UniFi's New U6+ Claims Top Spot in its Price Class

UniFi's New U6+ Claims Top Spot in its Price Class
July 27, 2023
UniFi's New U6+ Claims Top Spot in its Price Class

The U6+ UniFi Access Point paves the way for users to migrate to WiFi 6 while also benefitting from its 'price vs performance' benefits. Previous component shortages created an erratic supply of the popular UAP-AC-LR and U6-LITE products. In this blog, we compare all three models and explain why the U6+ is the ideal replacement for the older UniFis.

Technical Specifications

The table below lists the technical differences between the products. In short, WiFi 6 on both radios coupled with the new chipset offers a big performance boost. Additionally, the U6+ has similar TX power but higher antenna gain on 5GHz which, in theory, will provide better overall coverage than its predecessors.




Performance Tests

We decided to put all three devices to the test to ascertain whether our theory translates into the real world and conducted some basic benchmarks. We tested both signal and performance metrics on both frequencies through typical installation environments. All UniFis were ceiling mounted in the centre of the room and tests were conducted on a WiFi 6 Macbook Pro with 2x2 antennas.

2.4GHz Results

Throughput tests were conducted with Iperf, directly beneath the APs using 20MHz on the clearest possible channel. The WiFi 6 radio built into the U6+ improves the overall data rate which is slightly better than both other UAPs, each featuring WiFi 4.






Signal tests can be seen below with no significant difference between all models.






5GHz Results

We can start seeing a greater performance impact when using this frequency band. All tests were done on an 80MHz clean piece of spectrum. Speeds may vary depending on your installation environment, the client device's capabilities, and the distance from the AP. These Iperf tests were conducted with the Macbook, once again, directly beneath the UAPs. There is a significant performance boost over the UAP-AC-LR when using WiFi 6. Compatible clients will also benefit at longer distances as WiFi 6 is able to maintain a higher data rate.






In the past, most users bought the UAP-AC-LR for its long-range characteristics. Our signal test below reveals that the U6+ provides the best signal every time in each one of the various scenarios.






There are many reasons why WiFi 6 will benefit your clients:

  • Data rates - 1024QAM
  • Channel efficiency - OFDMA
  • Wider channels - 160MHz
  • Improved MU-MIMO
  • Higher density

Besides the performance benefits, the clincher is that the U6+ comes in at almost the same price as the UAP-AC-LR. With this in mind, we can, with the utmost confidence, recommend buying the U6+ in favour of the UAP-AC-LR & U6-LITE since you are assured greater value for money and performance.

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