TRENDnet Shipping AC1200 Access Point

[L&LD]

The product introduced here had my interest for a few moments.

http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/wireless/wireless-news/32816-trendnet-shipping-ac1200-access-point

The Controller Software feature that can manage multiple AP's centrally and without cloud connection (I think) is a big plus.

The biggest negative I find is that to upgrade the firmware, you need to connect on a wired connection (or you may brick the router). This seems like so 1990's to me (and what Asus does).

At the right price point and the right home or office layout, three or four of these may give the best overall performance for a medium number of users (30 to 50) vs. any single WiFi router available today. Of course, being limited to a two antennae and two stream design will downgrade the performance of any client with 3 antennae (or more), but judging by the RT-AC56U that I am familiar with (another (internal) two antennae and two stream design), the actual real world performance can still be substantial, if not enough for most users.

Will there be a review of at least a couple of these units and the software soon?

 

[netwrks]

You don't need to connect to a device to do an upgrade, you can roll the dice and do it wirelessly! I'll stick to updating with an Ethernet cable..

 

[L&LD]

You don't need to connect to a device to do an upgrade, you can roll the dice and do it wirelessly! I'll stick to updating with an Ethernet cable..

No, the point I think you're missing is that the very process of upgrading on the Asus routers make them much more robust during a firmware upgrade no matter how you load the firmware (wired or wireless).

This 'new' product is not even at that level yet, so that is a step backwards, imo.

 

[LoneWolf]

You don't need to connect to a device to do an upgrade, you can roll the dice and do it wirelessly! I'll stick to updating with an Ethernet cable..

A good design process today means that when firmware is updated, the firmware is copied entirely to the device before the upgrade begins. This means no dice roll, as the file is already there before the upgrade starts, preventing bricking, so it shouldn't matter whether you are upgrading from a wired network or a wireless one.

The controller management software sounds similar to the way Ubiquiti does their access points. Personally, I'd prefer an embedded WebUI with one of the APs serving as a virtual controller, but at $135, this is an acceptable compromise.

These Trendnets have a list price cheap enough to make me question how decent they are. The next cheapest AC access point that supports clustering are generally $100 more or more (Ubiquiti AC, xClaim Xi-3, Linksys LAPAC1750Pro, Zyxel and Engenius), and many of them are either lacking a feature or two because they aren't fully baked, or have limitations. At $135 each, I hope Tim reviews these; I would need a review before I buy any.