What HomeNode Is
HomeNode is an independent home lab and networking review site. We test the hardware — NAS drives, mesh routers, PoE switches, mini PCs, firewalls, video doorbells, and everything in between — that home lab builders, remote workers, and self-hosters actually rely on. Our comparisons are written for the person who wants to make a considered purchase decision, not click through 40 tabs of AI-generated listicles.
Who We Are
HomeNode is written and maintained by Alexander McGregor, publishing under the Auburn AI editorial umbrella. Alexander has been running personal home labs for over a decade, spanning Synology and TrueNAS storage builds, pfSense and Ubiquiti networking, Proxmox virtualization, and Home Assistant automation. He works professionally in technology infrastructure and holds an operational role in a large Canadian health-services organization, where reliability, security, and total cost of ownership decisions matter every day.
That day-job perspective is the lens we bring to consumer-grade home lab gear: does this NAS actually stay online through a firmware update? Does that mesh router hold up when the family is on three concurrent video calls? Is the “budget” firewall appliance still shipping security patches two years post-launch?
How We Review
Our recommendations are shaped by:
- Hands-on testing where practical. Where we own or borrow the hardware, we say so, and our review notes reflect actual usage — not just spec-sheet transcription.
- Synthesis from multiple trusted sources. Where hands-on isn’t feasible, we cross-reference professional reviews (Tom’s Hardware, ServeTheHome, Level1Techs), long-form Reddit threads (r/homelab, r/selfhosted), and manufacturer documentation, then form a considered opinion. We disclose when a recommendation is synthesis-based rather than hands-on.
- Real trade-offs, not just praise. Every product recommendation includes what it isn’t great at, or who shouldn’t buy it. If a review reads like a sales page, we’ve failed you.
How HomeNode Makes Money
We participate in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program and the Amazon Influencer Program. When you click a product link on HomeNode and buy something on Amazon within the tracking window, Amazon pays us a small commission — at no additional cost to you. This is our primary funding source and is why HomeNode has no subscription paywall or intrusive interstitial ads.
We also plan to run display advertising via Google AdSense once approved. Ad revenue helps us cover hosting, testing hardware, and the time to research and write each guide. Ads never influence what we recommend.
Full details on how affiliate partnerships work here are in our Affiliate Disclosure.
What We Won’t Do
- Recommend products we don’t believe in, regardless of commission rate
- Publish sponsored posts disguised as editorial reviews
- Sell your data (see our Privacy Policy)
- Auto-generate content or fake reviews
Editorial Contact
Questions, corrections, product suggestions, or media inquiries: info@homenode.tech. We read every email. See our full Contact page for turnaround expectations and business inquiry routing.
Corporate
HomeNode is published by Auburn AI, a sole proprietorship registered in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Editorial and business operations are based in Calgary.