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AC1900 or AC3200?

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bigfin

New Around Here
Hello!

I am new to forum. I have been reading reviews and threads here. I am still confused so. I am looking some advice for a router. I have BT infinity 3 unlimited. I want to replace BtHomehub 5 with a new router. I have the openreach modem, which i am still going to use.

We do lot of streaming (Netflix) and using Plex from the Nas. Also children play Minecraft from xbox.

I have also been looking lot of reviews on youtube and i am more confused than i was before i started my search. So should i go for AC1900 or AC3200? Netgear and Asus are my contenders on both categories but i am open for suggestions.

Wired:

Skybox
Nas drive
Powerline adapter

Wireless:

Sky box
Macbook Pro
Printer
2 x Laptops
2 x Apple tv
2 x Xbox 360
3 x iphones
4 x iPads
 
Missing info:

How large an area is being covered? How many stories? What kind of construction (walls and floors)?
What level of service is offered by the ISP?
What band does each device listed use (both, 2.4GHz or 5GHz)?
Which devices are used for the heaviest network loads (simultaneously) and which other devices are also used at the same time?
How many devices are 3 antennae/ 3 stream, 2 antennae/2 stream and 1 antennae/1 stream? And are these all used at once when the traffic on the router will be the highest?

With the information presented as-is, the RT-AC68U or higher can easily handle your network needs. Depending on the size of the area and construction, an RT-AC56U may handle it just as well depending on how many devices have 3 antennae/3 stream capabilities.

What is your budget and your local currency?

Advice: youtube is a poor way to learn about routers and their differences.
 
Hello!

Thank you for your reply. I will try to answer your questions.

How large an area is being covered? How many stories? What kind of construction (walls and floors)?

We live in four bedroom house (UK). We don’t have basement so its ground floor and upstairs. Walls and floors are mainly wood and plasterboard. There are also some metal frames aswell.


What level of service is offered by the ISP

According to BT they should deliver up to160Mb download speed. Up to 20Mb upload speed. In my test i can get around 90 Mb download and upload around 18 Mb.

What band does each device listed use (both, 2.4GHz or 5GHz)?

Sky box - 2.4GHz
Macbook Pro - both but mainly 5GHzPrinter
2 x Laptops - 2.4GHz (laptops are old and one of them will be replaced soon)
2 x Apple tv - both
2 x Xbox 360 - 2.4GHz
3 x iphones - both
4 x iPads - both

Which devices are used for the heaviest network loads (simultaneously) and which other devices are also used at the same time?

Highest traffic would be when 2 xboxes (streaming or using flex or playing minecraft), using Plex on NAS and streaming netflix.

How many devices are 3 antennae/ 3 stream, 2 antennae/2 stream and 1 antennae/1 stream? And are these all used at once when the traffic on the router will be the highest?

I am sorry i don’t fully understand this question?

What is your budget and your local currency?

200 pounds.
 
I am new to forum. I have been reading reviews and threads here. I am still confused so. I am looking some advice for a router. I have BT infinity 3 unlimited. I want to replace BtHomehub 5 with a new router. I have the openreach modem, which i am still going to use.

We do lot of streaming (Netflix) and using Plex from the Nas. Also children play Minecraft from xbox.

I have also been looking lot of reviews on youtube and i am more confused than i was before i started my search. So should i go for AC1900 or AC3200? Netgear and Asus are my contenders on both categories but i am open for suggestions.

AC1900 is more than enough for what you have...
 
The AC1900 would do well and do wire what you can. Using wire whenever you can is a lot better as wifi doesnt always work well. I know homes in the UK are usually packed upwards so you tend to have many networks around who for some reason love to operate on the frequency you set your AP even though there are other unused frequencies. I noticed this when surveying with my router as i would tend to manually change the frequency, the same SSIDs follow suit. If you are able to use frequencies not use by auto and your devices support it it will be worth using it.

Your house will have no issues with wifi penetration. My 5Ghz wifi on my AC68U can penetrate 6 similar walls before being unusable.

Metal frames are only a concern when they form a grid as the gap between the grid is what matters. Too small and the signal gets blocked/absorb but 5Ghz or even 2.4Ghz requires a very small gap like your microwave.
 
yeah things in the UK seem to be priced way higher than their actual prices. Despite review sites quoting prices the AC88U is actually priced higher in the UK than the said price of the AC5300. ASUS really needs to do something about businesses pricing their hardware much much higher than it should be. Its not like ASUS gets extra profit from their scams.
 
yeah things in the UK seem to be priced way higher than their actual prices. Despite review sites quoting prices the AC88U is actually priced higher in the UK than the said price of the AC5300. ASUS really needs to do something about businesses pricing their hardware much much higher than it should be. Its not like ASUS gets extra profit from their scams.

It happens with all hardware and software, the UK price is usually at least double.

A Yubikey4 was $33, in the UK £33. Now it has jumped in price and if you try to buy from the main Yubico site they sting you for 25% VAT + delivery ( VAT is 20% in the UK. ) and the only official reseller Yubico Ltd have no stock.

A software firewall from an American company I saw at $25 , in the UK same thing £47 which is $68.
 
Thank you everyone for your replies. It has giving me something to think about.

As you have children the Asus offers malicious site blocking and parental controls which you may find useful.
 
You can do the same using a linux server as a router. Just salvage some x86 parts and make yourself your own x86 based router and install ubuntu server on it or any other sort of server OS you like other than windows and install the anti malware package you want that supports network filtering. Windows handles network load terribly and offers less in networking than unix/linux. Even OSX is a better server than windows.

There is a way to get hardware for their original prices in the UK but it may not be possible with consumer items. For example i recently checked eurodk which i bought some of my stuff from at their original prices but their UK fronts are selling things for almost double the price. I sent them an email so we'll see the reply in a few days. You basically have to order from a supplier rather than shop but they lack consumer hardware (a big plus as consumer hardware tends to be unreliable).

Another way to get hardware cheaper in the UK is to buy from europe or one of the countries that can trade with the UK that isnt under the scrutiny of customs.

I guess the term rip-off britian is very apparent here.

Eurodk replied, they said its because of tax 21% and amazon fees. But i wonder are amazon fees really that high? If you compare the prices from eurodk's own website, add tax +shipping the price difference is still massive compared to amazon UK, ebay UK and other fronts.

It seems like everyone is cashing in selling things for high prices in the UK.
 
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