Here’s one issue that most online households struggle with: you’re paying high monthly rates for fast, high-bandwidth internet service, only to experience slow and unreliable connection.
Apart from possible issues with your service provider, such problems might also be caused by network congestion or poor router quality that’s not equipped enough to handle your needs.
The new TP-Link Deco BE85 wants to address such issues — and a whole lot more. TP-Link has created an over-the-top, feature-packed WiFi 7 router/modem to ensure you get the most out of your ISP, spare you from network congestions, and grant you extra features so you stay future-proof.
For a product like this, this one’s definitely way above and beyond the basics. Now, let’s dive into the nitty gritty and see if this is the one for you. Read on for our Deco BE85 review.
Design and Build Quality
Internet modems and routers used to be an eyesore. They are the kind of tech that you want to hide away, so they don’t mess with your place’s aesthetic. Well, that used to be the case until Deco joined the game.
The TP-Link BE85 has a canister-like design with lines on the front that form the shape of the number 7, a subtle nod to its biggest feature: WiFi 7.
It has a body made of plastic while the top has exhaust vents with a glass-like surface that adds to the visual appeal. There’s also an underglow light on the front that lights green if everything is working right, then turns red if there are connectivity issues.
The bottom has intake as the BE85 cleverly has dual fans to keep things cool under load — a nifty feature, especially in a tropical country like the Philippines.
These fans are responsible for cooling the beefy hardware inside, which includes 8x high-hain antennas, 12x high-power FEMs, and a powerful quad-core processor.
So, if you want a router that performs as good as it looks and will match whatever style you have, you should definitely consider the Deco BE85.
App and Setup
Setting up the BE85 is incredibly easy even non-techies can do it. The TP-Link Deco app is straightforward and user-friendly, so setting up and maintaining the router is a breeze.
To set it up, simply download the TP-Link Deco app on the App Store for iOS or Google Play Store for Android.
After that, open it and enable all the required permissions > Select your Deco (BE85) > Connect the BE85 to your modem via Ethernet or SFP+ > Wait until the light on the front turns green and you’re good.
You can then easily change your WiFi name and password within the app. You can also enable/disable and individually change the SSID and password of dedicated 2.4GH & 5GHz, 6GHz, or MLO network. MLO stands for Multi-Link Operation, which can simultaneously send and receive data from different bands and channels to improve reliability and reduce latency.
You can also create a dedicated 2.4GHz Network for your IoT products like smart lights, outlets, and more.
What’s more, you can see the devices connected to your network, assign them to a family member, adjust the connection preference (Auto, 2.4GHz, 5GHz, and 6GHz), set it as a High Priority, enable Mesh, and enable Device Isolation.
One of the best features of the app is called HomeShield Center which offers advanced security, better parental control, and built-in VPN.
However, it is a subscription service that currently costs Php299/month (from Php374) or Php1,990/yr (from Php3,320) for the Security+ and Php179/month (from Php224) or Php999/yr (from Php1,665) for the Advanced Parental Controls. While they are currently discounted, it would’ve been better if these features were included for free for at least 6 months, so users can test it out.
TP-Link is one of the most prominent names in the market, so we’re not surprised that they’ve completely nailed the user experience for the Deco BE85. It’s not intimidating to set up and manage, which we can’t always say on a router.
Performance
The TP-Link Deco BE85 is a BE22000 Tri-Band WiFi 7 mesh system that offers theoretical speeds of up to 22Gbps (1,376Mbps for 2.4GHz, 8,640Mbps for 5GHz, and 11,520Mbps for 6GHz). It can cover your entire home with WiFi that has blazing gigabit speeds and offers wired and wireless backhaul to improve throughput and reduce latency.
Being a WiFi 7 router, it is equipped with technologies like 6GHz transmission, 4×4 MU-MIMO streaming, WPA3 encryption, direct-to-client beamforming, OFDMA data transmission, and more.
Since we only have one unit, we weren’t able to test the mesh system. But in our home, we found out that one BE85 unit is already more than enough and a major upgrade than what we had before.
Our old setup consisted of the primary modem/router downstairs and a WiFi Extender to improve connectivity upstairs. Now, we only need one access point, as the BE85 managed to provide a full-bar coverage across our entire home.
We compared the BE85’s signal strength to the modem/router that came with our ISP, and the difference is night and day.
Upstairs, where we usually have issues, we now managed to get speeds of 864Mbps. That’s about 22x faster than the ISP router’s 39Mbps performance. Even just being in the same room with both modems there’s a 3x difference in speed, while going outside the house showed the BE85 is still more than 3x faster.
Network congestion is now a problem of the past for us. We have connected numerous review phones, laptops, smart TVs, and smart accessories, and the BE85 is barely skipped a beat.
In fact, the BE85 can accommodate over 200 devices, making it a perfect setup for small offices if you’re a tech junkie with a bunch of gadgets at home.
For wired connection, we have 2x 2.5Gbps WAN/LAN ports on the back, 2x 10Gbps WAN/LAN ports, 1x USB 3.0 port, and an RJ45/SFP+ combo port so you can directly plug your fiber internet to the router.
The wireless connectivity was already satisfactory we didn’t find the need to go wired, even when playing competitive games. Also, the USB port was incredibly useful as we were able to access a single external drive on multiple devices, great for sharing files.
Verdict
There’s no denying that the TP-Link Deco BE85 has great hardware. The WiFi 7 support makes it future proof, the beefy wired and wireless connectivity offers top-notch and seamless connection if you have a bunch of users at home or office, the app is intuitive to use, and the clean design can match any aesthetic.
Now, the question is, do you need it? Well, you can look at it two ways. One, the BE85 is definitely overkill, especially if you’re just living in a small apartment and only have two to three devices to connect it to it. Plus, by the time WiFi 7 is widely adapted, routers like this inevitably will drop in price.
But if you’re living in a large home or office with a bunch of users — users spending a lot of time gaming, attending online classes, downloading large files for work, etc. — then make sure everyone has the sufficient bandwidth they need by investing in a powerful, no-compromise router such as the Deco BE85. There’s not a lot of routers like this today.
The new TP-Link Deco BE85 is available in Shopee, Lazada, retail stores, and in the TP-Link Concept Store in SM North EDSA. The BE85 1-pack retails for Php30,990, 2-pack for Php59,990, and the 3-pack is priced at Php85,990.