In one look
Expert Rating
Benefits
- High top speeds
- Many wired network ports
- Easy to use app
The inconvenients
- Few additional features
- Difficult management
Our opinion
Despite the name change, it’s the same familiar Velop mesh we’ve seen before. The Atlas 6 Pro is fast, easy to use and stylish. The range is acceptable, but there are systems that cover larger areas better. However, it is very affordable and if you don’t need to spread the knots out too far, it’s a great buy, especially the two unit package which is very affordable.
Best Prices Today: Linksys Atlas Pro 6 MX5502 (2-Pack)
Linksys Velop routers have been a familiar sight ever since home mesh systems became mainstream. They have looked pretty much the same for years. Easily recognizable slim square towers in white, with reliable performance and often good value for money. And few changes with the manufacturer’s latest Wi-Fi 6-based mesh package. Except the name. Linksys now differentiates its cheaper dual-band systems as Atlas, reserving Velop for more expensive tri-band systems. So on the Atlas Pro 6 you will see that they are “powered by Velop”.
This package is called Atlas Pro 6, where 6 stands for Wi-Fi 6, because that’s the Wi-Fi standard it’s based on. Linksys has at least one Wi-Fi 6E mesh system – the Velop Pro 6E, but it’s more expensive.
The Atlas Pro 6 is sold in one, two and three packs. We tested both the larger pack and a two-pack. Externally, there is nothing significant that sets them apart from previous Velop units.
Features and design
It’s the same tall, narrow square white tower design with a flat top that has holes for heat dissipation and a status LED. On the back are four Gigabit Ethernet ports, including one for Internet access. All three devices in the package are identical – the one you connect first becomes the central router.
On the other two, the wan port is not used, so you have four ethernet ports for connecting gadgets. That’s very generous for a mesh system, especially if it’s not super expensive. If you want to run an Ethernet bond – which means connecting an Ethernet cable between the nodes so they don’t have to talk to each other over Wi_Fi – you connect the cable to the WAN port of those nodes.
Being an Altas system means dual-band Wi-Fi – a 2.4 GHz band and a 5 GHz band. Backhaul communication between nodes shares the 5 GHz band. On the 2.4 GHz band, you get a theoretical maximum speed of 574 Mbps. Fortunately, there’s a lot more bandwidth available on 5 GHz, with a capacity of up to 4.8 Gbps. The fact that you can get such a powerful two-unit system for this price is remarkable. Most of these cheap Wi-Fi 6 systems have a capacity of 2.4 or 1.8 Gbps at 5 GHz.
This means the Atlas Pro 6 can easily handle multiple mesh nodes and many users streaming high definition content, browsing and downloading data at the same time, as long as the signal is strong.
Setup and settings are best done with the Linksys mobile app for Android or iOS. In fact, it took a lot of research to understand that the router also has a web interface: it is obvious that it is intended to be managed via mobile. There are no additional functions in the web interface, but some detailed settings for Wi-Fi and in particular the firewall are here, which you cannot access from the application.
One of the reasons for the lower price is a very basic feature set. You can set up a simple guest network, you get parental controls with a browsing schedule for connected devices, only a manual blacklist for URLs to block, and a QoS feature so you can prioritize extra bandwidth for a handful of computers or mobile devices. That’s it. Without USB ports, you don’t get any file server or printer sharing functionality, other kinds of functions, like a VPN server, you will also have to do without.
Setup is simple. With Bluetooth built into each node, each is easily detected by the app and most things happen automatically. Linksys requires you to sign up for an account to use the system, but using this will then give you access to remote administration, which can be useful when you’re away from home.
Unlike some mesh systems, you will need some patience with the Atlas Pro 6. There are a few steps where each node is “initialized” and “optimized” with several minutes of waiting. This is something that then becomes a common theme with the administration in general. The app is simple and neat, but there can be long wait times for simple things like checking node status or changing router settings, which is annoying.
Thomas Newton / Foundry
Performance
The SSIDs of the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands are merged by default and the router itself chooses how to connect the devices. The system seems to tend to relegate many 2.4GHz devices that we’d rather have at 5GHz, including laptops, desktops, and mobile devices. It is possible to configure them separately, but for this you need to enter the web interface, not the application. It’s also quite a hidden setting.
However, the Atlas 6 Pro’s performance ultimately makes up for most of its shortcomings. Top speed is excellent. With support for 160 MHz channel width, it is possible to approach gigabit speeds when using a device with Wi-Fi 6 or 6E, as long as it supports 2×2 MIMO. I saw a peak speed of 910 Mbps in the same room as the main node, and still exceeded 700 Mbps in an adjacent room. The performance loss when connecting through one of the other nodes is marginal.
The range per node is not the greatest, but still acceptable. The best Wi-Fi 6 systems we’ve tested allow you to place nodes around 25 meters away, including walls, to achieve a minimum of 200 Mbps. With the Atlas Pro 6, I was able to place them up to 20 meters apart in my test home before speeds dropped to that figure. This means you may have to move nodes closer together to get the same minimum speed or settle for a lower maximum speed, except near the main router.
Matthias Inghe
It’s not a big deal, and remember that you can buy more modes if needed. A two-pack of Atlas Pro 6s is still more than enough for Wi-Fi coverage in a large apartment or small house. But in a large house or a house with thick interior walls, it might make sense to go for the three-pack or even two-packs of two.
If Linksys could tweak things slightly so that more clients are assigned to the 5 GHz band in merged mode, I’d like the Atlas Pro 6 even more. If you’re willing to split SSIDs to make sure your devices are connected at 5GHz, it’s a budget Wi-Fi 6 mesh system.
Pricing & Availability
The Atlas 6 Pro starts at $299 / £249 for a two-pack. It’s good for 5400 square feet / 500 m² and for more than 60 devices. You can buy them on Amazon US and Amazon UK.
You can get a three-pack (8100sqft / 750sq) for $399 from Amazon US or £365 from Amazon UK, but recommended prices are $599.99 / £499.99.
You can also buy single nodes for around $130/£135 each, meant to be added to the above systems, rather than used on their own (although they could be if you really wanted to).
A cheaper option is the Atlas 6, an AX3000 system. It’s pretty much the same as the Atlas 6 Pro but with slightly lower speeds and coverage, but for a lower price.
For alternatives, check out our roundup of the best mesh Wi-Fi systems.
Specifications
Product Name: Atlas Pro 6 MX5502/MX5503
Wi-Fi type: Wi-Fi 6, MU-MIMO 2×2
Frequency band: 2.4 + 5GHz
Wi-Fi capacity: 574 + 4802 Mbps (theoretical)
Security: WPA2, WPA3, WPS
Connections per node: 3 Gigabit WAN, 1st Gigabit LAN
Admin interface: Web application
Remote administration: Yes, via app
Other Features: Guest network, parental control, QoS.
Dimensions: 86 x 86 x 284mm
This review originally appeared in Swedish on PC for Alla.
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