R7000 vs RT-AC68U - Confused Consumer

[Majax]

I need a new wireless router and I'm having the hardest time deciding between the R7000 and RT-AC68U. If I understand correctly:

*they now both have the same hardware.
*The R7000 has a 1 Ghz processor while the RT-AC68U has a 800 mhz processor.

Also, it seems that quite a few people install 3rd party firmware. Honestly, I get kind of confused when I start reading about 3rd party firmware.

I really could use some advice because reading recent reviews on both these routers on Amazon makes my head spin. I just don't know what I should be looking for to compare the two. Also, I have never purchased anything from either company so I'm unfamiliar with the brand (customer service, history of good quality).

 

[RMerlin]

Quite frankly, they are almost the exact same thing nowadays. The RT-AC68U is now shipping with a 1 GHz CPU as well (it was the case for the one I received this week for a customer of mine). The only real difference lies in the firmware. Asus tends to offer far more features, and are more aggressive in their development (which means a higher risk of new issues appearing with a firmware update). Up to you to see if those extra features are something you need or not.

Don't worry about third party firmware unless you need a specific feature that is not available in the original manufacturer's firmware.

Beyond that, wifi performance should be nearly identical between the two models, so it often comes down to personal preference as to which of the two to buy.

 

[sfx2000]

Both are mature AC1900 class Router/AP's with good 3rd party support - R7000 had a bit of a rocky start, but Netgear has persisted and sorted it...

Can't go wrong with either one - like RMerlin suggested, it comes down to personal preference and availability..

 

[Majax]

Wow, didn't know that Asus now has a 1 Ghz processor.

The reason I'm being so picky is that I have to buy it from Office Depot (doing a price match with Amazon) and they only have a 14 day return policy. So, I'm trying to essentially see which one is more reliable.

Two additional questions:

1) I have is does Asus stock firmware have a feature where you can see how much data is being used by each device connected to it? I have a phone farm I use for perking (5 phones running all the time) and I'd like to monitor them.

2) This might sound dumb, but does the Asus knock over a lot? It'll be sitting on an Ikea desk which is a bit wobbly. Only think I really worry about with the design.

Thanks again for all the help.

 

[L&LD]

Actually Asus routers now hit 1.4GHz with dual cores.

14 day return policy is more than enough to test for compatibility in your environment. If something works, it will work right away (or not).

 

[Majax]

Actually Asus routers now hit 1.4GHz with dual cores.

14 day return policy is more than enough to test for compatibility in your environment. If something works, it will work right away (or not).

1.4? You think I should message Newegg & ask them if that is the processor speed on the ones they have? I originally thought they were 800 Mhz, but I guess different variations are shipping out.

It's about $30 cheaper right now at Newegg so I'm going to get it there instead of Office Depot. I'll save my card for something else.

 

[Klueless]

I'm a novice so when I had to buy a new router it was scaring the bejeebies out of me. I went with Asus simply because I liked their traffic monitor (and QoS).

Also, it seems that quite a few people install 3rd party firmware. Honestly, I get kind of confused when I start reading about 3rd party firmware.

Me too! I liked what I read about Tomato but I had no clue so my intention was to stick with factory stock.

1) ... does Asus stock firmware have a feature where you can see how much data is being used by each device connected to it? I have a phone farm I use for perking (5 phones running all the time) and I'd like to monitor them.

Overtime I realized traffic by device could be very useful. For this I had to switch to RMerlin. Turned out to be a very easy thing to do. This site (SNB) pointed me to the file which I downloaded to my PC. Then I logged into my router, went to Administration / Firmware upgrade, hit the button, held my breath and voila ... I was running Merlin.

Like RMerlin says the changes are subtle. So subtle I wasn't even sure I had upgraded at first. But I clicked around and there it was, enable monitoring by device. Love it.

2) This might sound dumb, but does the Asus knock over a lot? It'll be sitting on an Ikea desk which is a bit wobbly. Only think I really worry about with the design.

It seems pretty steady standing up but if you're worried just leave it flat. It's even got little rubber feet for laying flat.

Like you I also needed reliability. I didn't really need AC so I just went with the N66U. Once I decided I was happy with my choice I used the money I saved towards buying a 2nd N66U for a backup. I use it as my home router but keep it configured like it was the car lot router. I use it to test new ideas and configurations before going live at the car lot. (It's where I worked up the nerve to try RMerlin before going live at the car lot.)

If the car lot goes down all I have to do is bring in my home router and hook it up.

In hindsight I guess I could have bought the AC and bought an N for backup but, for us, the N is more than adequate.

I bought local because the corner store had a very generous try it return it policy. I could have bought the second mail order but I believe in reciprocity (the Asus wasn't the first/only one I tried) so I went back to the corner store for my 2nd one as well.

Best of luck!

 

[RMerlin]

1.4? You think I should message Newegg & ask them if that is the processor speed on the ones they have? I originally thought they were 800 Mhz, but I guess different variations are shipping out.

It's about $30 cheaper right now at Newegg so I'm going to get it there instead of Office Depot. I'll save my card for something else.

The RT-AC88U, RT-AC3100 and RT-AC5300 are the ones with a 1.4 GHz CPU. The RT-AC68U will be either 800 MHz or 1 GHz, depending on which revision you receive.

 

[L&LD]

1.4? You think I should message Newegg & ask them if that is the processor speed on the ones they have? I originally thought they were 800 Mhz, but I guess different variations are shipping out.

It's about $30 cheaper right now at Newegg so I'm going to get it there instead of Office Depot. I'll save my card for something else.

Sorry for inadvertently misleading you. As RMerlin has stated, other routers offer the higher spec'd processors. Not the RT-AC68U.

 

[pete y testing]

I really could use some advice because reading recent reviews on both these routers on Amazon makes my head spin. I just don't know what I should be looking for to compare the two. Also, I have never purchased anything from either company so I'm unfamiliar with the brand (customer service, history of good quality).

without talking about any 3rd party firmware or variation of the stock firmware and just focusing on the r7000 and rt-ac68u with stock firmware for me because they are so close in hardware specs and performance it comes down to the feature set, firmware maturity and the gui usability \ flexibility , all of which the rt-ac68u wins hands down over the r7000 , asus are constantly updating and improving the whole of its AC range

i have both the rt-ac68u and r7000 here and the r7000 has been setup as an access point only in another part of the house while the asus does the routing and main wifi needs , so i would also suggest the rt-ac68u is what you should be looking at

pete

 

[Majax]

Thanks for all the help everyone. I'm definitely getting the rt-ac68u. I'm actually going to be price matching at Office Depot with Amazon's $169 price (when they get back in stock).

Anyways, thanks again for all the help. Hopefully, I'll get the 1Ghz model.

 

[Majax]

OF COURSE, I go to buy it from Office Depot & they discontinued selling it. I noticed it's out of stock at Amazon as well. I hope they aren't discontinuing it.

 

[microchip]

If you go for the R7000 and install the ASUS Android app + use the latest XVortex FW, it will be recognized by the Android app with no issues, although it'll think the R7000 +XVortex is an AC68U.

 

[avtella]

OF COURSE, I go to buy it from Office Depot & they discontinued selling it. I noticed it's out of stock at Amazon as well. I hope they aren't discontinuing it.

Amazon will have stock from February 26, so don't worry.

 

[System Error Message]

they are both good routers, get both

 

[husky55]

Amazon will have stock from February 26, so don't worry.

Is there any difference between the U and W version besides the color and the price?

 

[avtella]

Is there any difference between the U and W version besides the color and the price?

No, they are the same.

 

[avtella]

I believe U is for universal and R for reseller and W just for white?...

 

[RMerlin]

I believe U is for universal and R for reseller and W just for white?...

Yes. And the firmware is 100% identical on all three SKUs.

 

[Majax]

Thanks for all the help everyone. I traded in my Office Depot gift card, took a hit, and bought it from Amazon. Can't wait for it to get here!