Should you upgrade to Ruckus?

If it isn’t broke…

The black Pocket Hubs are serving most people well and there’s no reason why they shouldn’t continue to do so. So there is no need to switch to Ruckus if your existing black pocket hubs are doing the job.
The Ruckus devices also require players to input a 6 digit PIN in the app to join a quiz, whereas the black Pocket Hubs don’t. This is another reason not to rush into switching to Ruckus if your black hub is serving you well.
In addition to this, the bespoke SpeedQuizzing firmware in the black Pocket Hub feeds back information to SQ PRO allowing it to display information regarding device signal strength etc directly on the SQ PRO screen. None of this communication exists between Ruckus APs and SQ PRO, so monitoring must be done in a web browser via the Ruckus GUI. This is another feather in the cap of the Pocket hubs that make them more straight forward to use than the Ruckus APs.

Older tablet compatibility.

The main trick up the sleeves of the Ruckus devices, (which the pocket hubs don’t have) is 5ghz WiFi compatibility. All modern phones are compatible with this but some older tablets might not be, such as the Amazon Fires from pre 2019. If you are someone who provides players with these older devices then this could be a reason for sticking with the Pocket Hubs. Ruckus will work with these older (2.4ghz only) devices, but will have no benefit over the Pocket Hubs when doing so. A good way to tell if your Amazon Fires are new enough to have 5ghz compatibility is to look if the power button is silver or coloured. Coloured = new. Silver = old.

Going Large

SpeedQuizzing Pro V5 is due for release later this year and will see limitations lifted on how many players can connect. So when using a computer of reasonable spec, the only thing limiting how many teams can play SpeedQuizzing Pro will be the WiFi hardware. In tests we’ve connected 200+ devices using Ruckus Hardware but theoretically they should allow up to 500 connections when using multiple access points. So exciting times lay ahead, for pushing the boundaries of what you can do with SQPRO.

Connection stability

As well as allowing for more connections, Ruckus hardware (with it’s dual band WiFi) can often improve the quality of connections, reducing device-disconnections in problematic venues.

So, what Ruckus hardware do I require for my SpeedQuizzing needs?

If you currently use one black Pocket Hub and it works fine in your venue, then you really don’t need to switch. (Maybe buy another Pocket Hub as it’s always good to have a spare).
If you have a modest sized venue and even though your black Pocket Hub is above head height and away from obstacles, you still experience regular unexplained disconnections, then upgrading to a single Ruckus Master r500 may well improve things. (Keeping your Pocket Hub as a backup).
If you host in bigger venues, troublesome rooms or over multiple floors, then upgrading to a Ruckus Master r500 plus at least one r500 Repeater might be a good call.
If you already use multiple black hubs to cover large or troublesome areas, but you think performance could be improved or you’d rather not have the hassle of multiple SSID’s, then you could upgrade to a Ruckus Master r500 plus one or more r500 Repeaters .

What about the r710?

The r500 and r710 both have the same theoretical physical limit of 100 devices per unit as well as similar range. So we’d recommend investing in two or three r500s for SpeedQuizzing rather than spending the same money on a single r710. However if you plan to host in really densely packed (standing room only) type venues or in venues where WiFi interference is known to be an issue, or you expect to regularly host to over 100 teams, then you won’t regret choosing an r710 as the Master AP in place of an r500.

Note: We don’t provide r710s configured as Repeater APs.