Netgear WAX220: The WAX214’s Big Upgrade, Now with Multi-Gig and 160MHz

Netgear today unveiled the WAX220 Wi-Fi 6 Access Point as a major upgrade to its existing WAX214.

Among other things, the new standalone AP now supports the 160MHz channel width to deliver up to 4200Mbps of Wi-Fi bandwidth and incorporates a 2.5GbE Multi-Gig PoE port—up from the Gigabit of the predecessor.

On the inside, though, the new broadcaster remains familiar to its predecessor.

Netgear WAX220 (vs. WAX214): A Multi-Gig-ready Wi-Fi 6 standalone access point

Like the case of the WAX214, the WAX220 is a budget-intended standalone access point—part of Netgear’s Business Essentials—and not a member of the company’s Insight Managed family, such as the case of the WAX630E.

And that’s both good and bad.

Good because it’ll work with any existing network and doesn’t cost any extra for ongoing management. You can also manage it locally via a web-user interface without surrendering personal information to Netgear or paying for a subscription. The device is also simple, and you can get it up and running within minutes.

On the other hand, it should generally be used where a single access point is enough. You can use multiple units but, in this case, still have to manage them individually—it’s not easy, if possible at all, to handle them as a mesh system.

The table below shows the similarities and differences between the WAX220 and the previous model, the WAX214.

Netgear WAX220 vs. WAX214: Hardware specifications

Name	Netgear WAX220 AX42 Wi-Fi 6 Access Point	Netgear WAX214 AX1800 Wi-Fi 6 Access Point
Models	WAX220	WAX214
Standard	Dual-band AX4200	Dual-band AX1800
2.4GHz Band	2×2 AX: Up to 600Mbps (20/40MHz)
5GHz Band	3×3 AX: Up to 3600Mbps (20/40/80/160MHz)	2×4 AX: Up to 1200Mbps (20/40/80MHz)
SSIDs	4
Max Clients (estimated)	256 – 128 per band	128 – 64 per band
Wi-Fi Security	WPA/WPA2/WPA3
Ethernet Port	1x 2.5GbE (PoE)	1x Gigabit (PoE)
Power Supply	12V/2.5V (30W) power adapter (included with WAX220PA model) or PoE+	Netgear PAV12V or PoE (Neither PoE injector nor power adapter included)
Dimensions	7.71 x 7.71 x 1.74 in (196x196x44.4 mm)	6.33 x 6.33 × 1.31 in (160.9 × 160.9 x 33.28 mm)
Weight	1.15 lb (523g)	0.84 lb (0.38kg)
Operation Modes	Access Point
US Price	$199	$99

Besides the higher Wi-Fi specs and the faster LAN port, the new WAX220 likely shares a similar web interface and settings as the less WAX214.

The new model also requires a higher PoE+ standard to work. Since an injector is not included, you’ll need to get one of your own, such as this one, or use a PoE+ (or PoE++) switch.

Pricing and availability

Netgear says the new WAX220 Wi-Fi 6 AX4200 Access Point is available today with the suggested retail price of $199.99—$100 more expensive than the previous model.

The new AP will likely have better performance than the WAX214. But for a general idea of how you can use it for your home or business, the in-depth review of the WAX214 will give you some pointers.