New from O2: Smart Box with Wi-Fi Mesh will cover every corner of your apartment! It can cost just 49 CZK per month

Do you have gigabit internet, but the Wi-Fi at the other end of your apartment is tragically slow? This is a common problem in larger apartments and houses. One router simply isn’t enough to cover all rooms, so it’s common to have a 500 Mb/s connection at home, but in a distant bedroom or kitchen, you connect at speeds as if you were pulling data through a telephone cable. O2 is now coming up with a solution – the new Smart Box Optic + Booster, which, thanks to its Wi-Fi Mesh function, creates continuous coverage in every corner of the household.

The problem might not be the connection, but the router

Operators are massively investing in optical networks, and at O2, half of customers are already getting internet with speeds of 250 Mb/s and higher. At the same time, a third of Czech households have more than five devices connected to Wi-Fi – phones, laptops, tablets, smart TVs, gaming consoles. And their number continues to grow.

As Martin Čejka, Director of Fixed Services at O2, says: “For users, the quality of home internet is mainly associated with the strength of the Wi-Fi signal and good coverage. However, this is not determined solely by the connection itself – hardware, i.e., the end device in the household, also has a significant impact. This is often a source of problems with connection stability and speed.”

In other words: the limit is no longer how many megabits the operator delivers to your apartment, but how well your router distributes it further. And this is where Wi-Fi Mesh comes into play.

What is Wi-Fi Mesh and why does it work

O2 Mesh is a smart network function that connects multiple Smart Boxes into one common Wi-Fi network. It works simply: you acquire two or more units, place them around your home, and pair them in the Moje O2 application. The boxes automatically connect and create a single network with one name.

The key advantage? Your phone or laptop will always automatically connect to the unit that provides the fastest possible connection. You don’t have to switch anything, you don’t have to have three different Wi-Fi networks saved on your phone. You simply move around the apartment, and the network ensures you have a stable and fast connection. Up to four additional devices can be connected to the main unit.

What the new Smart Box Optic + Booster can do

The new Booster is not just a dumb signal amplifier. It’s a full-fledged device with Wi-Fi 6, capable of gigabit speeds and greater capacity for multiple connected devices simultaneously. It supports the latest WPA3 security and has a USB port – you can connect a network drive to it or provide a backup connection via a mobile network.

An interesting detail: the display shows the time, weather forecast, and information about whose name day it is today. It’s not a feature that would convince you to buy it, but it’s a nice bonus.

In the Moje O2 application, you’ll find the Večerka (Bedtime) function, which allows you to set up safe internet usage for children, and complete management of all connected devices. Everything in one place, without the need to dig through the dark corners of the router’s web interface.

Installation with augmented reality

Where should you place another unit for optimal coverage? O2 comes with a smart solution – in the Moje O2 application, you’ll find the AR Wi-Fi function, which uses augmented reality to display the signal quality in a given room. A colorful visualization shows where the signal is weaker (white dots) and where it is suitable to add another unit (blue dots).

Two ways to use it

You can use the Smart Box Optic + Booster in two ways. Either as a standalone main unit (if you are just getting internet or want to replace an older modem), or as an additional mesh unit to an existing Smart Box.

Connection is simple – either by cable or via Wi-Fi. The device automatically pairs with others and creates a continuous network.

How much does the new product cost?

The price of the new Smart Box Optic + Booster is 99 CZK per month for 60 months (or 5,940 CZK for a one-time payment) if you purchase it as the main unit. If you already have one Smart Box and want to add another to the mesh network, it will cost you a discounted 49 CZK per month.

Who is this solution for? Practically for anyone who lives in a larger apartment or house and is bothered by a weak signal in some rooms. If you have a three-room apartment (or larger) and the router is in one room, you probably know the feeling when the Wi-Fi in the next room crumbles into pieces. And if you have a house, a mesh network is practically a necessity.

New from O2: Smart Box with Wi-Fi Mesh will cover every corner of your apartment! It can cost just 49 CZK per month Jakub Kárník News Jakub Kárník News

O2 is, of course, not the only manufacturer offering this solution. For example, we recently tested the Xiaomi BE3600 Pro mesh network, and similar solutions can also be found from ASUS or TP-Link. However, the advantage of O2’s operator solution is that it is tailored directly to their infrastructure, and customers have everything under one roof – hardware, software, and support.

Are you bothered by a weak Wi-Fi signal at home? Or is one router enough for you?

Source: press release