Are Xfinity Pods Free? How Many Can I Have?

Xfinity Internet offers some of the fastest speeds around. With speeds up to 1.2 gigabytes per second, it has plenty of bandwidth for gaming and streaming. But what if your house has some dead or weak signal spots and the reception could use a little help? Xfi pods may be a great solution to making sure your whole house gets a great signal.

For most consumers, Xfinity may offer free Xfi pods through an email promotion. Most people report being offered three complimentary Xfi pods through an email offer. If you do not receive the offer, Xfinity offers pods for $119 each or two for $199.

Xfi pods are a great way to extend the range of your wifi in your house. There are some limitations, though, and some viable alternatives. Read on to see if Xfi pods are best for your needs or if there is an alternative that might work better for you.

What are Some of the Limitations of the Xfi Pods?

Xfi pods can be a free way to extend the wifi range in your home. Xfinity and Comcast would prefer that you use their own pods but, for some consumers, that may not be the best option. Here are some things you need to consider before asking Xfinity for some pods to be sent your way.

• Exclusivity: Xfi pods are only compatible with modems and routers rented through Comcast and Xfinity. If you have purchased your own router and modem, you will not be able to use the pods. The pods may end up being free, but you will still have to pay for renting a modem and router.
• Personal use only: If you have a business account with Comcast Xfinity, you will not be able to use the pods with your account. Xfi pods are only available to consumer home-based users.
• Issues: Some people experienced problems with using only one pod. If you decide to do a pod setup, plan on setting up three or more for the pods to function best.
• Performance: Some customers claim that the performance after setting up the pods was not better than before. You may want to check to see if you can try out using the pods to see if they will improve your signal strength before committing to the setup.

Clearly, there are several things that you need to take into account before ordering Xfi pods. It will be up to you to determine if the benefits outweigh the potential gains you would get from the pods being installed in your home.

Alternatives to Xfi Pods

For consumers who already rent equipment from Comcast Xfinity, Xfi pods may be the best, most economical option for extending wifi range. If you do not want to rent equipment, then there are some alternatives that might be a better option for you.

On the more economic end of options, Amazon’s eero Mesh Wifi Router comes in under $100 and will work to provide a good signal and stable connection to your entire home. The mesh router is rated to provide strong coverage for a home up to 1500 square feet. For homes larger than 1500 square feet, you can add more units. The eero is designed to intelligently route bandwidth to limit buffering and network congestion. And, since it is from Amazon, you know that service and support will be top-notch.

For a mid-range option, the TP-Link Deco W7200 is an excellent option. The package comes with two mesh routers and can provide great coverage for homes up to 5500 square feet. This is a perfect solution for consumers with bigger homes that may have some weak spots in-network coverage. With the ability to connect to up to 150 devices simultaneously, you will never have to worry if you have enough bandwidth when you have visitors. The Deco is also compatible with Amazon’s Alexa and will work with all wifi generations and internet service providers.

If you are looking for the best mesh system money can buy, the Netgear Orbi AX6000 is your gear. It will provide super-fast network signal up to 6 Gpbs in your home up to 5000 square feet. Of course, that blazing speed comes at a price well above anything else available. The Orbi AX6000 is designed for users that will be using tons of bandwidth for gaming, 4k streaming, and other intensive tasks so, for this one, consider if you really need something that is going to give you the absolute fastest speeds possible. If your internet speeds from your internet service provider are less than 3 Gbps, then this may not be worth it for you.

Conclusion

The Xfi pods from Xfinity could be an inexpensive, possibly even free, way to extend your wifi coverage to your whole house without losing signal strength. You might be able to get three free Xfi pods from Xfinity, but you need to make sure you are already renting your modem and router from Comcast to qualify or even use the pods.