Question about speed of Actiontec MI424WR rev E vs RT-N66U

[binarydad]

I bridged my Actiontec earlier because, well, everyone seems to recommend it. I didn't have any problems before (at least I didn't think) and don't seem to be having any now.

However, I am curious about the difference in speed of the CPU between these two. It seems like the Actiontec actually has a faster, dual-core 64-bit CPU (http://www.actiontec.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/MI424WR-Fiber-Router-Datasheetv2-1.pdf) while the Asus RT-N66U only has a single core 600mhz processor.

Can someone explain if this makes any real difference? I would think the higher CPU in the Actiontec would be better for high-load browsing. I thought this whole time my N66U had some decent performance compared to an older, Verizon-issued router. What gives?

 

[ColinTaylor]

I don't think you can really compare the devices just based on the number of cores (32bit vs 64bit is probably irrelevant). I'd look at what it actually provides: 802.11g Wi-Fi - Yuck, 10/100 Ethernet - Yuck. The other things you'd need to test for yourself, like throughput, speed of the VPN, how reliable is UPnP, etc, etc. Software VPN and QoS perform better with a faster CPU but most of the other things don't, so it's more about how well it works rather than how fast it works.

 

[binarydad]

I don't think you can really compare the devices just based on the number of cores (32bit vs 64bit is probably irrelevant). I'd look at what it actually provides: 802.11g Wi-Fi - Yuck, 10/100 Ethernet - Yuck. The other things you'd need to test for yourself, like throughput, speed of the VPN, how reliable is UPnP, etc, etc. Software VPN and QoS perform better with a faster CPU but most of the other things don't, so it's more about how well it works rather than how fast it works.

True. Before, I was using the Actiontec as my router and my N66U as just an AP. I do like the software much better on the N66U. I also did it because I heard there were issues with Chromecasts and the Actiontec router. Who knows if this is resolving it, but we'll see.

 

[pete y testing]

the n66u is pretty old tech wise now and with new routers having 3 times the cpu speed the n66u is prob best used as an AP if you dont care about wireless AC

 

[ColinTaylor]

the n66u is pretty old tech wise now

Yes but the Actiontec is from 2008! And supports all the latest standards like 802.11g, Windows Vista and Netscape 7.

If document linked to in post #1 is correct then it looks like this is it. CPU is a Cavium CN5020 (300 MHz, 2 cores).