Editorial Methodology: How We Research

This page exists so you know exactly what stands behind every recommendation on this site — and what doesn’t.

What our guides are built from

1. Published specifications. Manufacturer datasheets, spec sheets, and official documentation. When we cite a number (throughput, range, price), it comes from the manufacturer or a retailer unless we say otherwise.
2. Standards and technical references. Wi-Fi and networking standards (802.11 variants, MoCA 2.5, PoE standards), electrical and plumbing code concepts where relevant. Standards are the closest thing this field has to ground truth.
3. Community and installer knowledge. Long-running forums, installer communities, and professional practice — the accumulated experience of people who deploy this gear for a living. We treat this as valuable but anecdotal, and we say so when a claim rests on it.
4. Original analysis. Decision frameworks, cost math, placement diagrams, derating rules — the planning layer is our own work, built on the sources above.

What we explicitly do NOT do

We do not do hands-on product testing. We don’t buy units, bench-test throughput, or run long-term reliability trials. Any page that compared products without testing says so, in words, on the page.

This is a deliberate scope choice, not a confession: hands-on testing of networking gear installed across real houses doesn’t scale to honest coverage, and fake testing (“we tested 47 routers in our lab”) is the thing that makes product media untrustworthy. We’d rather be transparent about research than theatrical about testing.

How we label claims

• Manufacturer claims are labeled as manufacturer claims. Phrases like “per the manufacturer” or “advertised” mean: this is what the vendor says, not what we’ve verified.
• Estimates are labeled as estimates. Street prices, installer rates, and coverage rules of thumb are marked as estimates because they move and vary.
• Community knowledge is attributed vaguely but honestly (“long-running community experience”) — we don’t invent specific people, quotes, or anecdotes.

What we never do

• Never fabricate product testing, personal experience, or hands-on impressions.
• Never invent authors, personas, review panels, or quotes.
• Never invent data, measurements, or survey results.
• Never present a commercial relationship that doesn’t exist. If we’re not in an affiliate program, we say so — see the affiliate disclosure.
• Never let a current or prospective affiliate relationship change a recommendation. Recommendations are made first; monetization follows.

Corrections

If you spot an error — a wrong spec, an outdated price, a bad recommendation — we want to know. Substantive corrections are noted on the page. (Contact details to be added when the site’s email is set up.)

Updates

Guides carry published and updated dates. We revisit high-traffic guides when specs, prices, or standards change materially. Street prices in particular should always be verified before you buy — we mark them as estimates for exactly this reason.