TP-Link 16-Port 10/100Mbps + 2-Port Gigabit Unmanaged PoE Switch

Product Overview

AI-generated summary

For £120 ex-VAT, this is a sensible “get stuff working” switch if you need a small PoE footprint on a tight budget. The 16 Fast Ethernet ports are absolutely fine for things like IP cameras (where bandwidth demands are modest), Wi‑Fi access points that don’t need crazy throughput, and basic VoIP handsets. The two Gigabit uplinks are the real value kicker: they’ll help with uplinking to your router/VLAN backbone without instantly turning the switch into the bottleneck.

That said, I wouldn’t buy it if you’re planning to move lots of non-PoE devices at full speed or running heavy camera workloads across the network. Fast Ethernet is dated, and unmanaged means no visibility or control (no VLANs, no traffic management, no fancy troubleshooting). In other words: great for straightforward deployments where you just want reliable PoE distribution and don’t care about network “smart” features.

Who should buy: small offices, retail sites, and low/medium-density camera AP setups where every port doesn’t need to be Gigabit. Who should not: environments expecting lots of east-west traffic, frequent network changes, or where you’ll benefit from managed features and full Gigabit on the access ports.