ASUS RT-AX59U vs Asus RT-AX82U

[Ashkel]

Hi, I need a new router for many reasons but mainly for playing and work (Need to create a tunel with a vpn from a country to an other country that are 7000 km away from each other) with 7-8 'things' connected to it almost all time.

Main differences are
Asus RT-AX59U:

• Faster processor at 2 GHz with 4 cores
• Wi-Fi class AX4200
• Support for WireGuard
• Maximum speed in 5 GHz is 3600 Mbit/s

Asus RT-AX82U:

• Slightly slower processor at 1.5 GHz with 3 cores
• Wi-Fi class AX5400
• No native support for WireGuard, but it's possible that future updates may add this feature.
• Maximum speed in 5 GHz is 4804 Mbit/s, slightly faster than that of the RT-AX59U.
  
  I have read here that faster processor doesnt mean better performance and prices are very different in different countries, like where i live I can get the first one for 90 euro and the second one at 150 euro with 50 euro cashback
  while in canada, the first one is at 350 and the second one at 200... Also a router like keenetic giga kn-1011 cost more than AX59U (120 euro) but is 5 times worst on everything....
  
  So, any advices would be very appreciated. Thank you )

 

[chris2kari]

Hi, I need a new router for many reasons but mainly for playing and work (Need to create a tunel with a vpn from a country to an other country that are 7000 km away from each other) with 7-8 'things' connected to it almost all time.

Main differences are
Asus RT-AX59U:

• Faster processor at 2 GHz with 4 cores
• Wi-Fi class AX4200
• Support for WireGuard
• Maximum speed in 5 GHz is 3600 Mbit/s

Asus RT-AX82U:

• Slightly slower processor at 1.5 GHz with 3 cores
• Wi-Fi class AX5400
• No native support for WireGuard, but it's possible that future updates may add this feature.
• Maximum speed in 5 GHz is 4804 Mbit/s, slightly faster than that of the RT-AX59U.
  
  I have read here that faster processor doesnt mean better performance and prices are very different in different countries, like where i live I can get the first one for 90 euro and the second one at 150 euro with 50 euro cashback
  while in canada, the first one is at 350 and the second one at 200... Also a router like keenetic giga kn-1011 cost more than AX59U (120 euro) but is 5 times worst on everything....
  
  So, any advices would be very appreciated. Thank you )

Both review well on tech sites. The 59U has unobtrusive styling, has one less ethernet port & slightly lower claimed wifi performance. The 82U has styling only a 14yr old could love, has one extra ethernet port & slightly better claimed wifi performance. I doubt you would notice any real performance difference for your stated use case. I would be happy with either as long as I could put the 82U out of sight (lol). Buy on price?

 

[Volt]

I bought RT-AX59U for my parents a couple of months ago and it works great, nothing to complain about. The MediaTek's Filogic platform that RT-AX59U uses is quite performant, in real-life tests it's one of the fastest routers in its category. You can find test where it is only marginally slower than GT-AXE16000 and faster than Netgear RAXE300 (5GHz band), especially for shorter distances.

Here is the test where its speed is directly compared to RT-AX82U:

 

[Ashkel]

Both review well on tech sites. The 59U has unobtrusive styling, has one less ethernet port & slightly lower claimed wifi performance. The 82U has styling only a 14yr old could love, has one extra ethernet port & slightly better claimed wifi performance. I doubt you would notice any real performance difference for your stated use case. I would be happy with either as long as I could put the 82U out of sight (lol). Buy on price?

To be fair, almost every gaming router I've seen look horrible... And in general I try to hide it under my desk(easy to connect to the machine) or to fix it in the wall. I like the asus rt-ax86u but it's 2x the price (200 euro) and don't see the need I could have out of him. One of the problem of the country I'm living in at the moment is that market price for router doesn't represent the quality of a router. You can buy some very good at a very low price and some at an expensive price are garbage with old security tools.

I bought like 3 years ago the Huawei 3ax ws 7200 and it still working like a charm but it only has l2tp and pptp vpn options... I can also buy the tp link archer ax73 for the same price as the small asus at 90 euro. Doesn't look bad neither. (I ordered the 59U but not paid yet, still have 3 days to make a definitive decision before I go to the store to buy it)

Edit: about price comparison, here for the same price as the 59U at 90 euro I can also get Mercusys MR90X which is less 60 euro less expensive than the 82U but looks better but never heard of this brand...

Mercusys MR90X:

• Processor: 1.6 GHz, 4 cores.
• Wi-Fi Standards: 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6).
• Wi-Fi Class: AX6000, indicating high Wi-Fi performance.
• Maximum Speed in 2.4 GHz: 1148 Mbps.
• Maximum Speed in 5 GHz: 4804 Mbps.
• Number of 5 GHz Bands: 1.
• MU-MIMO: Yes.
• Type and Number of Antennas: 8 external non-removable antennas.
• Connection Security: WEP, WPA-Personal, WPA2-Personal, WPA3-Personal.
• LAN Ports: 4 Gigabit Ethernet ports.
• USB Ports: None.
• VPN Features: OpenVPN server, PPTP server.
• Additional Features: BSS Coloring, OFDMA, Target Wake Time, UPnP, IPTV support, port forwarding.
• Mobile App: MERCUSYS.
• Dimensions: 208.8 mm (width) x 171.6 mm (length) x 41.7 mm (height).

Now, let's compare the Mercusys MR90X to the Asus RT-AX59U:

Asus RT-AX59U vs. Mercusys MR90X:

• Processor: The Mercusys MR90X has a slightly faster processor (1.6 GHz, 4 cores) compared to the Asus RT-AX59U (2 GHz, 4 cores).
• Wi-Fi Standards: Both support Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax).
• Wi-Fi Class: The Mercusys MR90X has an AX6000 class, while the Asus RT-AX59U has an AX4200 class, indicating that the Mercusys MR90X may offer higher Wi-Fi performance.
• Wi-Fi Speed: The Mercusys MR90X has a higher maximum speed in both 2.4 GHz (1148 Mbps) and 5 GHz (4804 Mbps) compared to the Asus RT-AX59U.
• Antennas: The Mercusys MR90X has 8 external antennas, while the Asus RT-AX59U has 5 internal antennas.
• Security: Both offer similar security options.
• USB Ports: Neither has USB ports.
• VPN Features: The Mercusys MR90X supports OpenVPN server and PPTP server, while the Asus RT-AX59U also supports WireGuard, a lightweight VPN protocol.
• Additional Features: The Mercusys MR90X mentions features such as BSS Coloring, OFDMA, Target Wake Time, UPnP, IPTV support, and port forwarding.

Overall, the Mercusys MR90X appears to have higher Wi-Fi speeds, class, and more antennas. However, the Asus RT-AX59U offers WireGuard support as a VPN protocol, which might be a decisive factor if you require VPN functionality.

This is why I dont look much at the price...

 

[Ashkel]

I bought RT-AX59U for my parents a couple of months ago and it works great, nothing to complain about. The MediaTek's Filogic platform that RT-AX59U uses is quite performant, in real-life tests it's one of the fastest routers in its category. You can find test where it is only marginally slower than GT-AXE16000 and faster than Netgear RAXE300 (5GHz band), especially for shorter distances.

Here is the test where its speed is directly compared to RT-AX82U:
View attachment 52911

Thank you for the link, now I learn that there is a WiFi 6e which I'll need to read about it and the guy is having the same reflexion in his review '' The only question is whether it might be smarter to pay a little extra for the RT-AX82U. "

Problem is, I can't refer to data you shared because walls where I live are 20cm concrete wall... For exemple, I'm in an other room, 7-8 meters away from the router and the connection is lost while when I go in the street, in front of my appartement (living at the 6th floor) I still am connected to the router... Ironic!

I ordered the 59U. It'll come to store in 3 days, if you have any suggestions or advice while I still wait to receive and to pay it, don't hesitate to share with me, I can go with any brand, I don't care much.