Quasi Review of ASUS RT-AC68U router

I recently got an unsolicited new internet router from my cable company and with it a letter.  The letter basically said routers don't age well and they were sending a new one to replace the existing one.  Before replacing the router, I did an internet speed test and was getting about 15Mbs down, and about 8Mbs up.   After replacing the router, these jumped dramatically to 75Mbs down and 20Mbs Up.  This got me thinking - perhaps my wifi router (a Linksys by Cisco WRT320N router) wasn't keeping up with the times either.  

So I poked around on the net and saw the RT-AC68U was supposed to be one of the fastest out there. 

Installation was quick and painless - swapped the router, refreshed my internal IP, and was presented with a setup screen in my browser that walked me through the steps.

After completing the steps, I ran another speed test - My download speed jumped dramatically again: now I get 115Mbs down and 30Mbs up.  

Both tests were done using my computer connected wirelessly with its built-in Qualcomm a/b/g/n wireless adapter.  I was expecting faster but wow - a more than 25% jump.

Other nice features of the router are multiple wireless networks so I have my guest wireless network segregated from my personal stuff.  I trust my guests but its reassuring to know if their computers are compromised, I'm protected.

It also has a USB port for sharing files on the USB through the internet - I haven't played with that yet, but seems like a nice alternative to dropbox/google drive etc.

I've only been using it for a week but so far have been very happy with the performance improvements over my old setup.  Prior to doing the upgrades (both the cable modem and wireless router), when I streamed HD content to my television wirelessly using Amazon Prime, it would frequently complain about bandwidth constraints and drop back down to non-HD content.  Since doing the upgrades, I've never once been prompted about low bandwidth.

It also improved my wireless range throughout my house by a significant margin.  I now have a strong signal in areas where I was borderline-to-no-signal before.

If you've been running the same cable modem and wireless router for several years - I highly recommend looking to upgrade them.  You may be missing out on bandwidth provided by your cable company.

Pros

• Much faster than my old router
• Better wireless signal coverage
• Multiple Wireless network support for guests etc
• USB port to share your own USB drive on the internet

Cons:

• tall and only supports vertical orientation
• pricey