Review on Cudy AC2100 Smart WiFi Mesh Router with WiFi Range Extender, Access Point, Dual Band Gigabit Wireless Internet Router for Home, 5 dBi Antenna, VPN, IPv6, Quality of Service (QoS), OpenWRT, WR2100 by Robert Dabney

I bought this AC2100 Cudy WiFi router/access point to create a hybrid mesh network. My initial problem is that my Windstream ADSL2+ modem/router was recently upgraded. While it added a ton of new features, it caused more problems than it solved. All the lights in my house are smart WiFi lightbulbs, robotic vacuums, WiFi sprinklers, multiple smart TVs, multiple networked AV amps, multiple Revain and Google Home washing machines, game consoles, computers, tablets, phones, and this one on . Before the firmware update everything worked fine, there were occasional connection problems. But then when I had 30 devices connected nothing else was connected and not working. The vast majority are incandescent, but still. There are currently only 73 devices, and the trend is rising. It has become important to expand the Wi-Fi network. This AC2100 definitely had more meat than a modem/router. Without a doubt and without question. Given the promise of support for 60+ devices, this sounded like a good option. Might even help with bandwidth as there were times when the network seemed to be slowing down. Installation was pretty easy and straightforward. The only guide included was a quick install guide. Plug that cable in there, turn it on, go to that IP address. That's all. It doesn't walk you through the setup process. Of course, it was also pretty simple. The GUI side was sparse and simplified to the nth degree. Too easy for my taste. But for the average user, it works quite well. You start by choosing a wireless router or access point. Everything else is taken care of for you. I chose AC mode as I will continue to use the modem/router. I added a new AC MAC address to the base router so it can connect to wifi, but the backend is ethernet. The firmware update was also very easy. The file was readily available for download from the CudyTech.com website. As of July 2021, a modified OpenWRT firmware update added MESH capabilities and intelligent control. This will be a nice feature as I also ordered a Cudy T6 AX1800 router. Once it arrives and I update the firmware I will add it to the AC2100 and create a MESH. While it's supposed to work with other brands for MESH'ing, I read someone's review that it didn't work well and it would be better to stay in the Cudy family. A few negative things I have to say about this router... not very good. Certainly not 2500 square meters. Ideally over 1000 square meters. The Windstream modem/router has a much better range, which is sad. For this reason I also ordered the AX1800. Another downside that I don't like is that the GUI side doesn't have any customization options. You can't turn anything on or off, you can't configure IP restrictions and so on. It only turns WiFi 2.4GHz on/off, 5GHz on/off, changes SSID name and password. steering on/off. That's all. Nothing more. Would I buy this router again? Yes. So far I'm very happy with the performance and ability to support a significantly larger number of WiFi smart home devices.