TP-Link Omada Hardware Controller | SDN Integrated | PoE Powered | Manage Up to 100 Devices | Easy & Intelligent Network Monitor & Maintenance | Cloud Access & Omada App (OC200)

In short, I had a lot of problems with my TP-Link AEP245 access points before getting this, and now I don't. This is a better alternative to a mesh system if you have ethernet in a few spots in the house.I have a large house and a large number of smart devices. I was having a hard time getting good wireless signal in remote corners of the house and my router kept failing because of too many wifi clients. I thought about getting a mesh system, but since I have ethernet in several spots across my house, I would have used the ethernet backhaul anyway. No need to use a mesh system, which is designed to send info wirelessly from device to device at a slower speed. Instead I decided to do what is done in commercial contexts: just use several access points.I purchased three TP-link AEP 245 access points and set them up in a way that gets coverage all over the house. It worked OK, except I kept having problems with devices that roam, like cell phones. They wouldn't let go of one and go to the other. Or something. They always said they were connected but some of the time no internet would get through. The AEP245 is supposed to work in standalone mode when you do this as long as you set them all up with the same SSID, password, and settings, but on different channels. Unfortunately, I cannot recommend them for that configuration.I decided as a last ditch effort to buy this controller. It advertises the ability to use fast roaming technology to tell certain roaming devices to go from one access point to the other as you walk around. Anyway, it did actually solve my problem. You can now walk all over my house with whatever device you want and it will always work. It never goes down, the speeds are awesome, and it was easy to configure and to maintain.To be honest, I'm not actually sure whether my system is using 802.11(k/r/v) or some other technology. All I know is that I had tons of problems with my wifi before getting this, and now I don't.It's a little hard to explain what this device does and TP-Link doesn't make it obvious. It does take control of all your access points and let you configure them from a central location instead of having to connect to each individually. I don't think of that as a huge deal. It allows you to monitor all the clients on all access points and see which is downloading how much, disconnect them, and do all sorts of other stuff.Actually, besides the monitoring of bandwidth and clients and allowing central configuration, it's hard to identify what this really does that you can't do in standalone mode without any controller. However, I can tell you that the internet experience is 100% better with this controller. I don't really understand why it's necessary or exactly how it works, but I'm really glad I got it.I recommend it to anyone who is using multiple TP-Link access points

The controller is an integral part of the Omada setup for Wireless control and optimization, so I added the controller. Overall it works just fine, it's a bit slow to log into and switch screens sometimes, but overall it works just fine. I think it's fantastic that TP-Link fully supports Linux/UNIX software, so if you desired you could easily build your own controller. That is one of the many reasons I love TP-Link. You get decent hardware, that functions overall very well, with some config flow problems, but overall you get good performance and hardware. I got the controller just to save time, maybe in the future I will build a raspberry pi into a slightly faster controller. Overall I'm happy.

I really like the user interface with the controller. It allows me to see everything and more on my home mesh network. Ya, maybe it is a bit of overkill since my network only has four APs but the mesh has worked seamlessly for all of our devices and resolved the network congestion and latency. Plus having multiple APs in the house and one outside has really expanded the network coverage. I even have an IoT device in the chicken coop that stays connected solidly!I would not have been able to configure this mesh network with all of my tp-link devices easily, if at all, without this controller. The controller was very intuitive to set up and easy to connect with PoE to the PoE+ switch.Like I was saying though, it really is overkill for my little network. This controller appears like it could be used for commercial or industrial use for multiple location. But the price and ease of installation and configuration made this purchase a no brainer for me.I have had this controller running my network with its six SSIDs for about three weeks with no issues so I would recommend it.

The TP-Link Omada Hardware Controller (OC200) is an excellent network management solution for anyone looking to gain more control and intelligence over their home or business network. With SDN integration, PoE power, cloud access, and the Omada app, it provides everything you need to manage and monitor your network easily and efficiently. The setup is simple, the performance is reliable, and the advanced network features are perfect for those who need flexibility and scalability. I highly recommend it for small to medium-sized networks, whether for home or office use!