I’ve just been going through the specs and it would seem in terms of wireless performance the hAP ax3 is better than the cAP ax, and yet the hAP ax2 would perform is better than the is also a better wireless performance than the cAP ax which I’m inclined to think is incorrect. I’ve read many posts that say the ax3 is better than the ax2 in terms of wireless performance, which seems right judging by the size of their respective antennae. I’m just trying to figure out how the cAP ax stacks up against those two in practice. Any ideas?
Personal and practical experience having all 3:
cAP AX is better purely as AP if located correctly (due to its ceiling mount).
I’m not talking about tx/rx numbers, just how it behaves in live operation.
That’s sensible given that there is less clutter in a typical household at the ceiling or near-ceiling wall level.
One must then ask, though, what happens if you use the wall mount included with the hAP ax³ to stick it up near ceiling level?
I’m tempted to try it For Science! but not that tempted. It’d cause an ugly cascade of Ethernet cables down the wall, for one thing, since I make good use of the built-in switch in mine.
I have one running in a warehouse environment mounted on the ceiling because I needed one of the antennae to go through a wall for outside purpose covering an outside storage as close as possible.
(using pigtails I extended that connection to pass the wall and used dedicated outdoor antenna on the other side of the wall).
A pity of those 4 unused ethernet ports.
But to be honest, it’s a workaround since I would like to use a proper wAP-AX … I am not sure Mantbox AX is the answer here ? Would it ?
As for radiation pattern:
I always understood cAP AX is more spherical whereas AX3 is more doughnut shaped perpendicular to antenna positioning.
So due to ceiling mounting and radiation pattern, cAP AX would give better coverage.
Well in my case I’m wouldn’t be doing it for the science, but really for getting the best results for my money. I’m going to install it in a place where aesthetics are bottom-of-the-list and I can place the device any way I want (upside down, at an angle… anything goes), so I’m tempted.
I’ve seen teardown photos of the cAP ax and the antennas don’t look all that impressive. It would be interesting if someone who’s tried both models could share their real-world experience.
Do you have any cAP ax’s on your network? On paper the ax3 has higher dBm, but theory vs practice…
A picture says more then a 1000 words…
AX3: 1 as explained above, 2 others are in “office” setting (on a shelf), 1 is located on top of a network cabinet in the corner of warehouse to provide extra coverage for one specific area.
AX Lite is located in office (mine when I’m there 
) for increasing slightly lower coverage (and for testing)
Rest is cAP AX mounted on ceiling (7 on 5 meters high, 3 on 9 meters high)
After reading various threads, in the end I’ve decided neither of these devices is suitable. Probably will get something cheaper like a hEX S and a couple of TP-Link APs, or a hAP ax2 and one TP-Link AP, and hope Mikrotik one day will releases a router under €150 that “ticks all the boxes”—no point in me spending extra money on gear I know I will resent. Mikrotik’s current consumer line-up had potential but was poorly executed and there are many missed opportunities in it.