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If there's a contest in who makes the most Wi-Fi 6 business wireless access points (WAPs), Netgear will likely be the winner. Today, the networking vendor extended its Insight Managed product line with the WAX615 AX3000 dual-band Multi-Gig PoE WAP.
As an AX3000 broadcaster, the WAX615 fits between the existing WAX610 (AX1800) and WAX620 (AX3600). It gives business owners more options in terms of performance and cost, as shown in the table below.
WAX615: A familiar Insight Managed business access point.
According to Netgear, the new WAP's features include:
- 160MHz support: The new AP supports the 160MHz channel width to deliver the possible top speed for its Wi-Fi specs.
- Mesh-ready: The WAX615 is compatible with all existing Insight Managed Access Points, and with a paid subscription, it can work with them to form hybrid wired and wireless mesh networks with the seamless handoff.
- Backwards Compatible – Supports WiFi 4 (IEEE 802.11n), WiFi 5 (IEEE 802.11ac) and WiFi 6 (IEEE 802.11ax) standards
- Multi-Gig and PoE: The access point has one 2.5 Gbps Ethernet Multi-Gig PoE+ port (injector or power adapter not induced.)
While having relatively modest Wi-Fi specs, it shares the same capability as the latest WAX630E. It's the second AP in Netgear's WAX family and supports the venerable 160MHz channel width on the 5GHz band.
Hardware specifications
The table below shows how the WAX615 among its cousins.
| Model | WAX630E | WAX630 | WAX620 | WAX615 | WAX610 |
| Name | Insight App Managed Wi-Fi 6E tri-band AXE7800 Tri-band Wireless Access Point | Insight App Managed Wi-Fi 6 AX6000 Tri-band Wireless Access Point | Insight App Managed Wi-Fi 6 AX3600 Dual-band Wireless Access Point | Insight App Managed Wi-Fi 6 AX3000 Dual-band Wireless Access Point | Insight App Managed WiFi 6 AX1800 Dual-band Wireless Access Point |
| Wi-Fi Standards | Tri-band AXE7800 | Tri-band AX6000 | Dual-band AX3600 | Dual-band AX3000 | Dual-band AX1800 |
| 1st Band 2.4GHz (channel width) | 2x2 AX Up to 600Mbps (20/40MHz) | 4x4 AX Up to 1200Mbps (20/40MHz) | 4x4 AX Up to 1200Mbps (20/40MHz) | 2x2 AX Up to 600Mbps (20/40MHz) | 2x2 AX Up to 600Mbps (20/40MHz) |
| 2nd Band 5GHz (channel width) | 4x4 AX Up to 4800Mbps (20/40/80/160MHz) | 5GHz-1 (Lower channels) 2x2 AX Up to 2400Mbps (20/40/80+80MHz) | 4x4 AX Up to 2400Mbps (20/40/80MHz) | 2x2 AX Up to 2400Mbps (20/40/80/160MHz) | 2x2 AX Up to 1200Mbps (20/40/80MHz) |
| 3rd Band (channel width) | 6GHz 2x2 AXE Up to 2400Mbps (20/40/80/160MHz) | 5GHz-2 (Upper channels) 2x2 AX Up to 2400Mbps (20/40/80MHz) | None | None | None |
| Backward Compatibility | 802.11ac/n/g/a/b | 802.11ac/n/g/a/b | 802.11ac/n/g/a/b | 802.11ac/n/g/a/b | 802.11ac/n/g/a/b |
| Power over Ethernet (PoE) | 802.3bt or 802.3at (50% 5GHz performance) | 802.3bt or 802.3at (50% 5GHz-1 performance) | 802.11at or 802.3af (60% peformance) | 802.3at /af | 802.11at or 802.3af (60% performance) |
| Power Consumption | 27.64W | 30.1W | 25.5W | 21.2W | 15.3W |
| Network Port | 1x 2.5Gbps Multi-Gig PoE, 1x Gigabit | 1x 2.5Gbps Multi-Gig PoE, 1x Gigabit | 1x 2.5Gbps Multi-Gig PoE | 1x 2.5Gbps Multi-Gig PoE | 1x 2.5Gbps Multi-Gig PoE |
| Security | WPA, WPA2, WPA3 | WPA, WPA2, WPA3 | WPA, WPA2, WPA3 | WPA, WPA2, WPA3 | WPA, WPA2, WPA3 |
| Local Managed | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Cloud-Managed | Netgear Insight Premium or Pro | Netgear Insight Premium or Pro | Netgear Insight Premium or Pro | Netgear Insight Premium or Pro | Netgear Insight Premium or Pro |
| Mobile App | NETGEAR Insight App | NETGEAR Insight App | NETGEAR Insight App | NETGEAR Insight App | NETGEAR Insight App |
| Mode | Access Point, Bridge, Repeater Mode | Access Point, Bridge, Repeater Mode | Access Point, Bridge, Repeater Mode | Access Point, Bridge, Repeater Mode | Access Point, Bridge, Repeater Mode |
| Dimensions (W x D x H) | 10.49 x 10.56 x 2.18 in (266.6 x 268.3 x 55.5 mm) | 10.49 x 10.56 x 2.18 in (266.61 x 268.29 x 55.5 mm) | 8.09 x 8.09 x 1.35 in (205.7 x 205.7 x 34.3 mm) | 9.5 x 9.5 x 1.58 in (241.5 x 241.5 x 40.2 mm) | 6.33 x 6.33 x 1.30 in (160.9 x 160.9 x 33.25 mm) |
| Weight | 2.31 lb (1050 g) | 2.10 lb (956 g) | 1.72 lb (783 g) | 727 g (1.6 lb) | 0.90 lb (412 g) |
| LED | Power and Cloud, LAN speed, 2.4GHz status, 5.0GHz status, 6.0GHz status | Power and Cloud, LAN speed, 2.4GHz status, 5.0GHz-1 status, 5.0GHz-2 status | Power and Cloud, LAN speed, 2.4GHz status, 5.0GHz status | Power and Cloud; LAN speed; 2.4GHz status; 5GHz status | Power and Cloud, LAN speed, 2.4GHz status, 5.0GHz status |
| US Retail Cost (at launch) | $349.99 $369.99 (with power adapter) | $329.99 $339.99 (with power adapter) | $229.99 | $189.99 $209.99 (with power adapter) | $179.99 |
| Warranty | 5-year | 5-year | 5-year | 5-year | 5-year |
WAX630E vs. WAX630 vs. WAX620 vs. WAX615 vs. WAX610
Mesh-ready, part of Insight Managed family
Like the rest of the WAX6xx family, the new WAX615 has everything collectively available in its cousins.
Other than the lack of the 6GHz band and likely slower speed due to more modest specs, it'll have everything else that the top-tier WAX630E offers.
You can use both in a single network as different mesh members, which is possible only when you have an Insight subscription. In this case, you'll also be able to manage your network remotely.
Locally, the new WAP can work as an individual broadcaster via its web user interface.
Availability and pricing
Netgear says the new Netgear WAX615 is available today for $189.99 and will work with any existing PoE+ or PoE++ switch. If you don't have already have a switch, you'll need to get a version that comes with a power adapter that costs $20 more.
Or you can get a separate PoE injector.
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