Most companies will listen then as the product matures they just dont and ruin the product. Its called "enshittification" dont fall into the brand loyalty trap.
Nice review Tom, just to note that IPv6 support on all Unifi devices is currently BETA and for some features they don't even support IPv6, for example Management interfaces, IDS/IPS, country blocker and VPN do not yet currently support IPv6. So beware when using IPv6 guys :)
Thank you so much for this comment. This really is a deal breaker as more and more of the internet is IPV6 and even ISP's stopped offering native IPv4. Hopefully it's out beta soon and widely supported.
You gonna 3D print that out of aluminum so the shell and thermal pad can help dissipate heat to the rest of the UCG or are you going to print that in heat insulating PLA so your drive thermal throttles or dies sooner than it should?
@@JimKahana-driftin Good point. ABS with some metal embedded as a heat spreader should work. Anyway, this being locked down eco system and working only with their cameras, I'm out.
@@woodcat7180 UniFi are pushing out support for ONVIF cameras soon, I believe it is currently available in beta, but I think its great that they are opening up their ecosystem.
Bought the No Storage version the day it came out. I helped update my church to a full Unifi setup and I was very happy with how it came together. This gives me much more capability and control on my home network than my old ASUS routers. Was happy to get the No Storage version now as I don't have any current need for Protect, but glad to have the option to buy the sled and drive in case I want to add it later.
The NS one has been sold out for MONTHS. Finally bought one today! ALL the features of UDM-Pro and PLENTY for residential and even some small businesses!
Same with me. The implementation to VPN into any site I manage with every device I have available and managing their stuff is great. Maybe other vendors could do that, too, but as the name says: I'm unifying what I manage, and I had already started using unifi at my place =)
@scootutube3 Unifi equipment cost is almost the same as a high-end personal router. Also, Unifi's update path is much better than any personal router that I had ever personally used. Since I am the one that handles all troubleshooting anyway, it makes sense to move them to something I use myself. I don't get any kickbacks from Unifi.
@danielkemmet2594 After having it in place long enough to fine tune it to my liking, and become comfortable with navigating the vast feature-set of the GUI, I'm very happy with my decision to move to Unifi. I didn't realize that Unifi would be somewhat addicting though. After buying the UCG Max, I got a USW Pro Max 16, and 4 USW Flex Mini 2.5 GbE switches. I gave quite a bit of thought to their APs. But, decided to get 3 Grandstream GWN7665 (Wi-Fi 6E) APs instead, which are awesome (and WAY less expensive ($86 ea.)).
Been wanting to fully implement a unifi network at my own home as I LOVE to tinker. We are also remodeling so I put in a TON of ethernet drops to a central structured media cabinet. I was trying to teach myself to use docker on my home made OMV r-Pi NAS to host the unifi controller. Right about that time, they started coming out with these new form factor routers with the controller built in! I wasn't quite ready to deploy one, and as luck would have it, they came out with the Max before I was ready. I love the all in one small package and without WIFI that will fit very nicely inside my media cabinet. I am still getting things set up and learning how it works, but it is an awesome little machine.
I bought the Unifi Express, but found that it didn't have enough performance to run most of the features. So I got the UCG-Max and have been very impressed with it. I'll be buying the UGC-Ultra for a family member soon, it'll be good to run VPNs between our two networks for backup replications. Excellent video 👍
I would buy it if I didn't have a UDM. Much more convincing than the first cloud key with HDD I first bought. Unfi has come a long way in just a few years. The software they have today and the cloud gateway max would have been a fantastic start for me in 2020~2021 or even 2022.
I have an Unifi CGU for my home setup and it's working mega so far. I used to have Unifi USG but since it was "out of everything" I swaped it to CGU and I'm not regreting it at all.
So I just installed the max with 3 mesh 6 AP’s. Replaced nest WiFi and needed 8 qty of those AP’s to get marginal coverage in my 3000 sqft house. Ubiquiti is the real deal. I paid $600 and have amazing WiFi coverage with extreme reliability. I can’t recommend this setup enough. They could make a ton of $$ if they market against google and really everyone else.
Got this on the day of release the NS version. So far so good! Needed a 2.5g switch for my server and main gaming PC and needed all the VLAN, DHCP and Firewall features the ISP router doesnt provide. So do not need a separate mini tiny pc for my own router or pi-hole or a separate 2.5g switch - this little powerhouse fits the bill perfectly.
I currently have a Netgate SG-4100 MAX, Grandstream GWN-7813 switch, and 3 GWN-7660 access points. After seeing your video on the unifi cloud gateway Max, I decided to take the plunge, as it looks intriguing. The features are impressive! I especially like the support for VLANs, WireGuard and IDS/IPS. Who knows, I might even keep it in place after a test period? If nothing else, it looks like it'll be fun to play with!
For a regular home user such as a friend of mine, two AP's in that house, it is a perfect choise. UDM PRO or SE is overkill for many normal users. Great hardware, long gone are they days as well for bad Network software.
I had to say goodbye to my perfectly functional, 10 year old, end-of-lifed Cisco Meraki Z1 and MR32 yesterday. Was going to cost 400 UKP to replace the Z1 with a Z4 and I didn't bother asking how much replace the MR32 once I found out there was nearly 400 UKP on top in subscription licences. So, Cisco lost a customer to Ubiquiti yesterday. All in, a U6 Mesh Pro and Cloud Gateway Max cost me just over 400 UKP and an afternoon's work with no subscription licence costs. Works perfectly for my needs and I couldn't be happier.
A53 is a really old Core from 2012. They must get them for pennies. I guess if it fits their purpose that’s fine. It’s probably why IDS can’t run at full speed.
I think it's important to note that you are also paying for their software when you buy their hardware. They don't have any subscriptions for using it right now which is refreshing in this day and age.
putting a modern cell phone processor in a product like this is just not practical for many reasons; including cost, manufacturability, unit sales per year, and peripheral IO. My guess is this is using an NXP IMx8 or similar industrial IOT processor not a cellphone processor and they're likely paying ~$10 a processor. Heck ARM charges a dollar just to use their architecture. Source: I do this for a living in a similar space.
i really wish this had come out earlier, i set up a sibling with a Gateway Express and CKG2+ and this would have simplified the setup a lot. It'll definitely be the Unifi device i suggest to anyone in the future, its exactly what a lot of people need to run 1 or 2 cameras and a doorbell alongside their router. The flexibility of using APs instead of built in Wifi while more expensive is a lot more practical. Unifi is on the right track here.
@@maxherman11 I wasn't aware it was already available, thanks for that. The early access (from what I've seen this morning anyway) is only able to record. Any word on notifications or zones? I'm preparing to clean up and unify my home and home office networks, the ability to eliminate a Blue Iris NVR in the process would make UniFi the obvious choice.
I had just put in an order for the Gateway Ultra when Synology announced they would yank h265 support from their non-surveillance NASes in the latest update. I promptly returned it and got the Gateway Max instead. As soon as the drive tray is in stock I will migrate my cameras to UniFi. It’s been very easy to set up UniFi for me as a first time user, and the performance has been great. I have some third party mesh routers and they are now performing better in AP-only mode too, as they were quite underpowered
Yes, the highest I have seen is 85 (only Unifi Network, without IPS/IDS, without VPN). Now I see 70-ish, although it is colder now in the place I have the device
This would be the device I would recommend for most people interested in Unifi. I will say that Ubiquiti does seem to be struggling on their hardware as of late though. This one is good in that it is at least using 2.5Gbps ports but a lot of their other devices feel like they are stuck in the past. I don't think we should be seeing Gigabit ports on devices that cost this much anymore but besides this one a lot of unifi's devices seem to not get that.
Why 1.5 gb/s IPS when it has 2.5 gb/s ports and wifi 7, which can reach more than 2.5 gb/s? They could had opted for a higher performance cpu, maybe cortex A73.
a great review, and im looking to get one of these, but holding off in hope there will be a black friday deal! i noticed on the specs that it has ad filtering, have you had a chance to test out this feature yet, id be keen to see how it compares to something like pi hole / adguard home
I do wonder why the Max is rated for an extra 500Mbit IDS/IPS throughput over the Ultra despite using the same 1.5GHz A53 SOC. I also wonder why my UDM is only rated for 850Mbit IDS/IPS despite having using a faster, more powerful A57 @ 1.7GHz.
@@martyfarrell392 Good point. This is way outside my zone though. I am curious as too why they do make some of their choices though. All in all I really like my Gateway Max. It runs my home network and the business I run out of the house really well. The addition of POE ports would have cleaned up the rats nest of wires though. I will add a POR switch later to help that though.
I have this UCG-Max connected with my Arris G36 Gateway, the WIFI works great so I saved the cost of a Unifi AP for the time being. I have my 4K Samsung TV and Chromecast w Google TV connected through this, as well as my personal MacBook Pro, and the Dell Laptop I use for remote work, which are each separately connected to a Thunderbolt dock. Everything is working great and I highly recommend the UCG-Max, but it would be great to set this up with a media server, although Kodi and Stremio both work fine with the CCwGTV.
I got the Ultra "days" before Unify announced Max. And I was considering the upgrade to get the Protect and a Doorbel, mostly just to play with, and not to spend too much money on dedicated NVR. My only concern is that some comments mention that Max is running very hot. And my Ultra is at most warm.
I purchased this and im loving it. Its so good for the money. got rid of the headaches of my pfsense firewall. the ONLY thing i wish i knew how to do and i hope your channel does a video on, is to get the bufferbloat situation improved. I used your videos to setup fqcodel on the pfsense firewall i made and i hope i can do the same in this little box of wonders. If i can get rid of bufferbloat this would be a 10/10 appliance for me. Please make a video on how (if its possible) to use FQCodel or other similar things to cut down the bufferbloat on this Ubiquiti gateway! thx
It seems i wasnt aware of how Unifi already contains this feature! under the WAN settings i just toggled "Smart Queues" and the the appropiate bandwidth restrictions. My bufferbloat testing on waveform went from B to A+! this little box truly is amazing.
I bought one on the launch day of the no storage option. I was already using an 8 port Ubiquiti PoE switch and two Wi-Fi 6 APs along with a generic i5 based mini PC Firewall running PfSense CE. I had 4 existing VLANs. Setup was SO easy in comparison to PfSense. I have noticed no change in my internet performance, and now everything is in one convenient web GUI. My only complaint is Ubiquiti's availability from other vendors sucks and they charge $12 shipping. Not a big deal when you are spending $200 on the unit. Silly expensive for the $19 drive sled that isn't shipping yet or the $29 wall mount that was out of stock when I ordered.
I would recommend it for 1gig, but for anything 2gig or higher it's not reaching the advertised 2.5gbps, even with IDS/IPS off and no other applications enabled, 0 extra firewall rules.
Then is it worth getting a lower tier model (Cloud gateway ultra) for a 1 gig internet if I don't plan to use the NVR functionality (sorry for my bad English)
I got one of these for my parents. Can't really say how good it is since I'm not knowledgeable enough to evaluate its features and performance deeply, but I can say that the user experience is really good aside from the exactly zero documentation in the box. They should make it clear you shouldn't install the NVMe in it while it's on somewhere besides in the interface, after you popped in it while it's on. Not so much as a note card with installation and setup steps in the box.
I have one and was downloading some large files at over 1gb per second, and it overheated and throttled within seconds, slowing speeds to a crawl. The web UI also became unresponsive. Added a cheap usb fan to the bottom side, it was able to download at 1gbps without thermal throttling no problem. Note, I did have IPS/IDS on high. I know it has a fan, but clearly not doing much.
I bought the no storage version and it has been rock solid. The only gripe is that none of the switch port is POE as you have to add AP for wifi access and most wifi 7 version AP are only POE+ powered which means either you have to buy their overpriced POE+ switch or buy injector. You can buy the injector for $20 at Unifi though.
@@dmbassett Omada is not bad it’s just not as user friendly. I used to do Cisco work so I don’t mind terminals it’s not that. I bricked and fixed an ER605 with bad firmware and that was the last straw. Software on Ubiquiti is more well rounded and they have a larger selection of other tools like cameras. And don’t get me started on the Omada controller software, what a pain in the … but keep in mind these are my opinions and experiences, if it works well for you and you don’t have problems then hey it’s good equipment.
In the process of redesigning my home network. My needs are minimal, but there are things on the “want” list. I have an nvr system already (not Unifi) but have narrowed my decision down to the USW-MAX. I will be adding some other minor Unifi devices later. Some ap, both indoor and outdoor.
This is great, but I would also like to see a more detailed review of the Gateway Max and maybe compared to other gateways. Some users will already have either cloud hosted controllers or some may even have the Cloud Key Gen 2 and just want the Gateway and not a full cloud controller and gateway combined. Given the USG's are now moved to legacy, there may be few people that need to upgrade. or some using third party gateways that may like to revisit Unifi now they have better gateways
Hi Tom, great content. One of the things im keenly interested in (which i imagine) is more difficult to test is the site to site vpn performance. Do you expect it to be closer to the openvpn performance or the wireguard performance? Or somewhere in the moddle?
I’m still waiting for them to release a UDR successor. Having family and friends who aren’t as technically literate, it would be nice to have a new all in one appliance to plugin to the wall, with no extra accessories and have with IPS/IDS that won’t be a bottleneck for FTTP. It will certainly save me the headache of dealing with. Oh why no work? Oh you disconnected the Ethernet cable for the Poe injector….
I have a small job that I quoted as a UDM but I'm really thinking of switching to the CGM just a nicer package for a small network and camera deployment.
What people also should be aware of: On a PPPoE connection, there is enough overhead that on a 1 Gb connection, you will get around 910Mb. Also, as is tradition, their firmware releases suck, if you are NOT on the early access release channel, your PPPoE connection will hang around 650Mb. Also, as is tradition again, establishing said PPPoE connection is totally random, when it works, it will work without issue, but getting it set up the first time, will fail randomly and after x number of retries and resets, it will suddenly work.
I've not experienced any of this. I have 1000/1000 connection on PPPoE and getting about 1140/930. Seems to be fine. Official firmware is nice and stable. I run Unifi across multiple business environments too and never have issues.
@@sonacphotos lucky you, but as said, PPPoE is always a gamble with them, you will find online enough about his. If your connection has "enough" headroom, you won't notice the loss of bandwidth that much, or in your case only on the up side. While Ubi could optimize PPPoE a lot more, losing some bandwidth is absolutely normal with it.
@@sonacphotos I hope so too, but if you look into it, people want improvements there for a long time, it seems Ubi just don't see PPPoE as a priority :)
The ultra is half the price and almost as fast but the max has the ability for internal storage so it's a good option. Certainly either are fantastic compared to running the network app on a NUC or a VM.
I have the older model, the unifi cloud thing. IT works great but i do kinda want to upgrade to either a max or a UDM pro SE setup. For the VPN part, anything over 50 mbps is fine for me when i only need to connect to the vpn to save my docs or check something on my home network
I have been searching for a 2.5 capable router. I had the qotom q20332G9-s10 in mind after a servethehome video. But I want cameras, I can do all I want and more with this unifi box. I am ordering it next pay period. I can't wait. It'll be my first unifi equipment. I plan on a poe switch and 3 cameras for my apt. Can't wait to tinker and slap tailscale on that bad boy. If I could, I would get the unifi doorbell.
Unfortunately I bought the model without the nvme option before they announced this one. Had I known I would have waited…. Nahhhh. I love the other model just wish I didn’t have to upgrade so soon to get security options. Hard to get the Mrs. to spend on another gateway plus cameras.
I JUST found out about the existence of this device today. I like the capabilities of it I have seen. The only concerns I have involve the management interface and subscriptions/services. Can this device be managed locally? (i.e. if my WAN connection goes down, can I still access the device for troubleshooting and network configuration) Are there any features of the device that are locked behind any type of licensing paywall or subscription service?
It's pretty nice except it gets very hot, mine is sometimes like 162F, afraid it's going to burn out my SSD. I put a fan under it and now I have it around 118F.
I am waiting for just a gateway in rack mount. None of the NVR or anything. Basically a lower end version of the enterprise gateway. That is overkill for my needs.
I'll need to consider this for upgrading my in-laws' older CloudKey Gen2 setup, although I'm not certain their internet is actually fast enough to justify it. I'm curious, though: I have a UXG. Could this function has a failover for that? Performance might be a little lower, I understand (with internet speeds high enough to matter), but otherwise, is that possible?
I already have it and am waiting for the m.2 tray to become available to install my 2tb ssd. Planning on getting two G5 Turret ultra cams to replace my Hikvision system.
A computer-illiterate guy here. How would thinks work if both Netgate pfsnse and Unifi are simultaneously used? Is there anyway to strengthen Firewall and VPN power when using Unifi?
Any concerns with the limited local storage for the controller? I currently use a VM for controller but looking to switch from an old enterprise firewall to this for a full unifi stack at home. I've had issues with storage on the old cloud key after about a year.
I always prefer my cameras on different tin , I wouldn't use protect on this device. I originally went to unifi because I wasn't keen on all in one device, before the dream machines existed .
The device is nice, but there is no suitable switch to match its capabilities. The 16 pro max Poe comes close but is overkill for home use and still is not great. I would like to see a 8 or 12 port switch without touch screen that has all 2.5Gbe with PoE++ to power downstream 5 port flex switches that also are having PoE+ and 2.5Gbe able to power an AP and cameras. At least 2.5 Gbe as backhaul and perhaps 1Gbe for the cameras and access points.
Actually the 16 pro max is also designed in a dumb way with PoE++ on its 2.5 gbe ports. There is no PoE++ powered switch with 2.5Gbe ports. It only works if you plan to connect everything with a direct connection and no switch in between.
Great review. Can you point me to an 'stepbystep' manual how to migrate from an old USG with unify os installed on separate server to this device? No cloud access available on old USG. I do not want to reconfigure from the ground up.
Maybe someone can answer this because I'm not super clear on it: so this has a Unifi Controller built in for local management, but does that automatically allow for cloud management? Or do I still need a Cloud Key for that, making the controller UCG somewhat redundant?
Is there a monthly charge for the services included in this. I see the cloudkey+ and Unifi hosting cost money but not sure if they are required to run this.
Hi Tom! Have you tried site to site ipsec with ikev2, aes 256 and aha256 encryption with phase 1/2 on the new unifi gateways? It took me some time to figure it out via cli on my USG4 but I can’t have it directly connected to my controller or else it deletes my config. I want to upgrade to the new dream machines but unsure if we will encounter the same issues with the site to site and auto controller provision.
The UniFi Express is such a complete failure of a product, I don't think I could bring myself buy anything in the Ubiquiti compact form factor. I know that is a bit irrational, but the two Express units I bought are in fact garbage, and I have disposed of them. One of the two I even sent back to the factory upon receipt because even the default boot up didn't work right. It too was junk even with the replacement unit they sent.
I have seen other reviews where they claim this device gets very hot and question its durability without a fan. Has anyone else noticed this and is it a worry?
@@LAWRENCESYSTEMS I am currently running a 4 core mini computer with 4 2.5Gb jacks using Pfsense CE 2.7. It seems like Pfsense CE is stagnating or dying. Would you recommend this device as a replacement or should I stay with what I have?
Help with 2 options I'm looking for a mesh system, since I don't have Ethernet thru the house, so I can add a switch to connect tvs and gaming systems instead of using WiFi. Was looking for at tp link deco be65 pros. Came across unifi with the cloud gateway max and some of the mesh nodes. Could I do the same thing with unifi ? Or unifi cloud gateway max with tp link mesh ap
@@CoolBreezeDude The 1.5G is with IDS turned on, but if you really want more speed then you should go with a higher end model. The UniFi Access points do support meshing.
@@gompie71 You're definitely not going to get 2gbps on PPPoe, can't even get it with ipoe. with my 2gbps fiber, I'm getting around 1700mbps with the router, full 2gig without the router, everything IDS/IPS etc disabled.
2 месяца назад
It's getting hard keeping up with all their new stuff.
The nice thing is they are actually listening and responding which not all companies do these days
Most companies will listen then as the product matures they just dont and ruin the product. Its called "enshittification" dont fall into the brand loyalty trap.
@@zahirkhan778 Sadly true and its up to us to make it know that we well go elsewhere if they decide not to listen.
Nice review Tom, just to note that IPv6 support on all Unifi devices is currently BETA and for some features they don't even support IPv6, for example Management interfaces, IDS/IPS, country blocker and VPN do not yet currently support IPv6. So beware when using IPv6 guys :)
Thank you so much for this comment. This really is a deal breaker as more and more of the internet is IPV6 and even ISP's stopped offering native IPv4. Hopefully it's out beta soon and widely supported.
For anyone, there's 3D printed versions of the tray so if you opt getting the cheaper one, there's an option for that!
Thanks. I would feel stupid to pay $20 for a $5 item.
You gonna 3D print that out of aluminum so the shell and thermal pad can help dissipate heat to the rest of the UCG or are you going to print that in heat insulating PLA so your drive thermal throttles or dies sooner than it should?
@@JimKahana-driftin Good point. ABS with some metal embedded as a heat spreader should work. Anyway, this being locked down eco system and working only with their cameras, I'm out.
@@woodcat7180 UniFi are pushing out support for ONVIF cameras soon, I believe it is currently available in beta, but I think its great that they are opening up their ecosystem.
@@woodcat7180they enabled 3rd party cameras recently
Bought the No Storage version the day it came out. I helped update my church to a full Unifi setup and I was very happy with how it came together. This gives me much more capability and control on my home network than my old ASUS routers. Was happy to get the No Storage version now as I don't have any current need for Protect, but glad to have the option to buy the sled and drive in case I want to add it later.
The NS one has been sold out for MONTHS. Finally bought one today! ALL the features of UDM-Pro and PLENTY for residential and even some small businesses!
I am moving all of my family and friends to unifi. The management is easy, and updates have been stable.
Same with me. The implementation to VPN into any site I manage with every device I have available and managing their stuff is great. Maybe other vendors could do that, too, but as the name says: I'm unifying what I manage, and I had already started using unifi at my place =)
@scootutube3 Unifi equipment cost is almost the same as a high-end personal router. Also, Unifi's update path is much better than any personal router that I had ever personally used. Since I am the one that handles all troubleshooting anyway, it makes sense to move them to something I use myself. I don't get any kickbacks from Unifi.
I have done exactly this. 👍
It's very impressive and the price point makes it exceptionally easy to recommend to any home user
Already bought the device, thanks for confirming it's a good choice. It's my first step into the Unifi world.
My MAX came a couple of days ago. After setup, my testing turned into full-on migration from a pfSense SG-4100. I think I love this thing! 😊
I'm comparing this to a 4200, how do you find it longer term? The Features seem there and the 2.5G LAN feels like a huge win.
@danielkemmet2594 After having it in place long enough to fine tune it to my liking, and become comfortable with navigating the vast feature-set of the GUI, I'm very happy with my decision to move to Unifi. I didn't realize that Unifi would be somewhat addicting though. After buying the UCG Max, I got a USW Pro Max 16, and 4 USW Flex Mini 2.5 GbE switches. I gave quite a bit of thought to their APs. But, decided to get 3 Grandstream GWN7665 (Wi-Fi 6E) APs instead, which are awesome (and WAY less expensive ($86 ea.)).
Been wanting to fully implement a unifi network at my own home as I LOVE to tinker. We are also remodeling so I put in a TON of ethernet drops to a central structured media cabinet. I was trying to teach myself to use docker on my home made OMV r-Pi NAS to host the unifi controller. Right about that time, they started coming out with these new form factor routers with the controller built in! I wasn't quite ready to deploy one, and as luck would have it, they came out with the Max before I was ready. I love the all in one small package and without WIFI that will fit very nicely inside my media cabinet. I am still getting things set up and learning how it works, but it is an awesome little machine.
I bought the Unifi Express, but found that it didn't have enough performance to run most of the features. So I got the UCG-Max and have been very impressed with it. I'll be buying the UGC-Ultra for a family member soon, it'll be good to run VPNs between our two networks for backup replications. Excellent video 👍
I would buy it if I didn't have a UDM. Much more convincing than the first cloud key with HDD I first bought.
Unfi has come a long way in just a few years. The software they have today and the cloud gateway max would have been a fantastic start for me in 2020~2021 or even 2022.
I have an Unifi CGU for my home setup and it's working mega so far. I used to have Unifi USG but since it was "out of everything" I swaped it to CGU and I'm not regreting it at all.
So I just installed the max with 3 mesh 6 AP’s. Replaced nest WiFi and needed 8 qty of those AP’s to get marginal coverage in my 3000 sqft house. Ubiquiti is the real deal. I paid $600 and have amazing WiFi coverage with extreme reliability. I can’t recommend this setup enough. They could make a ton of $$ if they market against google and really everyone else.
Got this on the day of release the NS version. So far so good! Needed a 2.5g switch for my server and main gaming PC and needed all the VLAN, DHCP and Firewall features the ISP router doesnt provide. So do not need a separate mini tiny pc for my own router or pi-hole or a separate 2.5g switch - this little powerhouse fits the bill perfectly.
I currently have a Netgate SG-4100 MAX, Grandstream GWN-7813 switch, and 3 GWN-7660 access points. After seeing your video on the unifi cloud gateway Max, I decided to take the plunge, as it looks intriguing. The features are impressive! I especially like the support for VLANs, WireGuard and IDS/IPS. Who knows, I might even keep it in place after a test period? If nothing else, it looks like it'll be fun to play with!
I just bought one of these I love it!
For a regular home user such as a friend of mine, two AP's in that house, it is a perfect choise. UDM PRO or SE is overkill for many normal users. Great hardware, long gone are they days as well for bad Network software.
I had to say goodbye to my perfectly functional, 10 year old, end-of-lifed Cisco Meraki Z1 and MR32 yesterday. Was going to cost 400 UKP to replace the Z1 with a Z4 and I didn't bother asking how much replace the MR32 once I found out there was nearly 400 UKP on top in subscription licences. So, Cisco lost a customer to Ubiquiti yesterday. All in, a U6 Mesh Pro and Cloud Gateway Max cost me just over 400 UKP and an afternoon's work with no subscription licence costs. Works perfectly for my needs and I couldn't be happier.
A53 is a really old Core from 2012. They must get them for pennies. I guess if it fits their purpose that’s fine. It’s probably why IDS can’t run at full speed.
I think it's important to note that you are also paying for their software when you buy their hardware. They don't have any subscriptions for using it right now which is refreshing in this day and age.
putting a modern cell phone processor in a product like this is just not practical for many reasons; including cost, manufacturability, unit sales per year, and peripheral IO. My guess is this is using an NXP IMx8 or similar industrial IOT processor not a cellphone processor and they're likely paying ~$10 a processor. Heck ARM charges a dollar just to use their architecture. Source: I do this for a living in a similar space.
I bought one of these on release day - love that it's like a mini UDM Pro! :)
i really wish this had come out earlier, i set up a sibling with a Gateway Express and CKG2+ and this would have simplified the setup a lot. It'll definitely be the Unifi device i suggest to anyone in the future, its exactly what a lot of people need to run 1 or 2 cameras and a doorbell alongside their router. The flexibility of using APs instead of built in Wifi while more expensive is a lot more practical. Unifi is on the right track here.
I'm just waiting to see what happens with their ONVIF announcement next month. If I can move my installed cameras over I'm moving to UniFi.
it has already been announced.
Already announced and implemented in Protect 5.0 EA
@@maxherman11 I wasn't aware it was already available, thanks for that. The early access (from what I've seen this morning anyway) is only able to record. Any word on notifications or zones? I'm preparing to clean up and unify my home and home office networks, the ability to eliminate a Blue Iris NVR in the process would make UniFi the obvious choice.
@@cameronfrye5514from what I understand, it's only recording, and does not do motion or anything
I had just put in an order for the Gateway Ultra when Synology announced they would yank h265 support from their non-surveillance NASes in the latest update. I promptly returned it and got the Gateway Max instead. As soon as the drive tray is in stock I will migrate my cameras to UniFi.
It’s been very easy to set up UniFi for me as a first time user, and the performance has been great. I have some third party mesh routers and they are now performing better in AP-only mode too, as they were quite underpowered
Not only would I buy it, I did buy it. It is a fantastic device.
Apparently this runs at crazy hot temps. Like 80 to 90 degrees.
Yes, the highest I have seen is 85 (only Unifi Network, without IPS/IDS, without VPN). Now I see 70-ish, although it is colder now in the place I have the device
And? It's not a 14th gen Intel, those temps don't mean a damn thing.
At least there’s an internal fan. It doesn’t quite spin up. Yet.
This would be the device I would recommend for most people interested in Unifi. I will say that Ubiquiti does seem to be struggling on their hardware as of late though. This one is good in that it is at least using 2.5Gbps ports but a lot of their other devices feel like they are stuck in the past. I don't think we should be seeing Gigabit ports on devices that cost this much anymore but besides this one a lot of unifi's devices seem to not get that.
Why 1.5 gb/s IPS when it has 2.5 gb/s ports and wifi 7, which can reach more than 2.5 gb/s? They could had opted for a higher performance cpu, maybe cortex A73.
a great review, and im looking to get one of these, but holding off in hope there will be a black friday deal! i noticed on the specs that it has ad filtering, have you had a chance to test out this feature yet, id be keen to see how it compares to something like pi hole / adguard home
I do wonder why the Max is rated for an extra 500Mbit IDS/IPS throughput over the Ultra despite using the same 1.5GHz A53 SOC. I also wonder why my UDM is only rated for 850Mbit IDS/IPS despite having using a faster, more powerful A57 @ 1.7GHz.
That’s super interesting. Maybe just for sales? Creating artificial boundaries between products?
@@hong_kong_phooey Could it be the memory ?
It might be because the UCG Ultra only has 1Gb LAN ports
@@martyfarrell392 Good point. This is way outside my zone though. I am curious as too why they do make some of their choices though. All in all I really like my Gateway Max. It runs my home network and the business I run out of the house really well. The addition of POE ports would have cleaned up the rats nest of wires though. I will add a POR switch later to help that though.
I have this UCG-Max connected with my Arris G36 Gateway, the WIFI works great so I saved the cost of a Unifi AP for the time being. I have my 4K Samsung TV and Chromecast w Google TV connected through this, as well as my personal MacBook Pro, and the Dell Laptop I use for remote work, which are each separately connected to a Thunderbolt dock. Everything is working great and I highly recommend the UCG-Max, but it would be great to set this up with a media server, although Kodi and Stremio both work fine with the CCwGTV.
Need a heat test for both the exterior and internal components
Great review as always!
I got the Ultra "days" before Unify announced Max. And I was considering the upgrade to get the Protect and a Doorbel, mostly just to play with, and not to spend too much money on dedicated NVR. My only concern is that some comments mention that Max is running very hot. And my Ultra is at most warm.
I purchased this and im loving it. Its so good for the money. got rid of the headaches of my pfsense firewall. the ONLY thing i wish i knew how to do and i hope your channel does a video on, is to get the bufferbloat situation improved. I used your videos to setup fqcodel on the pfsense firewall i made and i hope i can do the same in this little box of wonders. If i can get rid of bufferbloat this would be a 10/10 appliance for me. Please make a video on how (if its possible) to use FQCodel or other similar things to cut down the bufferbloat on this Ubiquiti gateway! thx
It seems i wasnt aware of how Unifi already contains this feature! under the WAN settings i just toggled "Smart Queues" and the the appropiate bandwidth restrictions. My bufferbloat testing on waveform went from B to A+! this little box truly is amazing.
I bought one on the launch day of the no storage option. I was already using an 8 port Ubiquiti PoE switch and two Wi-Fi 6 APs along with a generic i5 based mini PC Firewall running PfSense CE. I had 4 existing VLANs. Setup was SO easy in comparison to PfSense. I have noticed no change in my internet performance, and now everything is in one convenient web GUI. My only complaint is Ubiquiti's availability from other vendors sucks and they charge $12 shipping. Not a big deal when you are spending $200 on the unit. Silly expensive for the $19 drive sled that isn't shipping yet or the $29 wall mount that was out of stock when I ordered.
I would recommend it for 1gig, but for anything 2gig or higher it's not reaching the advertised 2.5gbps, even with IDS/IPS off and no other applications enabled, 0 extra firewall rules.
Then is it worth getting a lower tier model (Cloud gateway ultra) for a 1 gig internet if I don't plan to use the NVR functionality (sorry for my bad English)
I think it’s legit an excellent device, yeah it may not suit more advanced use cases but it’s very good
I really like this device, I’m just using it for network, perfect for when a UDM Pro is overkill
I got one of these for my parents. Can't really say how good it is since I'm not knowledgeable enough to evaluate its features and performance deeply, but I can say that the user experience is really good aside from the exactly zero documentation in the box. They should make it clear you shouldn't install the NVMe in it while it's on somewhere besides in the interface, after you popped in it while it's on. Not so much as a note card with installation and setup steps in the box.
I have one and was downloading some large files at over 1gb per second, and it overheated and throttled within seconds, slowing speeds to a crawl. The web UI also became unresponsive. Added a cheap usb fan to the bottom side, it was able to download at 1gbps without thermal throttling no problem. Note, I did have IPS/IDS on high. I know it has a fan, but clearly not doing much.
I'm excited to get this on my network as soon as I get the keys to my new house
I bought the no storage version and it has been rock solid. The only gripe is that none of the switch port is POE as you have to add AP for wifi access and most wifi 7 version AP are only POE+ powered which means either you have to buy their overpriced POE+ switch or buy injector. You can buy the injector for $20 at Unifi though.
These are so nice for your parents or in laws when you are their tech support.
Will be getting this for Network and Protect.
For the price, simple the best gateway on the market right now, finally affordable 2.5GB is here.
A fantastic device. Perfect for parents or other non techies add a camera, AP and maybe a switch and it’s good to go
Ordered mine today.
Just bought this device a few hours ago and then seen your video. I’m switching over from Omada
I’m on Omada too. Why are you moving over?
@@dmbassett Omada is not bad it’s just not as user friendly. I used to do Cisco work so I don’t mind terminals it’s not that. I bricked and fixed an ER605 with bad firmware and that was the last straw. Software on Ubiquiti is more well rounded and they have a larger selection of other tools like cameras. And don’t get me started on the Omada controller software, what a pain in the … but keep in mind these are my opinions and experiences, if it works well for you and you don’t have problems then hey it’s good equipment.
i've been loving mine!
In the process of redesigning my home network. My needs are minimal, but there are things on the “want” list. I have an nvr system already (not Unifi) but have narrowed my decision down to the USW-MAX. I will be adding some other minor Unifi devices later. Some ap, both indoor and outdoor.
This is great, but I would also like to see a more detailed review of the Gateway Max and maybe compared to other gateways. Some users will already have either cloud hosted controllers or some may even have the Cloud Key Gen 2 and just want the Gateway and not a full cloud controller and gateway combined. Given the USG's are now moved to legacy, there may be few people that need to upgrade. or some using third party gateways that may like to revisit Unifi now they have better gateways
Hi Tom, great content.
One of the things im keenly interested in (which i imagine) is more difficult to test is the site to site vpn performance.
Do you expect it to be closer to the openvpn performance or the wireguard performance? Or somewhere in the moddle?
I’m still waiting for them to release a UDR successor.
Having family and friends who aren’t as technically literate, it would be nice to have a new all in one appliance to plugin to the wall, with no extra accessories and have with IPS/IDS that won’t be a bottleneck for FTTP.
It will certainly save me the headache of dealing with. Oh why no work? Oh you disconnected the Ethernet cable for the Poe injector….
Awesome video Tom !
I have a small job that I quoted as a UDM but I'm really thinking of switching to the CGM just a nicer package for a small network and camera deployment.
I did and it works well.
I have the ultra and will be updating to the max
Hi Tom - looking for the video you mentioned at 3:13 about IDS/IPS efficacy. The video linked doesn’t cover this. Thanks! 😊
I am looking for it as well
What people also should be aware of:
On a PPPoE connection, there is enough overhead that on a 1 Gb connection, you will get around 910Mb.
Also, as is tradition, their firmware releases suck, if you are NOT on the early access release channel, your PPPoE connection will hang around 650Mb.
Also, as is tradition again, establishing said PPPoE connection is totally random, when it works, it will work without issue, but getting it set up the first time, will fail randomly and after x number of retries and resets, it will suddenly work.
I've not experienced any of this. I have 1000/1000 connection on PPPoE and getting about 1140/930. Seems to be fine. Official firmware is nice and stable. I run Unifi across multiple business environments too and never have issues.
@@sonacphotos lucky you, but as said, PPPoE is always a gamble with them, you will find online enough about his.
If your connection has "enough" headroom, you won't notice the loss of bandwidth that much, or in your case only on the up side.
While Ubi could optimize PPPoE a lot more, losing some bandwidth is absolutely normal with it.
@@Selgald hopefully they make improvements then, I wouldn’t mind a bit extra
@@sonacphotos I hope so too, but if you look into it, people want improvements there for a long time, it seems Ubi just don't see PPPoE as a priority :)
The ultra is half the price and almost as fast but the max has the ability for internal storage so it's a good option. Certainly either are fantastic compared to running the network app on a NUC or a VM.
I have the older model, the unifi cloud thing. IT works great but i do kinda want to upgrade to either a max or a UDM pro SE setup. For the VPN part, anything over 50 mbps is fine for me when i only need to connect to the vpn to save my docs or check something on my home network
I have been searching for a 2.5 capable router. I had the qotom q20332G9-s10 in mind after a servethehome video. But I want cameras, I can do all I want and more with this unifi box. I am ordering it next pay period. I can't wait. It'll be my first unifi equipment. I plan on a poe switch and 3 cameras for my apt. Can't wait to tinker and slap tailscale on that bad boy. If I could, I would get the unifi doorbell.
Will there soon be an in depth review of the Enterprise Fortress Gateway?
Unfortunately I bought the model without the nvme option before they announced this one. Had I known I would have waited…. Nahhhh. I love the other model just wish I didn’t have to upgrade so soon to get security options. Hard to get the Mrs. to spend on another gateway plus cameras.
how does this compare to a netgate pfsense box
I JUST found out about the existence of this device today. I like the capabilities of it I have seen.
The only concerns I have involve the management interface and subscriptions/services.
Can this device be managed locally?
(i.e. if my WAN connection goes down, can I still access the device for troubleshooting and network configuration)
Are there any features of the device that are locked behind any type of licensing paywall or subscription service?
It's pretty nice except it gets very hot, mine is sometimes like 162F, afraid it's going to burn out my SSD. I put a fan under it and now I have it around 118F.
After my OG UDM died I got myself UCG Ultra, too bad this was not out then.
I am waiting for just a gateway in rack mount. None of the NVR or anything. Basically a lower end version of the enterprise gateway. That is overkill for my needs.
I'll need to consider this for upgrading my in-laws' older CloudKey Gen2 setup, although I'm not certain their internet is actually fast enough to justify it.
I'm curious, though: I have a UXG. Could this function has a failover for that? Performance might be a little lower, I understand (with internet speeds high enough to matter), but otherwise, is that possible?
I already have it and am waiting for the m.2 tray to become available to install my 2tb ssd. Planning on getting two G5 Turret ultra cams to replace my Hikvision system.
apparently, they're adding ONVIF support. so your hikvision cameras may work.
@@RobertoCarlos-tn1iq ONVIF sounds awesome, but I still have to replace my system as it is DVR based with analog cams. Thanks for the info!
A computer-illiterate guy here. How would thinks work if both Netgate pfsnse and Unifi are simultaneously used? Is there anyway to strengthen Firewall and VPN power when using Unifi?
I am curious how good the firewall is. Would it bee good enough for a small business or Doctors office?
Firewall good, VPN is just ok
Any chance you can test the failover/fallback performance on it? That’s the part I needed the most.
Actually quite impressive what it can do... does it get hot ?
It get's warm, but not really hot.
Any concerns with the limited local storage for the controller? I currently use a VM for controller but looking to switch from an old enterprise firewall to this for a full unifi stack at home. I've had issues with storage on the old cloud key after about a year.
I want one of those, to play with it in my lab..
Yes, I''m an adult that like to play with these shiny new devices in my labplayground :P
I always prefer my cameras on different tin , I wouldn't use protect on this device. I originally went to unifi because I wasn't keen on all in one device, before the dream machines existed .
The device is nice, but there is no suitable switch to match its capabilities. The 16 pro max Poe comes close but is overkill for home use and still is not great. I would like to see a 8 or 12 port switch without touch screen that has all 2.5Gbe with PoE++ to power downstream 5 port flex switches that also are having PoE+ and 2.5Gbe able to power an AP and cameras. At least 2.5 Gbe as backhaul and perhaps 1Gbe for the cameras and access points.
Actually the 16 pro max is also designed in a dumb way with PoE++ on its 2.5 gbe ports. There is no PoE++ powered switch with 2.5Gbe ports. It only works if you plan to connect everything with a direct connection and no switch in between.
Great review. Can you point me to an 'stepbystep' manual how to migrate from an old USG with unify os installed on separate server to this device?
No cloud access available on old USG.
I do not want to reconfigure from the ground up.
I don't think they have a path for that, you can migrate devices but I don't think you can migrate the firewall rules.
@@LAWRENCESYSTEMS Fw is not important, devices are, but not sure how to do that without losing all ipadresses
Can I connect my ADSL line w/ RJ-11 to this router? Is it just going to work or will there be some extra config needed?
I replaced my UDM with this and love it.
I was thinking the same thing although the UDM has a much more powerful processor. A57 vs A53. The 2.5ghz is nice finally.
I am thinking of that too
All I want is the equivalent of an EdgeRouter 4 that has 2.5 GbE ports, but they won't make one.
Maybe someone can answer this because I'm not super clear on it: so this has a Unifi Controller built in for local management, but does that automatically allow for cloud management? Or do I still need a Cloud Key for that, making the controller UCG somewhat redundant?
Is there a monthly charge for the services included in this. I see the cloudkey+ and Unifi hosting cost money but not sure if they are required to run this.
There is no subscription needed
Hi Tom! Have you tried site to site ipsec with ikev2, aes 256 and aha256 encryption with phase 1/2 on the new unifi gateways?
It took me some time to figure it out via cli on my USG4 but I can’t have it directly connected to my controller or else it deletes my config.
I want to upgrade to the new dream machines but unsure if we will encounter the same issues with the site to site and auto controller provision.
That is a software issue, not hardware.
Not sure I want to update my UDM Pro
i would like to buy one, but its not on stock. So i have to wait and wait and wait and..............
Time to retire the USG to offline only. Just need a 3d print fan case. To keep Er cool
Yet there is still no support for portforwarding to vpn interfaces :CCCC
Looks like a good replacement for mi cloud key gen 1 hahaha
heard some complaints abt the Max getting to temp of 90 deg celcius.. any comment?
Not something I have encountered with mine
@@LAWRENCESYSTEMS is yours always in an air-conditioned room? or naturally ventilated?
The UniFi Express is such a complete failure of a product, I don't think I could bring myself buy anything in the Ubiquiti compact form factor. I know that is a bit irrational, but the two Express units I bought are in fact garbage, and I have disposed of them. One of the two I even sent back to the factory upon receipt because even the default boot up didn't work right. It too was junk even with the replacement unit they sent.
The speed difference between Wireguard and OpenVPN is huge 😶
Question, does it have POE or not?
Nice device but seems underpowered hence overpriced.
It should either be cheaper or come with a beefier CPU.
No POE. I’m using it with two POE injectors for my network right now. It would be darn near perfect if it had POE on even one port.
@@hong_kong_phooey thanks for the info.
Its always the same story with them, always with the upsell.
I have seen other reviews where they claim this device gets very hot and question its durability without a fan.
Has anyone else noticed this and is it a worry?
It does get pretty warm, but not so hot that I am concerned. I have been running it for a few month without any issues.
@@LAWRENCESYSTEMS I am currently running a 4 core mini computer with 4 2.5Gb jacks using Pfsense CE 2.7. It seems like Pfsense CE is stagnating or dying. Would you recommend this device as a replacement or should I stay with what I have?
@@jaycahow4667 pfsense still has more features than the UniFi
Help with 2 options
I'm looking for a mesh system, since I don't have Ethernet thru the house, so I can add a switch to connect tvs and gaming systems instead of using WiFi. Was looking for at tp link deco be65 pros.
Came across unifi with the cloud gateway max and some of the mesh nodes. Could I do the same thing with unifi ?
Or unifi cloud gateway max with tp link mesh ap
Go with gateway Max and UniFi access points
@@LAWRENCESYSTEMS will the unifi aps work that way ? Were I can wire my tv to them and have that go mesh back to the main ap ?
@@LAWRENCESYSTEMS also will I get my full 2gb speed ? The gateway max says throughput is 1.5 will my wired pc get the 2gbs or only 1.5
@@CoolBreezeDude The 1.5G is with IDS turned on, but if you really want more speed then you should go with a higher end model. The UniFi Access points do support meshing.
@@LAWRENCESYSTEMS gotchav. What about tp link omada. Been looking into those too
Is this powerful enough to max out a 1gbps or even 2gbps download speed fiber internet connection, without using the VPN?
Yes
@@LAWRENCESYSTEMS even when the WAN works over PPPoe?
I don't have any way to test that
@@gompie71 You're definitely not going to get 2gbps on PPPoe, can't even get it with ipoe. with my 2gbps fiber, I'm getting around 1700mbps with the router, full 2gig without the router, everything IDS/IPS etc disabled.
It's getting hard keeping up with all their new stuff.
What is the Netgate equivalent?
2100