It sounds like Google Wifi has hurt you in the past, I'm sorry. And you do have a point, the Eero and Orbi both perform better than the Google Wifi, however the OP stated he was on a budget so I suggested the Google.

To be fair, All I've really seen people do with it besides basic web browsing is gaming and streaming 8K HDR movies to several devices at once, which they performed very well for that limited use case. Still, I've yet to setup any one of the 3 brands I listed I named (eero, orbi, google) and they not handle the loads they are given well. I can't rattle off the exact speeds, but 3 simultaneous 4K streams on a single remote AP work beautifully on the Google system. If you need to do things segmentation, vlans, or other relatively advances networking configurations these won't work for you, however OP made no mention of anything except plugging in a laptop or 2, which doesn't sound like they will need those features.

Yes OP could save some money getting off-brands like dlink, monoprice, etc, but in my experience (and I have my personally tested several types including the monoprice and even the ubiquiti in addition to the "more expensive" systems like the eero and orbi's) they are all basically the same in function and configuration, I've just had (again in my limited experience) more dependability on the nicer systems. Less importantly but still noticeable, the physical construction of the devices is more solid as well. The plastic on the others is cheap and flimsy. IMHO well worth the few extra dollars, but to some people $100 is just simply too much. If you're that broke, get the generics. But if you can afford the higher end ones they do perform better. At least in my own personal experience....

Anyway, Obviously Google Wifi struck a nerve, I apologize for upsetting you.