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I am currently reviewing EnGenius ECS2512FP, which is an 8-port 2.5G cloud management POE switch with additional 4 10Gb SFP+ ports.
I started to introduce the most affordable 2.5Gb POE option in the reviews, only to find that it was too long and distracted the review itself. So I split it into this article.
WiFi 6 has become mainstream now, we have WiFi 6E router With the advent of WiFi 7, access points have gradually become popular, and we will hear more at CES.
With the help of WiFi 6 and 160Mhz channel width, the transmission speed can be much higher than the gigabit transmission speed, but in most cases, this is limited by the gigabit Ethernet connection.
2.5GbE access point
Some access points have 2.5GbE uplinks, but some of them cannot reach 160Mhz. Options include:
However, anyone with one of the aforementioned access points may have difficulty powering them while also having a full 2.5G connection speed.
In my research, it turns out that many options have been introduced in the past year or so. None of them are very affordable, but it is not as bad as it used to be.
How to provide 2.5Gb POE for access points?
POE injector
The most affordable solution is to use a 2.5G compatible PoE injector Cheap 2.5GbE switch, But these costs are quite high. Zyxel POE12-30W is priced at approximately 75 pounds, and TRENDnet TPE-215GI is priced at 65 pounds.
A standard POE injector is likely to be able to reach 2.5G, but the result may be encountered or missed. It is worth trying in a home environment, not in a business environment.
If your access point has a DC port, you can of course power it this way and connect it to a cheap 2.5GbE switch, but this is more confusing than a PoE injector solution and may not be suitable for commercial environments .
2.5-Gigabit POE switch
The most sensible choice is a switch with 2.5-Gigabit POE ports. Some options are not as expensive as I expected. They may be a viable solution for home users. If you are deploying WiFi 6 access points in your enterprise, I would say that most of them are reasonably affordable.
TP-Link TL-SG3210XHP-M2
- 8 2.5 Gbps ports
- 240W POE budget
- 2 x 10 Gbps SFP+
- Omada cloud management or local
About 315 pounds, this seems to be one of the best options, which may be within the acceptable price range that I think is suitable for home/SOHO/small business use. I have never used TP-Link Omada myself, but I know an IT company uses it for lower budget work.
Netgear MS510TXPP or MS510TXUP
- 4 x 1G, 2 x 1G/2.5G, 2 x 1G/2.5G/5G and 1 x 10G
- 180W or 295W POE budget
- 1x 10 Gbps SFP+ shared with 10G Ethernet
- Local management
This has been around for many years, and until recently, it may have been the best choice for multi-gigabit POE. This is one of the smart managed switches, so it has advanced features, but lacks the cloud-hosted Insight service.
For lower power models, this costs about 340 pounds on Amazon, or about 540 pounds for the MS510TXUP with a higher 295W budget
EnGenius ECS2512FP
- 8 2.5 Gbps ports
- 240W POE budget
- 2 x 10 Gbps SFP+
- EnGenius cloud hosting, ezMaster or local – For EnGenius cloud, no cloud key is required, free and professional options
EnGenius provides three management options, and the new EnGenius Cloud service can be used for free or provide additional features through professional services. ezMaster is a self-hosted solution, or you can use the local Web GUI to go the old-fashioned route.
In the UK, prices range from 635 pounds to 872.68 pounds. At a lower price, the cost of each POE port is £79.38.
Zyxel XS1930-12HP
- 10 10 Gbps ports
- 375 W POE budget
- 2 x 10 Gbps SFP+
- Zyxel Nebula cloud management or local GUI-no cloud key required, Nebula has free and professional options
Zyxel is by far the most expensive option on this list, but it is also by far the highest specification switch. You have 10 10GbE POE ports and a 375 W POE budget.
Last updated on 2021-12-09 / Affiliate link / Image from Amazon Product Advertising API
