Come get yourself a fancy networking solution
[Update: We’re closing this contest up tomorrow afternoon. Get those entries in!]
Routers are kind of an overlooked part of most of our day-to-day activities. You set it up, the magic internet signal fills the air, and then you’re online. Routers only get attention when they aren’t doing their job.
Ubiquiti has a more unique and high-end solution to wireless networking. It created the AmpliFi HD home WiFi system — a slick package of a router base and two antennas that extends wireless coverage in homes that have dead spots. Here’s what it looks like:
The router unit is a cute little cube with a touchscreen display that cycles between important info like time, IP address, and download/upload speeds. (My display considerately turns off at 10pm every night because it thinks I might be asleep, lol.) On the back, there are four gigabit LAN ports, one WAN port, and a USB slot that’s reserved for future use.
The package we’re giving away is the high-density version of the AmpliFi which is 802.11ac. It’s dual-band and high-performance — not only in terms of speed but coverage too. Those antennas are the key to what makes this device special.
AmpliFi utilizes mesh networking. That means there are a series of nodes (the antennas) that get placed throughout the home wherever signal is weakest. They plug directly into a wall outlet, pivot in any direction, and feature a five light display that tells you how strong the signal is in that particular spot. It supposedly has a range of 20,000 square feet; I wouldn’t know because my house is not 20,000 square feet.
Another neat quirk is that there are both iOS and Android apps to set up and to control the Amplifi. It’s possible to do it through a PC and browser, but most of the granular functionality is locked behind the app. Maybe that’s restrictive to some extent, but there probably aren’t many people investing in $300 networking solutions who don’t have smart phones.
As for how AmpliFi pertains to gaming, that feature is one of the many that’s hidden in the app. Ubiquiti’s “Quality of Service” allows for prioritizing bandwidth to certain devices. So, if you’re playing some competitive multiplayer game on your PS4, enabling this would theoretically ensure that someone else on your network won’t interfere. And wired connections are obviously ideal, but that’s not possible for everyone; AmpliFi seems like a good (albeit expensive) alternative.
It won’t be expensive for one of you, though. You’re going to win the AmpliFi HD home WiFi system. Just believe in yourself. Here’s how we’ll do it:
One of the features of the AmpliFi app is that the admin can restrict people from the network whenever they feel like it. Back in college, my roommate played A TON of Modern Warfare 2. Sometimes he’d get too excited and start yelling in the living room. Whenever that’d happen, I’d put him in an unannounced timeout by remotely power-cycling the router. Yes, I am the devil.
To be entered to win this AmpliFi package, leave a comment telling us who you’d kick off your wireless network. A winner will be chosen at random in a week. Contest is only open to people in the US (sorry, Canada and Mexico and the other 192 countries). Good luck!
