Routers for Gigabit internet

wayner said:

So what is the future for consumer grade routers? I am assuming that before too long that gigabit internet will be widespread. Will we be condemned to using the ISP's supplied device which combines modem and routing capabilities? Or will consumer routers be upgraded to handle the speeds. Most of the new features of consumer routers seem to be focusing on the WAP functionality of the device and not on the actual routing.

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Good concerns...

1) Future of consumer grade routers - well, we're hitting a wall right now with dual-core Cortex-A9's and the software architecture in the main stream - most OEM's are putting their efforts on every increasing marketing numbers on the wireless side that most will never be able to take advantage of - but looking across the industry, names not mentioned here, some see a good change moving forward - would be nice to see more RAM/Flash in the Router/AP's, and perhaps seeing Intel or AMD bring their chips into this space - now that the high-end is $300+, perhaps they'll jump in at a SoC level, and they have an entirely different level of scale..

2) Condemned to the ISP device - that actually is a potential reality depending on services delivered to the home - for small businesses, perhaps less, but to the home, the broadband providers do have incentive to capture that area - IPTV (wireless set-top box), home security, internet of things - this is a real possibility

I share your concern here...

3) Off the shelf router/AP's - I think once the OEM's sort out the spec-wars on WiFi, and we see an increasing need to support many more devices, there's opportunity for the OEM's to step up - one of the key advantages of the home Router/AP, is that it's almost always on and connected - so when we look at the IoT, these are services that Router/AP's are best positioned for...