Deco BE85 (BE22000) Wi-Fi 7 2-pack, my review coming from Orbi RBK50 mesh system

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Deco BE85 (BE22000) Wi-Fi 7 2-pack, my review coming from Orbi RBK50 mesh system

This thread has been locked for further replies. You can start a new thread to share your ideas or ask questions.
Deco BE85 (BE22000) Wi-Fi 7 2-pack, my review coming from Orbi RBK50 mesh system
Deco BE85 (BE22000) Wi-Fi 7 2-pack, my review coming from Orbi RBK50 mesh system
2023-06-30 16:23:52
Model: Deco BE85  
Hardware Version:
Firmware Version: 1.07 Build 20230509 Rel. 85648

(I originally posted this on r/TpLink)

 

After 6+ years with an Orbi Wi-Fi 5 system, I decided it was time upgrade to take advantage of my AT&T 5Gbps fiber connection/LAN, and the growth of Wi-Fi 6/6E devices in my home.

 

I got the BE85 two pack about 5 days ago, and I need to get the big negative point out of the way, first.

 

The BE85 satellites have a fan that loudly runs a 5-min cycle, a few times every hour. I can tell the fan(s) run 24/7 at a very low rpm, you'd have to get your ear within one inch in a very quiet room. This is not the problem. It's the ramp to 100% that goes for apparently exactly 5 minutes, then drops back to idle speed. Happens on both satellites, so I don't think it's a hardware issue. The satellites aren't even under heavy load when the fans ramp. They just blast off, and 5 minutes later settle down.

It would be great if @Riley_S has any guidance on this. Because it's so annoying, I may have to consider returning the system.

 

So let's talk about the 'good stuff'. Pretty much everything else. Starting off with the OOB experience, the packaging and design is fitting of the $1000 price point. I realize this is cutting edge hardware, and I'm paying a premium for that. Right now, I think the BE85/BE95 systems appear to be the first/only mesh system with 10Gbps support and pass-through ethernet ports. No doubt this is what adds quite a bit to the premium over older TP-Link systems like the EX75 Pro, Eero and Orbi 6E competitors.

 

The app experience is pretty good, from initial set-up to normal usage. I use the system in Access Point mode, letting my AT&T BGW320-500 handle routing. No issues here.

There's one UI annoyance - my device names seem to have a bug, where 50% of them are designated "BSH Hausgeräte" which is somehow related to a Bosch refrigerator I recently purchased. If anyone knows how to refresh device names, I would really appreciate it.

 

The two pack covers my 2400sq ft home very well. The biggest difference over the Orbi system is how the Deco is able to maintain speeds at the edge of the coverage area and/or through walls. The Orbi had good coverage too, but speeds would drop significantly when you got away from line-of-sight.

I also bought the Deco X50-Outdoor. I haven't installed it just yet, as I'm trying to decide if the '5-minute fan problem' from the BE85s is going to ultimately drive me crazy.

 

Anyways, I'll wrap this up before it gets too longwinded, but I'm happy to answer any questions in the comments.

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Re:Deco BE85 (BE22000) Wi-Fi 7 2-pack, my review coming from Orbi RBK50 mesh system
2023-06-30 22:40:02 - last edited 2023-06-30 22:55:24

Per request, I'm continuing the conversation here vs. Reddit.

 

The top of each unit measures a consistent ~42ºC regardless if the fan is running at speed or not. I was able to get everyone out of the house for a couple of hours while I did a physical and software reset of both units.

 

A short time after reset and re-configure, the fan situation has either stayed the same or gotten worse. The main unit's fan has been running at 100% for >30 min straight now. Before I did the reset, I designated a fixed IP for that problem device that had its "BSH Hausgeräte" name propagating/overriding many other Wi-Fi and wired device names.The reset didn't seem to fix that, either. Even my iPhone [Me] is now designated as BSH Hausgeräte!

 

I sure hope the fan situation can be sorted out, as the main unit in my living room can be heard from 10ft away, and my family members have noticed the noise.

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Re:Deco BE85 (BE22000) Wi-Fi 7 2-pack, my review coming from Orbi RBK50 mesh system
2023-07-01 01:07:30

  @turns2stone if its within the window, I would return it and get a new unit..not what you want to see right out of the box in a expensive, new release unit..

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Re:Deco BE85 (BE22000) Wi-Fi 7 2-pack, my review coming from Orbi RBK50 mesh system
2023-07-01 13:19:21

  @wase4711 

 

Understood that I could return it... the goal is to see if this is a common/expected behavior. I don't want to return it to end with the same issue on the replacement unit(s).

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Re:Deco BE85 (BE22000) Wi-Fi 7 2-pack, my review coming from Orbi RBK50 mesh system
2023-07-03 02:29:56

  @turns2stone Hi, welcome to the community.

Thank you very much for the feedback. I would like to forward your case to the senior engineers for further advice. They would help us check whether it is an expected behavior.

As for the device name on the Deco, APP, please help us get the Deco APP log:

How to submit Deco APP log

 

After that, Have you tried manually changing the device name and checking whether it would revert back to "BSH Hausgeräte" later?

How to change the name of the client on the Deco app

 

Thank you very much.

Best regards.

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Re:Deco BE85 (BE22000) Wi-Fi 7 2-pack, my review coming from Orbi RBK50 mesh system
2023-07-03 14:26:27

  @David-TP 

Thanks for your note. I've responded to the ticket with my logs and screenshot of the client list.

 

Fortunately, once the name has changed, it doesn't revert back to the incorrect designation. The name change issue is all very minor and fixable laugh Although most consumers won't be familiar with MAC IDs enough to bother correcting, so it would be helpful if progress is ultimately made.

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Re:Deco BE85 (BE22000) Wi-Fi 7 2-pack, my review coming from Orbi RBK50 mesh system
2023-08-29 10:53:05

  @turns2stone I also have this same issue. In a cool air conditioned environment but every 30 or so minutes they ramp up to full fan speed for 5 minutes. This happens to both router and node on the BE85 in wired backhaul with a 2gig connection.  I am on firmware version 1.0.9. Will a full device reset fix it? Thanks!

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Re:Deco BE85 (BE22000) Wi-Fi 7 2-pack, my review coming from Orbi RBK50 mesh system
2023-08-29 10:55:48
Hello, has there been a fix for this fan ramping up issue? I just purchased last week and this happens every 30mn in a cool home no matter the load on the router and node of the BE85. Should I return the device as it may be faulty? Thank you in advance.
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Re:Deco BE85 (BE22000) Wi-Fi 7 2-pack, my review coming from Orbi RBK50 mesh system
2023-09-01 03:16:09

  @turns2stone hey there did you ever find a fix for this? I'm experiencing the same issue with the fan noise. 

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Re:Deco BE85 (BE22000) Wi-Fi 7 2-pack, my review coming from Orbi RBK50 mesh system
2023-09-02 01:58:56

  @kellisj2003 

Nope. I 'self-diagnosed' the issue to be only with the bottom 10G port, shared with the SFP+. If you use the one closer to the top the fans should behave. Of course this just eliminates a very valuable port!

 

The TP link team did spend a fair amount of time reviewing my logs and troubleshooting with me. But then they went silent several weeks ago and haven't responded to my update requests.

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Re:Deco BE85 (BE22000) Wi-Fi 7 2-pack, my review coming from Orbi RBK50 mesh system
2023-09-04 20:28:06

  @turns2stone I'm using the same units and same bottom 10 Gbps port as WAN, but not having the fan issue with any of my 3 BE85's. In fact, I can barely hear them even with my ear right on top of them. Is that because I waited till they were at room temperature (about an hour after they were delivered by UPS) before powering them up for the first time?

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