Is RT-AX88U a better choice than RT-AC86U for a gigabit connection?

[neil0311]

I have a RT-AC86U and am upgrading my Internet link to gigabit speed. The majority of the devices in the house are AC devices, but I do have a new Surface Laptop with a wifi 6 client, and my wife just got an iPhone 11 Pro which I believe also supports wifi 6.

Given the Internet connection is throttled at 1Gb and most of the devices don't support wifi 6, am I correct in my assumption that the stability of the AC86U is a better bet, rather than the limited benefit of upgrading to the AX88U?

 

[Grisu]

Do you miss speed anywhere, why even think about?
Maybe in 2 years you will get better devices when wifi6-standard has settled down.

 

[neil0311]

Do you miss speed anywhere, why even think about?
Maybe in 2 years you will get better devices when wifi6-standard has settled down.

Thanks. Pretty much what I assumed. Only reason I’m asking is I have a window to return the AC86U which was a recent purchase before I found out the gigabit connection upgrade was feasible.

 

[L&LD]

I have a RT-AC86U and am upgrading my Internet link to gigabit speed. The majority of the devices in the house are AC devices, but I do have a new Surface Laptop with a wifi 6 client, and my wife just got an iPhone 11 Pro which I believe also supports wifi 6.

Given the Internet connection is throttled at 1Gb and most of the devices don't support wifi 6, am I correct in my assumption that the stability of the AC86U is a better bet, rather than the limited benefit of upgrading to the AX88U?

https://www.snbforums.com/threads/b...ta-is-now-available.60037/page-31#post-531024

For myself, even with a limited number of AX clients, the RT-AX88U is easily superior to the RT-AC86U.

At the least, it is worth testing in your environment with your devices too.

And note: it's not the Gbps connection that matters in this choice here, it is simply superior hardware and software that is on offer for the AX model vs. the older AC models.

 

[neil0311]

https://www.snbforums.com/threads/b...ta-is-now-available.60037/page-31#post-531024

For myself, even with a limited number of AX clients, the RT-AX88U is easily superior to the RT-AC86U.

At the least, it is worth testing in your environment with your devices too.

And note: it's not the Gbps connection that matters in this choice here, it is simply superior hardware and software that is on offer for the AX model vs. the older AC models.

That pushed me over the top. It’s a $125 delta between the AC86U and AX88U, and it can be here tomorrow with free shipping and the return shipping is free as well.

It’s on its way.

 

[L&LD]

@neil0311, make sure to test/compare it well to be sure it is a good upgrade for you too. (Btw, that is almost exactly the same price difference that pushed me over the edge too).

 

[sanke1]

RT-AX88U is an excellent router hardware wise. But be ready for buckets of pain when you install latest firmware as of today. After 2-3 days your wifi devices will slow down to a crawl (1-2 Mbps speedtests)
Classic case of top notch hardware bogged down by incompetent software. In this state, none of the Asus Wifi 6 routers are fit for daily use. Think about that and whether you are willing to wait till a stable firmware is released eventually.

 

[Adamm]

RT-AX88U is an excellent router hardware wise. But be ready for buckets of pain when you install latest firmware as of today. After 2-3 days your wifi devices will slow down to a crawl (1-2 Mbps speedtests)
Classic case of top notch hardware bogged down by incompetent software. In this state, none of the Asus Wifi 6 routers are fit for daily use. Think about that and whether you are willing to wait till a stable firmware is released eventually.

To each their own, I've been using the AX88U as a daily driver for over a year now and its by far the most stable router I've owned. I can't recall a single major issue since purchase. (For reference I've owned just about every high end Asus device - N56U/AC66U/AC68U/AC5300/AC86U/AX88U)

 

[sanke1]

To each their own, I've been using the AX88U as a daily driver for over a year now and its by far the most stable router I've owned. I can't recall a single major issue since purchase. (For reference I've owned just about every high end Asus device - N56U/AC66U/AC68U/AC5300/AC86U/AX88U)

I have owned all the above routers you mentioned and even RT-AX88U was stable up till firmware 6436. After that with introduction of OFDMA and WPA3, things have gone downhill with wireless stability.

 

[neil0311]

To each their own, I've been using the AX88U as a daily driver for over a year now and its by far the most stable router I've owned. I can't recall a single major issue since purchase. (For reference I've owned just about every high end Asus device - N56U/AC66U/AC68U/AC5300/AC86U/AX88U)

Out of curiosity, what firmware version are you using?