Recommended Injectors for UniFi PoE Devices
Originally Posted: September 25th, 2021
Last Edited: May 2nd, 2023
TL;DR:
PoE switches provide active 803.af/at/bt PoE. Injectors are typically passive.
Passive PoE can damage devices that don't expect it, or require a different voltage
Ubiquiti sells the U-POE-AF and U-POE-AT... which both provide passive PoE at 48V.
PoE is confusing, and Ubiquiti makes it worse
All links are to the Ubiquiti US store.
Recommended Injectors for UniFi PoE Devices
Some common models of Ubiquiti PoE Injectors
15W 802.3af PoE or 24V Passive
These models support normal 802.3af PoE or 24V passive input. These are mostly older devices, as newer ones typically support 48V passive input. Depending on the model and hardware revision, 48V passive can work as well. See the announcement from 2017 and the relevant datasheets for more details.
* Depending on the AC-Lite and AC-LR hardware revision, 48V passive can work as well. See the [announcement from 2017](https://community.ui.com/questions/Updating-PoE-Standards-on-the-UniFi-Product-line/ec4940aa-b213-47fb-99c7-fd049af4f8f5) and the relevant datasheets for more details.- Access Points
- AC-Lite (AC-Lites before date code 1638 (September 2016) are 24V only)
- AC-LR (AC-LRs before date code 1638 (September 2016) are 24V only)
- AC-Mesh
- Cameras
- G3-Bullet (Discontinued)
- G3-Pro (Discontinued)
- G3-Dome (Discontinued)
Compatible PoE Injectors:
- POE-24-12W-G (24V at .5A)
- Also available in a 5-pack)
- POE-24-24W-G (24V at 1A)
- POE-24-24W-G-WH (24V at 1A)
- POE-24-AF5X (24V at 1A)
- POE-24-30W (24V at 1.2A)
- If you have a 802.3af compatible unit, you can use the U-POE-af
Don't buy these 100 Mbps models:
- POE-24-12W (24V at .5A)
- POE-24-24W (24V at 1A)
- Also available in 5-pack
15W 802.3af PoE or 48V Passive
These models support either 802.3af input, or 48V input. The in-wall models listed require PoE+ input for PoE passthrough.
- Access Points
- AC-Pro
- AC-Mesh-Pro
- AC-In-Wall (PoE+/48V required for PoE Passthrough)
- AC-In-Wall-Pro (PoE+/48V required for PoE Passthrough)
- In-Wall-HD (PoE+ required for PoE Passthrough)
- U6-In-Wall (PoE+ required for PoE Passthrough)
- NanoHD
- FlexHD
- U6-Lite
- U6+
- U6+LR
- U6-Mesh
- UniFi Building Bridge (UBB)
- Cloud Keys
- UniFi Cloud Key
- UniFi Cloud Key Gen 2
- UniFi Cloud Key Gen 2 Plus
- Cameras
- G3-Flex
- G3-Micro (requires indoor or outdoor Instant adapter)
- G3-Instant (requires Instant PoE to USB Converter, not included)
- G4-Bullet
- G4-Dome
- G4-Pro
- G5-Bullet
- G5-Dome
- G5-Flex
- Camera AI 360
- Camera AI Bullet
- Camera AI Theta
- Switches
- Switch 8 (US-8)
- Switch Flex (USW-Flex) - PoE+ or PoE++ provide additional passthrough wattage
- Switch Flex Mini (USW-Flex-Mini)
- Phones
- Flex
- Touch
Compatible PoE Injectors:
Don't buy these 100 Mbps models
- [POE-48-24W][15]
30W 802.3at PoE+, or 48V Passive
- Access Points
- AC-HD
- AC-SHD
- U6-LR
- U6-Pro
- U6-Enterprise
- U6-Enterprise-In-Wall (without PoE passthrough)
- AC-In-Wall (If using PoE Passthrough)
- AC-In-Wall-Pro (If using PoE Passthrough)
- In-Wall-HD (If using PoE Passthrough)
- U6-In-Wall (If using PoE Passthrough)
- Switches
- Switch Flex (USW-Flex) - PoE++ provides additional passthrough wattage
- Switch Flex XG (USW-Flex-XG)
- Phones
- UVP-TouchMax
Compatible PoE Injectors:
- U-POE-at (48V at .65A)
- If not exceeding 24W: POE-48-24W-G (48V at .5A)
Don't buy these 100 Mbps models
- POE-48-24W (48V at .5A)
60W 802.3bt PoE++, or 50V Passive
- Access Points
- UAP-XG
- UWB-XG
- UniFi Building Bridge XG (UBB-XG)
- UniFi Enterprise In Wall (If using PoE Passthrough)
- Cameras
- UVC-G4-PTZ
Compatible PoE Injectors:
- POE-50-60W (50V at 1.2A)
Instant and U-POE-AF and U-POE-AT
The Instant power injectors convert a Passive PoE device into a standard 802.3af PoE device, for use with a standard PoE switch. These are typically used for connecting a PtP or PtMP radio, or some older APs or cameras which don't support standard 802.3 PoE. If you have a switch which can provide Passive PoE, you don't need these.
- 100 Mbps outdoor (INS-8023af-O)
- 100 Mbps indoor (INS-8023af-I)
- Gigabit outdoor (INS-3AF-O-G)
- Gigabit indoor (INS-3AF-I-G)
- PoE to USB (INS-3AF-USB)
U-POE-AF and U-POE-AT
Despite the name, these devices provide Passive PoE. There is no negotiation between these injectors and the powered device, so non-PoE or 24V-only devices can be damaged when plugged in. They are "802.3 compliant"
- U-POE-AF provides 48V, and enough wattage for standard 15W 802.3af devices.
- U-POE-at provides 48V, and enough wattage for standard 30W 802.3at devices.
Injector Naming Convention:
Generally, they are named as : POE-Voltage-Wattage-Gigabit?-White?
- POE-24-30W-G-WH = A white, 24V, 1.2A (30W) Gigabit model
- POE-48-24W = A black, 48V, .5A (24W) 100 Mbps model
There are a few exceptions. Ubiquiti's PoE injectors are like Whose Line is it Anyway. The rules are made up, and the names don't matter. For example, the following have Gigabit ports, but no G in their model name:
- POE-24-30W
- POE-54V-80W
- POE-50-60W
- POE-50-60W-WH
- U-POE-af
- U-POE-at
So, G means gigabit, except when it doesn't.
Gigabit PoE Injectors
- POE-24-7W-G-WH (24V at .3A)
- POE-24-12W-G (24V at .5A)
- POE-24-24W-G (24V at 1A)
- POE-24-24W-G-WH (24V at 1A)
- POE-24-AF5X (24V at 1A)
- POE-24-30W-G-WH (25V at 1.25A)
- U-POE-af (48V at .32A)
- U-POE-at (48V at .65A)
- POE-48-24W-G (48V at .5A)
- POE-50-60W (50V at 1.2A)
- POE-54-80W (54V at 1.5A)
- POE-50-60W-WH (Discontinued)
- POE-48-24W-G-WH (Discontinued)
- POE-24-12W-G-WH (Discontinued)
100 Mbps PoE Injectors
Avoid these, unless it's for a camera or other low-throughput device that will never benefit from gigabit speeds.
- POE-15-12W (15V at .8A)
- POE-24-12W (24V at .5A)
- Also available as 5-pack
- POE-24-24W (24V at .5A)
- POE-24-24W-WH (24V at .5A)
- Also available as a 5-pack
- POE-24-30W (24V at 1.2A)
- POE-48-24W (48V at .5A)
- POE-48-24W-WH (48V at .5A)
- POE-24-7W (Discontinued)
- POE-25-5W (Discontinued)
Let me know if I missed anything, or made any mistakes. I don't want anyone frying their devices!
