right. The Eero 7 is a dual-band Wi-Fi 7 mesh router, priced at just $169 for a single node. A three-pack costs $349, well under the cost of a single Eero 7 Max wireless node.
Of course, the lower price point requires serious compromises in features and performance, so let’s examine the Eero 7 to see if it fits into your potential network topography or deserves a place on our list of the best Wi-Fi routers.
Design of the Amazon Eero 7
I must say that I’m a fan of the overall Eero design language. The Eero satellites are constructed of thick, high-quality white plastic. The sides feature a matte finish, while the top is glossy. There aren’t any fancy adornments on the satellites: all you get is the Eero branding printed in silver on the top and a single status LED. Another item of note is a reset button on the bottom of the unit.
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Moving to the back of the device, we see the first sign of cost-cutting compared to higher-end Eero routers. There are only two 2.5 GbE ports on the back, one of which must be used to connect to your internet gateway. So, once setup is complete, your primary router/node will only have one 2.5 GbE port available. However, any additional wireless node you add will have both 2.5 GbE ports available for wired network devices.
Each satellite is compact, measuring 5.12 inches square, with a height of 2.52 inches at its tallest point.
Amazon Eero 7 Specifications
|
Wi-Fi Standard |
Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) |
|
Wi-Fi Bands |
2.4 GHz: 2×2 (Tx/Rx), up to 688 Mbps |
| Row 2 – Cell 0 |
5 GHz: 2×2 (Tx/Rx), up to 1,147 Mbps |
|
CPU |
1.1 GHz quad-core processor |
|
Memory |
1GB RAM, 4GB Flash |
|
Coverage |
2,000 square feet per node (4,000 square feet, as-tested, with two nodes) |
|
Ports |
2 x 2.5 GbE, 1 x USB-C (for power only) |
Setting Up the Amazon Eero 7
Amazon has always provided an easy and quick setup process for its Eero routers, and the Eero 7 is no exception. Setting up and managing an Eero device exclusively uses the Eero app, which you must install on your iPhone or Android device before proceeding with the setup process.
Since I already have an active Amazon account, I needed to login with my credentials. The app then searched for and located the first Eero 7 node (we were provided a two-pack for our review). Once it was found, the setup program asked me to verify that the Eero 7 node was connected to an internet gateway. The internet connection was verified and the initial setup completed quickly. I was given the option to name the device based on its location in my house and was tasked with choosing an SSID and password. With those steps out of the way, the app informed me that a firmware update was available for the Eero 7, but I decided to hold off for now.
The setup program then informed me that I could add another wireless node. I plugged in the second node, and it was automatically added to the network. It completed its setup process in about a minute. At that point, I performed the firmware upgrade on both devices.
I should reiterate that once setup is complete, you have a fully functional Wi-Fi 7 mesh network, albeit one that doesn’t meet the full potential of the wireless standard. The Eero 7 is a dual-band Wi-Fi mesh router, offering 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands. It lacks the 6 GHz band of more expensive standalone and mesh Wi-Fi 7 routers. While that allows Amazon to sell the Eero 7 at a lower price point, you miss out on the higher short-range performance offered by the 6 GHz band.
Unless you’re relying heavily on wireless network transfers or are looking to take full advantage of a multi-gig fiber internet connection, the lack of the 6 GHz band might not be big a deal to you, but keep that in mind if you want to add full-featured Wi-Fi 7 clients to your network in the future.
Amazon Eero 7 Software
As mentioned in the previous section, the Eero 7 relies exclusively on an app for setup and configuration. It’s a well-designed app, but those who prefer to tinker with a full-blown desktop GUI will have to look elsewhere. That said, I found the app easy to use, with quick access to important information.
The main Home tab provides the status of your internet connection, the status of your connected Eero nodes, and a scrollable list of wireless and wired clients. The Devices tab is self-explanatory and gives you a list of wired and wireless clients. The Activity tab records your most recent recorded internet speeds (download and upload), along with the cumulative downloaded and uploaded data totals on a weekly basis. A timeline function also gives you timestamps for certain network activities (i.e., when an Eero node comes online, when an update was last performed, when a new client joins, etc.).
The Settings tab contains the bulk of the Eero 7’s configuration options. You can change the Wi-Fi name and password, turn on/off the guest network, adjust DNS settings, toggle UPnP support, enable MLO support, and more. However, since the Eeros are designed for a broader consumer base, you won’t find an endless stream of configuration options like you would with Asus or Netgear mesh routers.
That brings me to my next point of contention: Eero Plus. Many handy Eero software features are locked behind a paywall. Eero Plus gives you access to internet backup (allows you to use a smartphone’s hotspot to provide internet to an Eero network if your ISP goes down), DDNS, ad blocking, 1Password integration, VPN (provided by Guardian), content filters, and more. We expect most of this functionality to come standard with a modern router, but Amazon wants you to pay for that privilege. Amazon charges $9.99/month or $99.99 a year for Eero Plus, so that’s another added cost that you’ll want to factor in if those features appeal to you.
Amazon Eero 7 Performance
I’ll preface the performance section by reiterating that the Eero 7 is only a dual-band (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz) Wi-Fi 7 router, meaning you won’t see any 6 GHz performance numbers.
Our Wi-Fi client testbed is a Windows 11 desktop with an MSI Pro B650M-A Wi-Fi motherboard, AMD Ryzen 5 7600 CPU, 32GB of DDR5, a 1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD, and an MSI Herald-BE Wi-Fi 7 PCIe adapter. All of these devices use the most recent software, BIOS, firmware, and drivers (where applicable).
The iPerf3 throughput tests are conducted with our Windows 11 server equipped with an onboard 10 Gbps wired network card connected to the 2.5 Gbps LAN port on the primary Eero 7 node. Wireless tests are conducted at 6-foot and 25-foot distances.
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Wireless tests are first conducted with the network free of added traffic from other connected clients. Next, those same tests are run with simulated traffic from additional users accessing the network (for our testing, we use six clients streaming 4K video from YouTube).
In our 5 GHz iPerf3 test, which was free and clear of additional wireless traffic, the Eero 7 managed to deliver 1,097 Mbps at close range (six feet). This put it right in line with the TP-Link Deco BE5000 and the Netgear Orbi 770 – all three were well within the margin for error. Stretching out to 25 feet, the Eero 7 fell to third place by a fairly large margin, delivering 346 Mbps compared to 472 Mbps and 554 Mbps for the Deco BE5000 and Orbi 770, respectively.
With congested traffic, 5 GHz performance dropped to 886 Mbps at six feet, and 335 Mbps at 25 feet. This put it well ahead of the Deco BE5000 (791 Mbps and 189 Mbps), but just over 100 Mbps shy of the more expensive Orbi 770, which is a pricier tri-band Wi-Fi 7 mesh router).
Switching our attention to 2.4 GHz performance, we measured 117 Mbps at close range and 57 Mbps at long range with our uncongested iPerf3 test. This was slightly better performance than the Deco BE5000, but a significant downgrade compared to the Orbi 770 (158 Mbps, 92 Mbps). With congested traffic, the Eero 7 shed about 25 percent of its performance at six feet, bringing 87 Mbps at six feet and 48 Mbps at 25 feet.
Ping times were consistent across all distances, bands, and traffic levels, hovering around 7 milliseconds or less.
Bottom Line
For customers looking for an affordable way to step into the Wi-Fi 7 mesh router, the Eero 7 makes a strong case for itself, with a few caveats. On the plus side, it’s affordable, costing just $169.99 for a single node, $279 for two nodes, and $349 for three nodes, offering up to 6,000 square feet of coverage. The Eero app is easy to navigate and makes configuring your wireless network simple. In addition, its wireless performance is competitive with similarly-priced Wi-Fi mesh routers.
However, while I appreciate the fact that dual-band Wi-Fi 7 routers help lower the price of entry, it bifurcates the market and adds confusion for consumers. The dual-band status also means that you miss out on a higher-performing 6 GHz wireless band. You only get two Ethernet ports per node, one of which is used by your internet gateway on the main router, and they’re limited to 2.5 Gbps. Network configuration and setup is only possible with the Eero app, which is limiting, and you’ll need to pay for an Eero Plus subscription ($99.99/year) to unlock full functionality from the Eero 7, which is disappointing.
At this price point, the main competition is the TP-Link Deco BE5000, which costs $299 for three wireless nodes. Given the similar specs, similar performance, and lower price the Deco BE5000 would still be our choice if you need an affordable Wi-Fi 7 mesh router.
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