TP-Link Deco 7 Pro BE14000 Review: Wi-Fi 7 Mesh Without the Sticker Shock

We reviewed the Deco BE67 two-pack, which covers up to 6,000 square feet and costs $499.99. For larger homes, the $699.99 three-pack covers up to 8,100 square feet; for smaller spaces, the $299.99 single-pack gives you 3,100 square feet of coverage. The off-white cylindrical nodes measure 6.9 inches high and 4.2 inches wide, and each contains eight high-gain antennas.

(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)

You'll spot an airflow grill on the top of each node and a status LED embedded in the base. The LED glows solid yellow when the node is starting up and solid blue during setup. When there's a firmware update, the light pulses green, then glows solid green when everything is working properly. Red, as you'd expect, means trouble: the LED pulses red when a node is disconnected, and glows solid red if a system issue arises.

(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)

The rear panel features one 10GbE WAN/LAN port, one 2.5GbE WAN/LAN connection, and one 1GbE WAN/LAN. Along with those, you'll find a single USB 3.0 port, a WPS button, and a power jack. A reset button is located on the base. The BE67 supports wireless and wired backhaul as well as a combined wireless/wired backhaul configuration.

(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)

Under the hood, the Deco BE67 gets its muscle from a tri-core CPU running at 1.8GHz, along with 1GB of RAM and 256MB of flash memory. A tri-band BE14000 system, it can reach data rates of up to 688Mbps on the 2.4GHz radio band, up to 4,324Mbps on the 5GHz band, and up to 8,647Mbps on the 6GHz band. The unit supports all the latest Wi-Fi 7 technologies, including 320MHz channel transmissions, WPA3 encryption, 4K-QAM, Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) data transmissions, MU-MIMO streaming, direct-to-client beamforming, and Multi-Link Operation (MLO).

(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)

As with other Deco mesh systems, such as the Deco BE63 and the Deco BE25, the BE67 offers basic parental-control and network-security tools via TP-Link’s HomeShield software. With the basic parental controls, you can create user profiles with age-based web filters, pause the internet, and block specific websites. The advanced parental controls—which require a $2.99-per-month or $17.99-per-year subscription—include features such as SafeSearch, YouTube Restricted Mode, Flexible Bedtime, Time Limits, Time Rewards, and Insights, which provides a history of online usage.

The basic network-security software provides router and wireless security scans and IoT device identification, while the Security+ plan ($4.99 per month/$35.99 per year) offers more advanced features, including Intrusion Prevention, Web Protection, and IoT Protection. For $5.99 per month/$69.99 per year, the HomeShield Total Security package adds antivirus protection, a VPN, password management, and a PC-cleaner utility. Be aware: The price for this package jumps to $129.99 after the first year.

You install and manage the BE67 using the Deco mobile app for iOS and Android devices, the same app used by other Deco systems. When you open the program, you’ll see a network screen with a network map showing the nodes and how many devices are connected to them. When you tap a node, you’ll see the name of each connected device. When you tap a device, you’ll open a screen where you can give it bandwidth priority, isolate it, set a bandwidth limit, or block it from accessing the network.

(Credit: TP-Link)

The panel below the network map shows how many clients are currently online, and the Smart Home panel lets you add TP-Link Kasa devices, such as smart plugs, cameras, and bulbs, and control them from the app.

At the bottom of the screen, you'll find buttons labeled Network, Security, Parental Controls, and More. The Network button takes you back to the Network screen, while the Security button opens a screen where you can run network scans, isolate client devices, put cameras in Home or Away mode, and subscribe to a Security+ plan.

Tapping the Parental Controls button, meanwhile, opens a screen where you can create user profiles, assign web filters, block websites, and create bedtime schedules that disable internet access. Advanced settings let you filter YouTube content and search content, and set online time limits. Finally, the More button takes you to a settings screen where you can optimize the network, test internet speed, configure alerts, manage LED properties, update firmware, and schedule regular router reboots.

As with every other Deco system I’ve tested, installing the BE67 was fast and easy. I already had the Deco app, so I tapped Create New Network, plugged in the router, and confirmed that the LED was blinking blue. Within seconds, the router node was discovered, so I tapped Set Up the Deco and followed the instructions to connect the node to my modem and restart the modem. I gave the router node location (room), allowed dynamic IP, and assigned the network a name and password. After 30 seconds, the network was created, so I placed the satellite node in another room and plugged it in. Within a minute or so, it came online.

(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)

The BE67 is a solid performer but not the fastest system we’ve tested. On our combined band throughput tests, the router node delivered 2,184Mbps on the close-proximity (same room) test, while the eero Pro 7 scored 2,850Mbps, the Asus BQ16 Pro router hit 2,917Mbps, and the Netgear Orbi 770 Series reached 2,099Mbps. On the 30-foot test, the BE67 router node scored 812Mbps, the eero Pro 7 reached 860Mbps, the Asus BQ16 Pro router delivered 855Mbps, and the Netgear Orbi 770 Series hit 768Mbps.

On the close-proximity test, the Deco BE67 satellite node scored 2,028Mbps, beating the Netgear Orbi 770 Series node (1,622Mbps) but not the eero Pro 7 node (2,293Mbps) or the Asus BQ16 Pro node (2,229Mbps). At a distance of 30 feet, the BE67 node managed 1,058Mbps, once again besting the Netgear Orbi 770 Series node (1,033Mbps) but not the eero Pro 7 node (1,118Mbps) or the Asus BQ16 Pro node (1,133Mbps).

We test wireless signal strength using an Ekahau Sidekick 2 diagnostic device paired with Ekahau’s Survey software. This combination generates a heat map that displays Wi-Fi signal strength throughout our test home. (PCMag parent company Ziff Davis also owns Ekahau.) The circles on the heat map represent the router and node locations, and the colors represent signal strength.

(Credit: Ekahau)

Dark green indicates the strongest signal, lighter yellow indicates a weaker signal, and gray indicates a very weak signal, or no measurable signal. (Here, the measurement is taken as a combination of the 2.4GHz, 5GHz, and 6GHz bands.) As illustrated on the map, the BE67 provided a strong Wi-Fi signal throughout the home.

(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)

Solid performance, ease of use, and 6GHz transmissions are all good reasons to consider the $499.99 TP-Link Deco BE67 two-pack for a whole-home Wi-Fi system. It delivered strong Wi-Fi signals in our test home, and while it didn’t break any speed records, it performed admirably in our throughput tests. Additionally, it offers USB connectivity and comes with free basic parental-control and network-security software.

Still, if you require a mesh system that supports Thread, Matter, and Zigbee wireless technologies, our Editors’ Choice winner for Wi-Fi 7 mesh systems, the eero Pro 7, is similarly priced and offers better performance.