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Wyk3d

New Around Here
Looking for some options for a first Wi-Fi router. I’m tired of leasing from xfinity (arris tg862g) as they get enough money from me already, i have recently upgraded from 300Mbps to 400Mbps package from them. Modem is taken care of, just need the router. Single floor house, 1500sqft. The only wifi devices I have going are my iPad Pro, my wife’s chromebook, a few older cameras, an older fire stick 4k and a few cell phones. The occasional laptop connection but the iPad is my primary device. Everything with the exception of the iPad which is wifi 6 are N or less. I have my ps5 and tv wired to the router combo. So basically, not a power user Ive been lurking the forums and there seem to be some stand outs from asus like the ax86S or U and even the ac66u b1. Id prefer to buy for what my use case is now, as I don’t foresee adding 10 additional demanding devices so things will likely remain as they are. We stream and surf the internet so I’m not sure we need 300$ of hardware but I don’t want to buy something that’s being discontinued either. Thank you for any thoughts.
 
For your case TP-Link Archer AX55. It will cover your needs easily for next few years. Current price on Amazon is $100. There is no future proofing with home routers. Get what you need today and don't overpay. Upgrade in few years when you need something better and if you need something better.

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@Tech9 Thank you for taking the time to respond. I am surprised to see tp-link as the suggested router. The site seems to be very critical of the brand, more in favor of asus which is why those were on my list. I suppose most folks are doing more with their networks than I am so that would make sense. Do you find tp-link to be a well supported brand (especially in this tier) or more of a 1 and done update?
 
Could be 2-3 and done updates for this newer model, but don't stress out too much about frequent updates. It will serve the purpose for few years and for $100 only. Most home routers are disposable tech anyway. You have landed on mostly Asus and Netgear users site, but I recommend hardware based on needs and not on brands. I'm sure Asus suggestions for 2x-3x price are coming your way shortly, so you decide. With your mostly older devices and no plans to change them any soon the user experience will be exactly the same with $100 and $400 router. If you rely on your router to protect you with frequent updates - you have wrong expectations. You have to learn (if you don't know already) how to protect yourself by avoiding bad practices online.
 
This one is the cheapest I can recommend from Asus routers:

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Don't expect Wi-Fi coverage miracles though. It's about the same like the $100 router above. Still buggy 388 base firmware.
 
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Don't expect Wi-Fi coverage miracles though. It's about the same like the $100 router above. Still buggy 388 base firmware.

Same ballpark as any other high end 4x4 options in my home. My2c.

The 2x2 router you linked would perform much worse for me (subjectively speaking).
 
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If you're in USA, you can trade in an old/defective router into Best Buy for 15% off.
Thank you for that suggestion. Unfortunately, those coupons are in store only (also from another site people have stated its been ymmv on if the store will apply coupon to sale price) and my Best Buy does not have that item in stock. I don’t have an older router to trade anyway but was going to grab a 2 dollar goodwill one to activate the coupon.
 
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Thank you for that suggestion. Unfortunately, those coupons are in store only (also from another site people have stated its been ymmv on if the store will apply coupon to sale price) and my Best Buy does not have that item in stock. I don’t have an older router to trade anyway but was going to grab a 2 dollar goodwill one to activate the coupon.

It's not really YMMV. The promo is listed on top of the AX86S page.

The only way you have trouble is if management doesn't want to trade in routers in general.. Goes for alternative models.
 
in favor of asus
Those are just the sheeple that are fanboys of Asus.

If you want something that works and doesn't cost an arm and a leg just to under perform then pick something that's not "popular".

Since you're using Comcast just get a plain CM like the MB8600 and then pick your router. If you want more options then go with a simple WIRED router to get the IP / FW and then put an AP on the backend.

CM - $150
Wired Router - $60
AP - $160

When you segment things out you have ore options as tech progresses w/o a huge expense to upgrade the portion you want to get more performance out of. When WIFI 7 or whatever version 10 years from now comes along you only need to upgrade that piece of equipment. Instead of spending $500-$600 on an AX "router" you can just swap the AP for 1/3 of the cost if you wait for prices to come down. Also, a dedicated AP works better than a combo router / wifi setup. Using dedicated HW / radios gives better coverage and speed typically compared to the heatsink known as a router. Since the AP has its own CPU / RAM you're not contending with the minimalist approach of the router vendor.

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Since you're using Comcast just get a plain CM like the MB8600 and then pick your router. If you want more options then go with a simple WIRED router to get the IP / FW and then put an AP on the backend.
I picked up an mb8611 for a steal so my modem needs are covered. I did consider router/ap combo after more reasearch and I think that will likely be the way I lean in the future when we move from the house we are renting now. The ability to upgrade in pieces was why I avoided the combo modem/router option. I am torn between buying for today and just getting something cheap and functional for my today needs and buying now for later with more potential flexibility. My bandwidth/connectivity needs will likely not increase too much. Do you have a router / AP recommendation? I like options to compare cost and benefits. Thank you
 
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The 2x2 router you linked would perform much worse for me (subjectively speaking)

Cheaper Archer AX21 has about the same range as 2.5x more expensive AX86S. I had both in my hands to compare. We are talking about 1500sqft single floor house and now we know @Wyk3d is renting ang going to move at some point. With this new detail in the mix - $100 router definitely.

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@Wyk3d

Well, the MB8611 has a 2.5GE port on it so, if you plan on or want to use that to its max things will get pricey. A gig router though is cheap and doesn't need to be fancy.

Router -
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B089KBTXHR/?tag=snbforums-20 - has AX built in / $60
https://www.newegg.com/p/0XK-04N4-00001?Item=9SIAMYEHB00620 - $70 / has AX built in

https://www.newegg.com/ubiquiti-er-x-us-10-100-1000mbps/p/0XK-000W-00080?Item=9SIBF82J6C4267 - $62
https://www.newegg.com/tp-link-tl-er7206-10-100-1000mbps/p/N82E16833704542?Item=9SIAFVFEDH6314 - $120
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08QTXNWZ1/?tag=snbforums-20 - $60
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07F7HDRKX/?tag=snbforums-20 - $117
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B011N1IT2A/?tag=snbforums-20 - $75

WIFI / AP -
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08HQQ4SPQ/?tag=snbforums-20 - $160 - this is what I'm using for the past couple of years.

Recommending routers is a dicey thing though. For the $60-70 options that have a built in AP they're not a bad backup option or if you need extra coverage in addition to the stand alone AP. There are other AP options out there but, price / performance the Zyxel fits the bill for both and the coverage is great.

There are other factors like port density due to the number of devices that will be hard wired to the network but, you can easily add a dumb switch for $10 that does gigabit if needing more ports.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09PHHVWZ8/?tag=snbforums-20 - Varying prices but ~$300 will be able to function as the router but, more robust than the above options with quad 2.5GE ports and is basically a micro sized PC and runs at 10-36W. Making this into a router is pretty simple with the options listed on the page or putting Linux on it and configuring it by hand a bit more.

Something a bit more commercial would be NetGate - https://www.netgate.com/appliances?...e=pfSense+Plus&form_factor=*#compare-products 4100/6100 have mGIG ports on them but $600+

mikrotik has a few options as well
firewalla is another option for the "router" side though it's geared more towards firewalling as the name implies.
 
OMG... multi-Gigabit ports, Wi-Fi 6 4x4 APs, firewall for $700... for one iPad and bunch of N devices? CUDY and JUPLINK routers? :rolleyes:

By the way, Ubiquiti ER-X in EOL state for >1 year already along with other EdgeRouter models. It's 0 firmware updates and done.
 
Cheaper Archer AX21 has about the same range as 2.5x more expensive AX86S. I had both in my hands to compare. We are talking about 1500sqft single floor house and now we know @Wyk3d is renting ang going to move at some point. With this new detail in the mix - $100 router definitely.

View attachment 46475

Hard for me to believe due to experience with 3-4 other 2x2 solutions. Archer 21 is an older 6755 platform.

Not saying it isn't comparable in your home, but I highly doubt that would reflect the same way for my environment.
 
I'm suggesting routers to @Wyk3d who briefly described the environment. Don't judge by the number of streams only because Archer C80 3x3 AC Wave 2 MediaTek SoC based router for $50 has better wall penetration on channels 36-48 than AX86U 4x4 AX router for 5x the price. Tested in the same Wi-Fi environment, whatever it is. Different SoC, different RF design, different amplifiers. I'm talking about models I've seen and not just in general.
 
True. I'm in a similar environment (1700 Sqft) and 4x4 vs 2x2 hardware is night and day for me when it comes to specific rooms on the other side of the house. I also have bias :)

The second GT-AX6000 ($300 Gen 2 AX) that I purchased basically confirms that more expensive design ($300) doesn't work for me even though LoS hits higher speeds in an open room.

I do agree that AC hardware (specifically Wave 2) does something different in regards to penetration.. maybe it's GI. Just seems more consistent in the same general layout. IE AC86U vs AX86U/S. The shortcoming is that AC hits throughput limitations around 550-600mbps via 2x2 client, at least on 80mhz bonding.
 
I grabbed the ax21 from Amazon. Free returns if it doesn’t work out for my space so no risk and only some lost time with the setup if it doesn’t work.
 

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