The short answer:
No.
The longer answer:
As described earlier, not all Zigbee products receivers are also repeaters and/or routers. For a better overview and a more accurate answer, we should take a closer look at what actually constitutes Zigbee devices. For this we will go into what the difference is between a "normal" terminal, a repeater and a router.
What makes Zigbee?
Devices with Zigbee support are basically an ingenious invention for the modern smart home. At its core, Zigbee is a standard for wireless networks with a low transmission rate, but with low energy consumption at the same time. Zigbee is designed to send small amounts of data within a variable network of devices of different types, to send commands to devices or to receive status information from the same devices. The standard does not specify what data is sent, only how it is sent. The trick here is that all end devices build an independent and loosely coupled network. It is therefore not relevant where end devices are placed, as long as these devices are placed within range of any other end device. Each terminal then forwards commands until the command reaches the target device. This forwarding of commands is achieved by so-called repeaters. Up to this point, it almost sounds as if the previously given answer "no" is wrong. This is not the case, because the standard also provides for exceptions. In the following, we will briefly discuss repeaters and routers, and then look at the exceptions.
What does "Zigbee router" mean?
A router, sometimes also called a coordinator, is used to send commands into the Zigbee network and to forward status information of the end devices in the Zigbee network to the local WLAN or LAN. In a figurative sense, routers/coordinators are a kind of access gate to the Zigbee network. Routers/coordinators also serve another purpose: they coordinate and control the data flow within the Zigbee network. In other words: Without router/coordinator no Zigbee network. By the
way, many of the Zigbee routers also serve as repeaters, should several routers be brought into the network.
What does "Zigbee repeater" mean?
A Zigbee repeater is often a "normal" end device in the Zigbee network. This end device can be for example a light bulb or a socket, which serves a purpose in the Smart Home. At the same time, however, these end devices controlled by a router/coordinator can also forward commands to other end devices that cannot be reached directly by the router, for example, because they are outside the transmission range of the router. For this very reason, each of the coupled devices is also called a Zigbee repeater, because they can receive and forward the signal. Zigbee repeaters prevent dead spots and are considered very reliable, so in short, repeaters are "normally" controllable devices in the Zigbee network, but which can often forward the signal to remote devices.
Why are not all Zigbee devices repeaters and routers at the same time?
Now that we know what Zigbee repeaters, Zigbee coordinators and Zigbee routers are, we can go back to the initial question.
Are all Zigbee devices repeaters/routers at the same time?
No, not all Zigbee devices are end devices and repeaters/routers at the same time, because repeaters, routers and end devices have to fulfill completely different requirements. As already mentioned, a router/coordinator serves to inject and eject data traffic into or out of the Zigbee network. A device that is not connected to another network (e.g. WLAN or LAN) cannot be a router/coordinator.
But what about the core idea of the automatically expanding Zigbee network via repeaters?
In principle, Zigbee end devices could always be repeaters, but for the forwarding of data packets also more power is needed, which makes it difficult or impossible to build this functionality into a device that is battery-powered. Exactly this circumstance should also be used as a basic rule: "Basically, all Zigbee end devices are also Zigbee repeaters, but not Zigbee routers". A
small exception here are occasionally illuminants, since the manufacturers assume that these are not continuously connected to a switched on power supply.