What's new

Buying dilemma for UK customers

  • SNBForums Code of Conduct

    SNBForums is a community for everyone, no matter what their level of experience.

    Please be tolerant and patient of others, especially newcomers. We are all here to share and learn!

    The rules are simple: Be patient, be nice, be helpful or be gone!

ColinTaylor

Part of the Furniture
Apologies in advance for yet another “what router should I buy” post.

I’m currently using an Asus RT-N66U and it’s excellent. It does more or less everything I want. I don’t need Tri-band, Smart Connect, Link Aggregation, AiProtection, NitroQAM, WTFast, Media Server, iTunes, 8 Lan ports, moo-me-mo or any of the other bells and whistles they’re marketing.

However there are 2 things that the N66U lacks which is why I’m looking to replace it.

The first is obvious, 802.11ac support. Actually, I only have 2 laptops with AC cards and they work fine already using just 802.11n.

The second thing is the reason why I’m asking for advice: QOS. With the family using more and more streaming services I now need to prioritise devices with QOS. This works up to a point. That point being that the CPU in the N66U is too weak to keep up with my WAN speed. My WAN is 150Mbps down, soon to be 200Mbps or more. With QOS enabled the router runs out of steam at < 100Mbps.

So I’d like to replace the N66U with an AC-class device that has a processor fast enough to handle QOS (and IPTraffic) at 200Mbps+. My preferred option would be the RT-AC1900 or RT-AC3100 but neither of those is available in the UK. Neither is the RT-AC68 with anything other than an 800MHz processor. The RT-AC88 looks good but is too expensive because it’s loaded with features I don’t care about.
Code:
RT-AC68 A1/A2: 800MHz BCM4708    - Too slow

RT-AC68 B1/B2/V2/P: 1GHz BCM4709 - Not available in UK

RT-AC68 C1: 1GHz BCM4709C0       - Not available in UK

RT-AC1900: 1.4GHz BCM4709C0      - Not available in UK

RT-AC87: 1 GHz BCM4709A          - Bad reputation

RT-AC3200: 1GHz BCM4709A         - Unique SDK, Merlin may drop support

RT-AC3100: 1.4GHz                - Not available in UK

RT-AC88: 1.4GHz BCM4709C0        - Too expensive

RT-AC5300: 1.4GHz BCM4709C0      - Way too expensive
I’d prefer to stick with Asus and Merlin’s firmware but perhaps I should be looking at Netgear instead, R7000?

Your thoughts would be appreciated.
 
If cost and most bang for the buck is your goal, then the RT-AC56U with RMerlin's firmware or the forks thereof is still the router to get you into AC class networking at low cost. Much more powerful than the RT-N66U is and if you don't have any clients that 'need' to connect with a 3x3:3 connection, the dual antennae dual stream RT-AC56U is a great performer in a one or two level home of small to moderate size (I would guess up to 3500 SqFt, depending on the actual layout and construction materials used).

Yes, it has the same 'slow' processor as the RT-AC68U. But it can also be found around the $50 range if you get it on sale.

Looking at NG, DLink, TP-Link or any other manufacturer I know of is not recommended because of the poor quality (core) code those devices use. And the short attention the older models get with regards to security, feature and other important updates.

The Adaptive QoS (highly recommended) on the RT-AC56U/AC68U will easily handle the ISP speeds you have. Albeit not as effortlessly as the higher recommended RT-AC3100 will.

The 'bells and whistles' the newest routers have is just to fill space on the marketing materials and don't necessarily 'have' to be used. What the newest routers have that is worth spending money on is the upgraded hardware (cpu, ram and nvram capacity, RF components, etc.) and firmware/drivers that you cannot get at any price in the older models.

If you can wait for the RT-AC3100 to go on sale, do so. If you need the cheapest and best entry into the AC class WiFi network; the RT-AC56U is where I would start.
 
@AndreiV The RT-AC68U can be had for a good price but my concern is that without hardware acceleration its 800MHz CPU won't be able to route at 200Mbps+

@L&LD Thanks for the suggestions. I'm not looking for the cheapest router (just not the most expensive), I'm more than happy to buy an AC68U if its 800MHz CPU is up to the job. I'm a bit confused when you say "wait for the RT-AC3100 to go on sale". Do you think they are going to start selling it in the UK?
 
I know the SDK is a potential problem, but the AC3200 is now down to £170 at Amazon.

It is an awesome router that would do everything you want . I don't use all the features but the TriBand has been great as I can separate the devices and the AiProtection came in to its own recently when on 4 occasions it blocked sites we regularly use after they were compromised with Ransomware. That extra layer saved some grief.
 
@AndreiV One of the things that put me off the RT-AC3200 was this from the SNB review:
If you disable Smart Connect, the standard controls appear for each radio. Like other AC3200 designs, each 5 GHz radio is limited to a subset of channels. 5GHz-1 supports only channels 36, 40, 44 and 48 and 5GHz-2 supports only channels 149, 153, 157 and 161. This is due to the filtering and other design tweaks required to keep the two radios from overloading each other. ASUS also includes channel 165, although it isn't of much use in 802.11ac's 80 MHz wide channel world.
Not only does that sound limiting, but being an American review unit how does that apply to the UK. We don't have the channels above 140! May I ask what channels you see on your unit.
 
look at the buy sell section. i am selling my AC3200 in the UK for £120. I see those same channels too on mine. It has RMerlin firmware installed.
US has all the channels available but the AC3200 doesnt have dfs so you dont see the middle channel. The AC3200 3rd radio has access to channels that no ISP provided router in the UK uses so its a clear win in crowded areas.
 
@AndreiV The RT-AC68U can be had for a good price but my concern is that without hardware acceleration its 800MHz CPU won't be able to route at 200Mbps+

@L&LD Thanks for the suggestions. I'm not looking for the cheapest router (just not the most expensive), I'm more than happy to buy an AC68U if its 800MHz CPU is up to the job. I'm a bit confused when you say "wait for the RT-AC3100 to go on sale". Do you think they are going to start selling it in the UK?

As I already said, the dual processor 800MHz cpu is well equipped to handle your ISP speeds that you expect for the next little while. Where it falters a little (imo) is where you have many clients, high upload speeds or high LAN usage too.

http://www.snbforums.com/threads/max-wan-lan-throughput-qos-enabled-merlin-fork.23739/#post-176180


Sorry, I forgot about the UK angle. :)

The RT-AC88U is the 'equivalent' router you can get in your region. The RT-AC3100, RT-AC88U and the RT-AC5300 all have the same base hardware and will offer a similar network experience.

The advantage the RT-AC3100 may have over the others is that it is a 4x4:4 antennae/stream design (better RF design, imo), but it is also the higher powered cpu, the extra ram and the extra nvram capacity that also makes those three units stand out right now (along with the newest drivers and specific firmware/sdk for the latest platform).

If you have the budget, the RT-AC88U will be the best you can get 'now'. If you can import an RT-AC3100, it may prove to be slightly better. If budget is a concern, then waiting for a sale or the availability of the much cheaper RT-AC3100 in your area is the way to go.
 
@AndreiV One of the things that put me off the RT-AC3200 was this from the SNB review:Not only does that sound limiting, but being an American review unit how does that apply to the UK. We don't have the channels above 140! May I ask what channels you see on your unit.

I have channels 36, 40, 44, 48, 100, 104, 108, 112, 116, 132, 136,140
 
I have channels 36, 40, 44, 48, 100, 104, 108, 112, 116, 132, 136,140

Always find this one fun...

Card Type: AirPort Extreme (0x14E4, 0x10E)
Supported Channels: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 36, 40, 44, 48, 52, 56, 60, 64, 100, 104, 108, 112, 116, 120, 124, 128, 132, 136, 140, 149, 153, 157, 161, 165
 
the 2nd dilemma for UK customers is the price really. What happens is sellers convert currency, add cost of shipping and overhead and add tax.

In other words what they do is put the price the same as buying from the US yourself. So you end up paying the price equivalent of device + US sales tax + shipping to UK + VAT rather what actually happens is that the sellers buy from the source. This means the factory that produces the routers ship to all countries they sell to directly so the price difference between something in the UK and US should only be around 15% because of difference in tax.
 
Always find this one fun...

Card Type: AirPort Extreme (0x14E4, 0x10E)
Supported Channels: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 36, 40, 44, 48, 52, 56, 60, 64, 100, 104, 108, 112, 116, 120, 124, 128, 132, 136, 140, 149, 153, 157, 161, 165

Okay , I should have added channels 1-13 but I never think about anything on 2.4GHz , it's turned off on the router as I have zero use for it.
 
Always find this one fun...
I'm not sure I understand what the "fun" aspect is. Those are the standard channels for the US so they're what I would expect to see on US equipment. (Unless you're laughing at people in other countries that don't have access to as many channels?)
 
I'm not sure I understand what the "fun" aspect is. Those are the standard channels for the US so they're what I would expect to see on US equipment. (Unless you're laughing at people in other countries that don't have access to as many channels?)

The 'fun' aspect is every once in a while, one can run into a misconfigured AP, and suddenly that list changes in a big way (which is not fun)
 
I was wondering what relevance there was with the AirPort Extreme and the Asus kit you were talking about.
 
i overclocked my ac68U to 1.4Ghz. Its the ram that doesnt like being overclocked.

However i dont use them as routers. Still if anyone wants to buy an AC3200 for much cheaper its in the Buy sell section.

I did use asus as a router for a bit sometimes and never had issues with my usage but WAN speeds in the UK are embarrassingly low, not fast enough that software NAT can cope.
 
Well I've used shipito loads of times for ordering high value items to UK (not just routers) and never paid import duty or vat to the UK taxman.

Also remember that the likes of Amazon use their own packaging so pretty much what you ask shipito to declare on customs form will be taken at face value by UK HMRC and shipto definitely don't open any packages. Also I always avoid sending my shipments by USPS mail to UK, as they are more likely to be closely scrutinized by HMRC irrespective of the item value declared.

I always use DPD, DHL, Fedex or UPS and you can declare the item value really low using these couriers without fear of this being challenged. Of course declaring the item value lower means that you're covered for less in the event of a lost or damaged shipment but the chances of premium couriers such as DHL losing your shipment is close to zero. Over the last few years I must have had around 50 items sent to me from USA via shipito and never had any lost or damaged shipment.

Rather stupid openly admitting to committing 50 separate crimes on a public forum , especially as an HMRC employee is sitting here reading your posts .........
 
Rather stupid openly admitting to committing 50 separate crimes on a public forum , especially as an HMRC employee is sitting here reading your posts .........
Me in front of judge: M'lord indeed I should have paid the piddly sum of £0.00 in vat & import duty on a $9.99 iphone case! M'lord pls don't jail me! LOL
 
Last edited:

Similar threads

Latest threads

Sign Up For SNBForums Daily Digest

Get an update of what's new every day delivered to your mailbox. Sign up here!
Top