eero Pro 6 Review
After more than five long years with my eero (first generation), I finally got around to upgrade it to eero Pro 6 which supports wi-fi 6.
I got the 3-pack eero Pro 6 for US$389 (S$535) as there was a discount a few weeks back. If not, the usual price is US$599 (S$823). Since eero doesn’t ship to Singapore directly, you must go through a freight forwarder. In my case, I am using my usual HopShopGo. Shipping to Singapore is an additional US$55 (S$76), which excludes the 7% GST you have to pay since the item and shipping exceeds S$400 in value.
Unboxing
eero Pro 6 is much bigger than I expected it to be. It is easily two times the size of the first generation eero.
![eero Pro 6 - Box Front](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52285718787_41d2fee08f_c.jpg)
![eero Pro 6 - Box Back](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52286961849_0a8d7cf770_c.jpg)
![eero Pro 6 - Box](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52286696931_33aac169eb_c.jpg)
![eero Pro 6 - Box Open](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52286696901_aed0560ed6_c.jpg)
The 3-pack eero Pro 6 comes with three eero Pro 6, three power adapters, and one cat 5e LAN cable, which I forgot to take a picture of.
![eero Pro 6 - Box Contents](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52285718567_2a143ff5f7_c.jpg)
Design
The first generation eero is on wi-fi 5, dual-band, 1.1 GHz dual-core processor, and 512MB RAM. eero Pro 6 gives you wi-fi 6, tri-band (two 5 GHz, one 2.4 GHz), Zigbee Smart Home Hub, 1.4 GHz quad-core processor, 1GB RAM, and 4GB flash storage.
In deciding between eero Pro 6 and eero Pro 6E, I opted for the former because I don’t have any devices that support 6 GHz yet. At the expense of the 6 GHz, eero Pro 6E tri-band only has one 2.4 GHz and one 5.0 GHz. It is also not guaranteed that the eero Pro 6E will use the 6 GHz as the wireless backhaul between the nodes.
The two 5 5GHz bands in eero Pro 6 is the most important feature to me as I will need one of the 5 GHz band for wireless backhaul and that is the primary reason I chose the eero Pro 6 over the eero Pro 6E.
![eero Pro 6 - Top](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52286961749_62949235c7_c.jpg)
Besides being bigger and heavier, the design language is essentially the same between eero Pro 6 and the first-generation eero. It is in a glossy white finish with a rubberized base.
![eero Pro 6 - Bottom](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52286961494_6d8fc54bab_c.jpg)
Two auto-sensing gigabit ports are at the back together, with one USB-C port for power in the middle.
![eero Pro 6 - Back](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52286961709_04e455a462_c.jpg)
The power rating also has been increased for eero 6 Pro. For the first generation eero, you get 18W. For eero Pro 6, you are getting 27W.
![eero Pro 6 - Power Adapter](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52286961419_2ca6ba1323_c.jpg)
Relacing Existing eero Devices
Upgrading existing eero devices to newer eero devices is also straightforward.
![eero iOS App - Add or Replace eero Devices](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52284261868_fbf64abf17_c.jpg)
You have to click the plus sign in the app, choose Replace eero device and indicate which eero device you are replacing.
![eero iOS App - Replace Or Add eero Device](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52284302663_84625ffc07_c.jpg)
![eero iOS App - Which eero Device Are You Replacing?](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52283315562_d0f79ccb18_c.jpg)
After this step, unplug your old eero device and plug in the newer eero device.
![eero iOS App - Unplug Old eero Device](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52283315557_411e07b3f6_c.jpg)
![eero iOS App - Plug New eero Device](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52284302653_9c503841e4_c.jpg)
![eero iOS App - Looking For eero Devices](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52284305948_03611dfd7d_c.jpg)
![eero iOS App - Setting Up Your eero Pro 6](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52284305963_3bf7959ee7_c.jpg)
That is it.
![eero iOS App - Home](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52288478702_449929e0c5_c.jpg)
I am still keeping the eero Beacon for my Kitchen because there is a blindspot area.
As for the eero Pro in Penguin Room, I am leaving it there for now since it uses a wired backhaul.
Speed – Wired Backhaul
So if you are wondering, is there any speed difference between wi-fi 5 and wi-fi 6? Yes, there is a 100 Mbps to 200 Mbps wireless speed difference.
Tests are done using my iPhone 13 Pro Max.
![iPhone 13 Pro Max - Wired Backhaul - Wi-Fi 5](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52256312796_f08ecb86b1_c.jpg)
![iPhone 13 Pro Max - Wired Backhaul - Wi-Fi 6](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52284520644_ce0203c4a6_c.jpg)
Wired Backhaul Type | Download Speed | Upload Speed |
---|---|---|
eero (1st Generation) | 506 Mbps | 474 Mbps |
eero Pro 6 | 711 Mbps | 603 Mbps |
Speed – Wireless Backhaul
![iPhone 13 Pro Max - Wireless Backhaul - Wi-Fi 5](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52257709013_e9d6e32dd7_c.jpg)
![iPhone 13 Pro Max - Wireless Backhaul - Wi-Fi 6](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52284569714_af79389386_c.jpg)
Wireless Backhaul Type | Download Speed | Upload Speed |
---|---|---|
eero (1st Generation) | 211 Mbps | 184 Mbps |
eero Pro 6 | 437 Mbps | 602 Mbps |
Conclusion
The speed difference is more significant than I expected since my Internet connection maxed 1 Gbps. A wireless speed above 700 Mbps is good enough for me.
You might not necessarily feel the speed difference if you randomly surf the Internet or check out Instagram/TikTok on your phones. But you will feel the difference when consuming more bandwidth-intensive content like streaming 4K content on Netflix/YouTube/Disney+ or having multiple Zoom calls within your household.
So if you are still on wi-fi 5 after all these years, it is time for you to upgrade your routers.
![eero Pro 6](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52286700943_8aaefddaa0_c.jpg)