The TP-Link Deco XE75 Wi-Fi 6E AXE5400 is the first tri-band mesh router we’ve tested. The review helps us understand the nuances of Wi-Fi 6E and the differences between how different brands handle Wi-Fi 6E mesh.
In the case of TP-Link, it is a tri-band 2.4/5/6GHz router that uses the 6GHz band for mesh backhaul to the router. While it’s great to use the uncongested and faster 6GHz band for backhaul, the trade-off is that the satellites need to be closer to the router, especially when the signal passes through walls, doors, closets, etc.
Our testing has confirmed that around 7 meters is the maximum satellite/router distance, but we still got acceptable results up to 10 meters.
TP-Link Deco XE75 Wi-Fi 6E AXE5400 Tri-Band Mesh Router
An XE75 Pro is coming. The main difference is a 2.5GHz Ethernet port replacing one of the three Gigabit ports.
| website | product page |
| Price | $999 for the three pack |
| Out of | CE retailers such as Harvey Norman, Bing Lee, Officeworks and computer stores. You may need to order it or use Bing Lee’s eBay store. |
| warranty | 36 months |
| company | TP-Link (established in 1996) is a privately held Chinese company. Products include high-speed cable modems, wireless and mobile routers, range extenders, switches, IP cameras, powerline adapters, switches, print servers, media converters, wireless adapters, power banks, USB hubs and SMART home technology devices. |
| More | CyberShack TP-Link News and Reviews |
We use Fail (below expectations), Pass (meets expectations), and Exceed (exceeds expectations or is best in class) for many of the following. Occasionally we give a Pass(able) rating, which isn’t as good as it should be, and a Pass ‘+’ rating to show it’s good but doesn’t quite make it to Exceed.
You can click on most of the images to enlarge them.
First impression – passed
After reviewing the stylish Art Deco-shaped TP-Link Deco X90 AX6600 mesh router, it’s fast, very fast (review), I was a bit disappointed with the rather squat cylinder design. It’s not ugly by any means, but I wouldn’t make it a feature like I would on the X90.
Setup – a breeze – Exceed
The 3-pack contains three identical devices. Whoever you connect to the internet becomes the router. The LAN port (there are three) you use will automatically become a WAN port.
Download the TP-Link Deco app for Android or iOS, connect the first “router” and as soon as the LED flashes blue, the app takes over. You need a TP-Link account and there are no obvious privacy issues. The admin password is your account password. Enter the SSID name and password and give the first device a location such as “office”. Language assistants also use this location.
Adding a satellite is also easy. Switch it on near the router and the app will find it and set it up – the same goes for a room. Once added, you can move the satellite to the new location and optionally use Ethernet backhaul by simply plugging a cable back into the router.
The app does not have an indicator of the signal strength between the satellite and the router, so pay attention to the distance. If a satellite fails to network using Wi-Fi 6E backhaul, you may see a blinking red LED.
The app is simple – it lists clients on the network or is connected to each satellite. There is a scan function and channel optimization (HomeShield free)
HomeShield – Passed
Like many brands, TP-Link offers a 30-day trial of an optional HomeShield subscription protection package. The price is AUD$8.99 per month or $89.99 per year. Subscription includes (included in free and paid versions*)
| Network security scan * | Scan public WiFi * | Real-time IoT protection | Malicious Content Filtering | DDoS protection |
| Port Intrusion Prevention | Block websites * | Per content filter * | pause internet* | Flexible bedtime (Free has a bedtime) |
| time limits | time rewards | traffic statistics | Usage Reports* | New access devices * |
| Insight * | device type | security statistics | Family online time ranking | Visited URLs |
Quick Specs – TP-Link Deco XE75 Wi-Fi 6E
- Tri-band 2.4GHz HE20/40 574Mbps half duplex, 5GHz 2402 HE160 full duplex, 6GHz 2402 HE160 full duplex
- 6 streams 2 x 2 MU-MIMO with OFDMA
- Guest network on all bands
- WPA2/3
- Can change LAN IP address and basic parameters
- The 6GHz band can be used for dedicated Wi-Fi backhaul to another XE75, or you can use it for 6E devices and Wi-Fi backhaul.
- Intelligent AI-driven mesh eliminates signal congestion and BSS coloring to bypass neighbors’ WiFi
- 3 x Gigabit Ethernet ports (one becomes a WAN)
- Access via the app or basic details via the web interface
- 105 × 105 × 169 mm each plus connector package
- Power Consumption: 12V/2A/24W – Consumes about 3-7W (average 5.3W) per device per hour. A 3-pack costs 0.382 kWh/24 hours or about 10 cents daily (at 30 cents/kWh).
mesh smarts
As I used the system more, I realized how TP-Link does a lot of things automatically – hence its simple interface. For example:
- It can swap and change traffic across the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands (Adaptive Path Selection)
- It can aggregate unused bandwidth to get 2400Mbps connection
- Self-healing when other routers nearby are using the same bands
- Bluetooth and Zigbee as well as WLAN (IoT Mesh)
- Supports other IEEE 802.11.11k/v/r mesh devices
- 2 x smart antenna and beamforming between router and satellites
- Its AI-driven mesh is among the fastest I’ve seen for roaming handover to satellites – about 2 seconds is all it takes.
- Has a stateful packet inspection firewall (no need to disable gateway firewall, DHCP or NAT).
device support
TP-Link claims to have up to 200 connected devices, and that’s theoretically possible. But the reality is more like 30-40 if you have Wi-Fi hungry devices like security cameras and 4K streaming.
Pros and cons of 6GHz Wi-Fi backhaul
- Fast and largely undisputed
- Maximum distance between satellite and router 5-7m unless Ethernet backhaul is used
- In AU only 3 x 160 MHz channels and lower transmission power (USA 7 x 160 MHz)
Test: Router only.
Samsung S22 Ultra. -dBM – lower is better. Mbps – higher is better. Ms – lower is better. Maximum NBN speed is nominally 100/20.
| 5GHz -dBm/Mbps | 6GHz -dBm/Mbps | 5GHz DL/UL/Ms | 6GHz DL/UL/Ms | |
| 2 | -28/2401 | -33/2041 | 10/20/21 | 10/16/21 |
| 5 | -44/1725 | -50/1361 | 10/20/28 | 10/15/25 |
| 10 | -50/1300 | -63/524 | 10/20/29 | 10/13/27 |
| fifteen | -55/897 | -68/433 | 10/17/33 | 100/12/49 |
| 5m through 2 walls and cabinets | -65/1814 | -68/272 | 10/17/44 | 10/15/99 |
Conclusions: The 6GHz band exceeds -60dBm (becomes unusable) before 10m, although it still has enough power to drop the full NBN 100Mbp DL and UL speeds. The 5 meter through wall test proves that the 6 GHz band is best in sight.
This confirms our observations with the Netgear RAXE500 AXE11000, Wi-Fi 6E router (network test).
Tests: satellites
5m away through two walls/closets with Wi-Fi 6E backhaul
| 5GHz -dBm/Mbps | 6GHz -dBm/Mbps | 5GHz DL/UL/Ms | 6GHz DL/UL/Ms | |
| 2m | -21/2401 | -22/2041 | 19.10.21 | 10/18/40 |
7m line of sight Wi-Fi 6E backhaul
| 5GHz -dBm/Mbps | 6GHz -dBm/Mbps | 5GHz DL/UL/Ms | 6GHz DL/UL/Ms | |
| 2m | -22/2041 | -29/2041 | 10/17/36 | 10/16/54 |
We retested 10m from the router and the results were about 30% lower in Mbps and much longer ping times.
Gigabit Ethernet backhaul
| 5GHz -dBm/Mbps | 6GHz -dBm/Mbps | 5GHz DL/UL/Ms | 6GHz DL/UL/Ms | |
| 2m | -21/2401 | -21/2401 | 19.10.21 | 10/19/27 |
daisy chain
We tested a Wi-Fi 6 GHz backhaul satellite>satellite>router and while the satellite transmission speeds were identical, the throughput at the farthest point (15m) from the router dropped about 30%. That’s fine as it still matches NBN speeds, albeit at 70-90ms ping times.
Conclusions: The satellites work well with Wi-Fi 6E backhaul, but we recommend no more than 7 meters line-of-sight or 5 m through walls, closets, etc. If you use Wi-Fi 6E backhaul, you will get about 360 Mbps of the 6 GHz bandwidth, hence the difference between 5 GHz 2401 and 6 GHz 2014 Mbps.
Ethernet backhaul gives the Wi-Fi 5 and 6 GHz channels 2401 Mbps, reducing ping latency.
In any case, all configurations could deliver almost the full NBN UL/DL, with the main difference being in the ping times.
Effective Distance/Area – Pass
Typically 2.4GHz can span 30-40m site line and doesn’t lose much through walls. 5GHz at around 10-15m (around 20% loss through walls) and 6GHz at 5-7m. You will need extenders or a mesh system if you want full coverage of the house.
The caveat here is using Wi-Fi 6E backhaul, and we recommend keeping the satellites at 7m.
That means the coverage is as follows
<7 Meter>satellite<7 Meter>routers<7 Meter>satellite<7 Meter> or 28m length x 14m diameter 392m2.
Well, that’s a little at odds with TP-Link’s 650m2, but remember that Australia’s 6GHz transmit signal strength and 480MHz contiguous bandwidth is lower than the US’s 1200MHz. That is subject to change and the Deco is firmware upgradable.
Note: TP-Link states: “Deco XE75 is compatible with any other Deco model to form a mesh network. Expand mesh WiFi coverage at any time by adding more decos.
We do not recommend mixing Wi-Fi 5 and 6 Deco devices on a 6E backhaul.
CyberShack’s view – TP-Link Deco XE75 Wi-Fi 6E AXE5400 Mesh at the value end of the scale
We only tested the Netgear Nighthawk RAXE500 AX11000 router, which costs more than the Deco 3-pack. It’s not fair to compare AX11000 to AX5400. It’s also not fair to compare the Orbi quad-band RBKE963 router, which costs $2799 for a 3-pack.
The good thing about the TP-Link Deco XE75 Wi-Fi 6E is that you get decent throughput that matches at least NBN 100/20 speeds from the router and its satellites. If you have line of sight, use Wi-Fi 6E backhaul; otherwise ethernet cable is best. This is our standard recommendation for any mesh system.
And if Wi-Fi 6E isn’t part of your foreseeable future, check out TP-Link’s Deco Wi-Fi 6 range.
valuation
We have yet to review a Wi-Fi 6E router as we have little to compare it to.
We are happy to say that other Deco XE75 Wi-Fi 6E Tri-Band Mesh for medium-sized households with access speeds of up to NBN 100/20Mbps have no disadvantages.
professional
Extremely easy to set up
Affordable with a 3 year warranty
Reliable and constant speeds
Either Wi-Fi 6E or Ethernet backhaul or daisy chain etc
Disadvantages
No signal strength meter for satellite connections
Very basic app functionality
Use Ethernet if you plan to place satellites more than 7-10m away from the router
Only one SSID for 2.4/5 GHz (a separate one for 6 GHz)
Do not mix it with older Deco satellites
