Mesh Wi-Fi
Also known as: Wi-Fi Mesh · Mesh System
Mesh Wi-Fi is a system of multiple access points that talk to each other wirelessly and form one network under a single SSID.
In a mesh Wi-Fi setup, multiple access points ('nodes') communicate with each other and relay traffic between themselves, instead of every unit needing its own cable back to the network. That makes it possible to cover a building even where not every room has a network jack.
In practice, these are usually kits of two or three units placed around a home or small office. Part of the bandwidth gets used up by the wireless link between the nodes themselves (backhaul) — each additional wireless hop tends to reduce the throughput actually available to devices.
To be honest about it, mesh doesn't replace proper cabling: it doesn't solve the underlying problem of walls, distance, or interference, only the problem of missing network jacks. In older buildings with a long chain of repeaters or mesh nodes strung room to room, the result is often a slow, unstable network — running a cable to the actual access point locations (or at least wired backhaul between nodes) is usually the more reliable fix.
What it means in practice
For a small office with no way to run cable, mesh Wi-Fi can be a reasonable stopgap. For warehouses, multi-floor buildings, or anything that needs solid roaming — like handheld scanners — mesh usually isn't the right tool; NDVDL plans wired access points based on a site survey instead.
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