AC1750 vs AC1900 hard decision f

[FrankieXenon]

My old router provided by Verizon is on the verge of dying and I need a replacement. I currently have 7 devices connected to the internet at different times. 2 computers, 4 phones, streaming device, 2 tablets. They almost never all connect at the same time. It's usually 6 connected and then 9 total at night for like 2-3 hours. I have 50mbs up/down speed by Verizon Fios.


I'm stuck between choosing the Asus AC66U and Asus AC68U. The difference is higher speeds on 5GHZ and 1 core more. Would the AC68U actually help significantly in my case? The max speeds I'll ever be upgrading to is 100mbs


I feel like since I will never use anywhere near the max speeds of each of these routers. I shouldn't care about its advertised speed. But the cores and features are a concern. I sometimes use VPN on my computer.


Thank you

 

[VirtualLarry]

If you use VPN, then by all means, go for the AC68U over the AC66U, because the extra core should help in those cases. Also, the AC68U CAN handle Gigabit WAN, with CTF forwarding enabled. (An option in Shibby Tomato, I don't use the stock firmware.)

However, that being said, here the AC68U seems to only be available refurb from 3rd-parties for inflated prices, nearly double what they were a month or two ago. So, if you want that one, snag it quick if you can get one for a reasonable price.

I think that the AC68U/R/AC1900 and AC66U/AC1750 have both been discontinued.

That being said, the AC66U/AC1750 is available refurb for $45-$55 from Newegg and ebay, so if you can't get an AC68U without paying a premium, then getting an AC66U wouldn't be the end of the world either. They're both great routers.

 

[razel]

Get the AC68 over the 66. Though both support AiMesh it's only for certain revisions of the 66. Even if you don't use MESH since it's on the AiMesh platform you're nearly guaranteed firmware security updates for a while. 68 is also on sale at MicroCenter if you buy two. It was $100 each in June, I believe it's $109 now.

The great 2017 model RT-AC86 which is 4 stream (vs. 3 for the 68) is also $50 more, but at that point, since newer gen routers are on the horizon, the 68 @ $100 will suit WiFi network enthusiasts for awhile.

 

[JackMDS]

If you live in a studio apt., I would say, it does not matter. If you are pressed for money buy the inexpensive one.

Otherwise get the AC68U.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Here's what I don't get:

The venerable WRT54G(L), in all of it's many revisions (the -L suffix being the biggest version of them all, in terms of RAM and FLASH capacity), is, somehow, STILL being sold. Even though 802.11g wifi, is like three generations obsolete.

I would argue, that the AC68U, is almost as popular, at least, by those in the know, and that the recent shortages, seemingly because production has been stopped (?), seem strange. Why isn't, an "Open Source Edition" release version, call it the "AC68U classic edition", STILL BEING SOLD?

I did hear something about Broadcom selling their wifi SoC business to another company, but I thought that the parent company, had made the decision to keep producing some of their popular SoCs that were used in routers. So the chips, in theory, should still be available, if under a different company's name.

I mean, I think that the AC68U is one of the best all-around current routers, it's very versatile as far as what firmware families it will accept (lots of Open Source options), still supported by factory firmware updates, and now, AiMesh support too!

(I'm running one as my main LAN router too, I practice what I preach, as far as my tech recommendations go.)