Router Pro/Con

[capr]

Is this list of routers and their pro/cons good? Am I missing something big? I am looking for top of the lineish routers with gigabit routing 

 

 

Asus RT-N66U

$120

?   Low Price point

?   Well tested and reviewed     

?   Fast

?   Popular N router

?   Wireless N only technology

?   No AC means lower simultaneous throughput over 5GHz

AC1200

Asus RT-AC56U

$130

?   Small

?   Low Price point

?   USB 3

?   High simultaneous throughput

?   Best AC1200

?   Lots of Features

?   Possible IPv6 issues

?   Possible 2.4 connectivity issues.

AC1600

Netgear R6250

$150

?   Small

?   High 5.0 benchmarks

?   Second highest simultaneous throughput

?   USB 3

?   Low 2.4 benchmarks

?   Possible Firmware speed issues

?  

AC1750

Apple Airport Extreme

$185

?   Quality Hardware

?   Apple Brand

?   Apple cross product support

?   Doesn?t fit in smartbox

?   Benchmarks aren?t good

?   People hate Apple

 

AC1750

Asus RT-AC66U

$180

?   Quality Hardware

?   High benchmarks all around

?   Lots of Features

?   Doesn?t fit in smartbox

?   3 Antennas

?   IPv6 issues

?   No USB 3

?   High Price for Value

AC1900

Netgear  R7000

$200

?   USB 3

?   Fastest on market

?   Longest Range on market

?   Dual Core processor Chip

?   Very big

?   Expensive

?   3 Antennas

[Ulpian]

NETGEAR has backdoor. Maybe ASUS too. If you don't want backdoor, buy router that is DD-WRT/Tomato capable.

[Aergan]

NETGEAR has backdoor. Maybe ASUS too. If you don't want backdoor, buy router that is DD-WRT/Tomato capable.

 

Well my Netgear router has a locked front door.

[#Michael]

NETGEAR has backdoor. Maybe ASUS too. If you don't want backdoor, buy router that is DD-WRT/Tomato capable.

 

Asus routers are built on dd-wrt firmware.  I know that the rt-n66u can use dd-wrt as I run it on mine.  I know of no back doors on the asus routers.  That being said, look at the new rt-ac68 router.  It is outstanding but very pricey.

[snaphat (Myles Landwehr) Member]

Asus routers are built on dd-wrt firmware.  I know that the rt-n66u can use dd-wrt as I run it on mine.  I know of no back doors on the asus routers.  That being said, look at the new rt-ac68 router.  It is outstanding but very pricey.

Isn't the stock Merlin firmware for Asus routers opensource anyway?

[#Michael]

Isn't the stock Merlin firmware for Asus routers opensource anyway?

 

yep yep

[+BudMan MVC]

Can't tell if you think 3 antennas is pro or con?

[riahc3]

Hello,

NETGEAR has backdoor. Maybe ASUS too. If you don't want backdoor, buy router that is DD-WRT/Tomato capable.

:rolleyes:

Anyways, you have almost answered yourself. Both are good brands in the home router section. Just be sure to get one that can run DD-WRT.

I know its good to future proof, but right now do you have 802.11ac devices?

Do you plan to use your router as a NAS in a sense of plugging in a HDD drive to share with all? You will surely want to get USB 3 (and a USB 3 HDD)

By the time IPv6 is a requirement and IPv4 becomes optional, you problably wont be using this as your main home router in your house (which is sad that it isnt going as fast as it is suppose to)

[capr]

Can't tell if you think 3 antennas is pro or con?

Lol I can't figure it out either... sometimes I like it, sometimes it makes the router too big to use. I just noted it and let the user decide. 

[+BudMan MVC]

Too big to use? You do understand the number of antennas would also be how many streams it can handle and overall bandwidth the thing is capable of wireless ;)

Its possible they are all hidden antenna's inside a pretty little box. But if there is only 1 antenna that router is clearly not going to do more than 1 stream.. I would think if looking for the badass of badass routers you would want 4.. Where you got 4x4 spatial streams..

I believe the RT-AC87U is new 4x4 AC router.. Releasing this month I thought..

http://pcdiy.asus.com/2014/01/rt-ac87u-the-ultimate-router-4x4-mu-mimo-ces-2014/

[xendrome]

Asus routers are built on dd-wrt firmware.  I know that the rt-n66u can use dd-wrt as I run it on mine.  I know of no back doors on the asus routers.  That being said, look at the new rt-ac68 router.  It is outstanding but very pricey.

 

As far as I know Asus Routers are NOT built on DD-WRT firmware. While you may be able to run DD-WRT firmware on the router (I am not sure if you are or not) they are not built on it. And the best firmware for them is Merlins which can be found here - http://www.lostrealm.ca/tower/

[riahc3]

Hello,

Why is a router being too big a bad thing?

[capr]

Hello,

Why is a router being too big a bad thing?

Have you picked up the Night Hawk? I will post a picture of it next to an Asus, it takes so much more desktop space. 

 

Additionally, there are these "smartboxes" where all the cabling for an apartment come together (I have ethernet ports throughout my place). If you put your router in that "box" (covered hole in the wall) you get to fire up every single port in your apartment. This is sometimes desired so not being able to do it is a con. 

 

 

Too big to use? You do understand the number of antennas would also be how many streams it can handle and overall bandwidth the thing is capable of wireless ;)

Its possible they are all hidden antenna's inside a pretty little box. But if there is only 1 antenna that router is clearly not going to do more than 1 stream.. I would think if looking for the badass of badass routers you would want 4.. Where you got 4x4 spatial streams..

I believe the RT-AC87U is new 4x4 AC router.. Releasing this month I thought..

http://pcdiy.asus.com/2014/01/rt-ac87u-the-ultimate-router-4x4-mu-mimo-ces-2014/

yeah I get the antenna thing, but if it can't fit in one of the boxes mentioned above, then it's a con regardless of how "necessary" it is. 

 

That new Asus is sweet! 

[snaphat (Myles Landwehr) Member]

Have you picked up the Night Hawk? I will post a picture of it next to an Asus, it takes so much more desktop space. 

Why leave it on the desk? It's Ethernet enabled for a reason (moving it far away from you for peace of mind)  :laugh:

 

P.S. my Dark Knight is in a pile of electronics on a little rolling stand that came with my desk, it'd be on the floor behind my desk otherwise

[riahc3]

Hello,

Have you picked up the Night Hawk? I will post a picture of it next to an Asus, it takes so much more desktop space.

You really consider that big? Wow...

Besides that, why would you have this on your desktop? I mean signal quality cant be that bad on these, right?

 

Additionally, there are these "smartboxes" where all the cabling for an apartment come together (I have ethernet ports throughout my place). If you put your router in that "box" (covered hole in the wall) you get to fire up every single port in your apartment. This is sometimes desired so not being able to do it is a con.

"Smartboxes"? You mean a switch that simply connects to different female RJ-45 jacks in your place? That was easier to say...

I dont get it; You complain about the Nighthawk but the Asus, bigger, is sweet? Im lost.

[capr]

Hello,

You really consider that big? Wow...

Besides that, why would you have this on your desktop? I mean signal quality cant be that bad on these, right?

 

"Smartboxes"? You mean a switch that simply connects to different female RJ-45 jacks in your place? That was easier to say...

I dont get it; You complain about the Nighthawk but the Asus, bigger, is sweet? Im lost.

complain is a little strong. I just think it's a con since it can't function the way I need it to, regardless of how stupid you think that function is. Will post a picture of the "smartbox" when I get home. It's not a switch, it's a hole in the wall where 1 Coax and 1 cat 5 cable come in from outside and all the apartment's plugs (RJ-45 and Coax) terminate here. so in mine, I got ~15is cable heads and this coax "switch/spliter". Shoving a router as big as the NightHawk in there is impossible. The Asus ones will go in without the antennas.  

 

also, it's just cool that Asus is working on this awesome piece of tech. Antennas are obviously a con. 

[snaphat (Myles Landwehr) Member]

complain is a little strong. I just think it's a con since it can't function the way I need it to, regardless of how stupid you think that function is. Will post a picture of the "smartbox" when I get home. It's not a switch, it's a hole in the wall where 1 Coax and 1 cat 5 cable come in from outside and all the apartment's plugs (RJ-45 and Coax) terminate here. so in mine, I got ~15is cable heads and this coax "switch/spliter". Shoving a router as big as the NightHawk in there is impossible. The Asus ones will go in without the antennas.  

 

also, it's just cool that Asus is working on this awesome piece of tech. Antennas are obviously a con. 

Just get router with 4x4 Internal antennas then. They are going to be highly directional though that's why people like external ones.

[rvbfan]

Stll rockin my r6200. May be better out there, but is the

best router I have owned. Period.

Live in a 3000sqft bungalo router downstairs hardwired to a server. Everything else upstairs on wifi.

2 desktops, assorted phones, laptop, a tablet and a Roku2XS.

Zero issuse.

[+BudMan MVC]

Very curious to see this picture of this smartbox -- sounds like a patch panel to me.

Not sure any wireless router would be good inside a "box" of anysort?

Sounds like a good place to put your cable modem and and switch for your other 15 connections.. What router is going to have 15 ports on it ;)

So put your router in there, and then connect an AP or wireless router being used as just AP at one of the other parts of the house where this patchpanel/smartbox go.

Please post this picture -- can you give the actual dimensions of the box?

[riahc3]

Hello,

Very curious to see this picture of this smartbox -- sounds like a patch panel to me.

Im just picturing something like this....

[+BudMan MVC]

Seems he has a long way to get home ;)

[#Michael]

Hello,

Im just picturing something like this....

 

Oh...holy hell my cable management OCD is kicking in.  I would go crazy and would spent hours re-doing that.

[DirtyLarry Veteran]

I recently upgraded from the Asus RT-N66U to a Netgear R7000 (was on sale at Amazon for $169, not the normal $200, and I had a bunch of Amazon gift cards from the holidays)
 

Granted I had the N66U set up as an AP, but I can still confidently say the range and speeds of the R7000 are outstanding. Truly outstanding. Especially the range. It really is so much better than the N66U, and in fact I had a decent amount of issues with the N66U just not having any range at all (one of the main reasons I upgraded). I know a lot of people swear by the N66U, and again, I did have it set up as an AP where I am using the R7000 as a straight router, but I still think one can judge the range, speeds and reliability of a device even if it is just setup as an AP, so I cannot praise the R7000 enough in those categories. Although I would say wait to see if you can get it for less than the $200, that does seem pricey to me.

 

EDIT - The NightHawk is bigger than the Asus Dark Knight, but not a whole lot. They are both big routers.

[Roger H. Veteran]

Someone post a picture of a Nighthawk sitting ontop of a regular 8x11 paper :p

 

I've been wanting it but that thing looks so huge in videos i'm like WTF?

 

Maybe if you could also post it next to a cable modem or something. I hated the R6xxx series routers because of their stand-up nature so they were too big to fit under my TV stand. The Asus had the same issue too. 

 

I'm waiting for the WRT1900AC from Linksys to see how that works and maybe get that but not at $300! :p

 

----------------------

 

Also while this is about "hardware" but moving it to Internet, Network & Security since it fits there more :)

[riahc3]

Hello,

EDIT - The NightHawk is bigger than the Asus Dark Knight, but not a whole lot. They are both big routers.

Excuse me for the ignorant question but are both those routers named after comic book characters on purpose?