These are the best WiFi 6 routers for 2020
These days, we’re starting to see more WiFi 6 capable routers in the market. WiFi 6 is pretty much the new standard that we can expect to see from WiFi 6 devices, and unless you’ve bought a new router in the past year or so, there’s a good chance that your current router could still be of the WiFi 5 (or older) variety.
So that kind of begs the question, which WiFi 6 router should you get, and also, should you consider upgrading?
What is WiFi 6
We’ve actually written a pretty detailed article on what is WiFi 6 that might be worth a read, but in case you just want a summary, WiFi 6 is a new WiFi standard. Essentially it will offer considerably faster connections of up to 9.6Gbps, meaning that it is even better for homes with multiple people staying in them.
In addition to being faster, it is also smarter where other devices that support WiFi 6, like your laptop, smartphone, or tablet, can have its WiFi radios put to sleep when not in use. This in turn is said to help conserve energy.
Tl;dr WiFi 6 will offer faster theoretical speeds while also offering potential energy savings and could be worth upgrading to, especially if you’ve been using the same router for the past few years.
In addition to featuring a built-in Zigbee smart home hub, the Pro 6 can connect 75 devices to the web at gigabit speeds thanks to its 1.6 GHz quad-core processor, 1 GB RAM, 4 GB flash storage, and tri-band networking capabilities.
Designed to look like a very futuristic-looking spaceship or airplane, the Nighthawk is definitely a conversation piece. Apart from its unique looks, the RAX80 is also a WiFi 6 router. It comes with four antennas built into the router itself which are hidden inside of the “wings”, helping create a more seamless look.
This is a dual-band router with dual USB ports, and for those who prefer a wired connection, the RAX80 will also feature 5 LAN ports. There is also WPA, WPA2, WPA2-Enterprise, WPS, 802.1x Authentication, and RADIUS Server security features built into it.
Similar to the RAX80, this is for those who perhaps have a larger home. This is because while in terms of features, the RAX120 is similar to that of the RAX80, it does come with 8 antennas built into the router. This should, at least in theory, provide users with even greater coverage.
It also supports 12 streams broken down into 4x 2.4GHz and 8x 5GHz. Apart from that, we can look forward to the same number of USB ports, LAN ports, and similar security features as the RAX80.
If you’re looking for the “ultimate” WIFi 6 router, it’s hard to ignore what TP-Link’s Archer AX6000 brings to the table. The router features a whopping 8 antennas that should help maximize its coverage. There is also support for dual band connections, but it also comes with a host of ports that makes it ideal for connecting wired devices as well.
This includes 2.5Gbps WAN port and eight Ethernet ports. There is even support for connecting USB devices thanks to its USB 3.0 and USB-C connectivity, so you could connect peripherals and accessories like media servers, external drives, and so on.
If maybe you do not need such an over-the-top router and want something a bit more affordable that also gives you WiFi 6, then TP-Link’s Archer AX50 could also be worth looking at. It is a WiFi 6 router that comes with four antennas, support for dual-band connections, and can cover areas of up to 2,000 square feet.
While it might not support as many wired connections as its bigger brother, the Archer AX6000, it does come with four ports that might be more ideal for smaller homes that do not have that many wired devices.
There are a variety of reasons why we need a fast internet connection. For some, this includes gaming. If you game a lot and need a router that can help boost your gaming internet speeds or offer dedicated bandwidth for gaming, then it’s hard to ignore what the ASUS ROG Rapture GT-AX11000 brings to the table.
This is a router that has been optimized for gaming where it will provide dedicated 5GHz bands for gaming purposes, thus offering up much faster speeds. The router also makes it easy to configure port forwarding, and its host of eight swiveling antennas will also offer up a greater coverage for your home or workspace.
We get that not everyone needs a killer router like the ROG Rapture, so if you don’t need that powerful of a router, ASUS also has something a little more modest with the RT-AX88U AX6000 router. While it might not necessarily be as feature-packed as the ROG Rapture, it does come with what ASUS is claiming to be commercial-grade security features.
It also comes with four antennas and as many as 8 LAN ports to help connect your wired devices. ASUS is also claiming that it will be compatible the company’s mesh WiFi system so you can use it together.
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