Asus RTN66u or new Netgear R6300 .ac?

[cosrocket]

I borrowed the Asus RT-N66U wireless n router from my friend to compare it to the new Netgear R6300, wireless ac router. Both are providing excellent and equivalent speed and coverage all around my home…the Netgear seems to connect to my external hard drive slightly faster than the Asus. I have to return the Netgear R6300 by tomorrow if I don’t keep it, so my question is…would there be any reason to purchase the Asus over the Netgear? The Netgear R6300 would cost $18 more than the Asus, but it seems to me that even though it is an .ac draft router it would make more sense to go with the new protocol. Do you guys agree? I plan on keeping it for a few years, and any laptop I will purchase in the future will most probably have a wireless ac network card.
The reason I’m even asking is because the RT-N66u seems to be highly regarded and the Netgear is a new model / protocol. Since the Netgear is performing at least on par with the Asus early in its firmware updates, would there be any reason to get the Asus over the Netgear?, (excluding the price difference).

 

[thiggins]

There is no reason to buy any draft 11ac router in hopes of improving non 11ac device performance.

 

[cosrocket]

There is no reason to buy any draft 11ac router in hopes of improving non 11ac device performance.

Yes, I do realize that but as I mentioned my next laptop will almost certainly have an 11ac client. The question at this time is it worth sticking with a very good 11n router or go for an early, even draft 11ac router for "future proofing", even though I realize that's not as future proof as waiting for the 11ac standard to be set. That's going to take a while.

Apple is announcing new hardware today and I wonder if they will have .n or .ac network cards. Since on the front page Asus has a laptop with an .ac card I assume it's a possibility.

 

[thiggins]

If you like debugging new draft technology, by all means have fun.

 

[sfx2000]

I agree with Tim - if you want to be an unpaid beta tester, by all means, grab an 11ac draft router now...

I think the collective experience here shows though, that specs change, and the current crop of 802.11n 3-stream routers are quite good - for just about any vendor out there - Netgear, Linksys, D-Link, Apple, Buffalo - stick with a tier 1 OEM, on current specs, and you'll be fine.