ASUS Announces a Complete Lineup of 802.11ax Routers
by Joe Shields on June 4, 2018 2:35 PM EST
ASUS has announced a family of new routers designed to satisfy the ever-increasing bandwidth demands of the modern household. ASUS unveiled the ROG Rapture GT-AX11000 (ASUS says is the world’s first tri-band 802.11ax router), the RT-AX88U (more conventional dual-channel design), and the AX6100 WiFi System purpose-built for creating your own mesh network supporting AiMesh.
ROG Rapture GT-AX11000
The ROG Rapture GT-AX11000 is the flagship Router and built for demanding networks. The ROG Rapture has a peak aggregate throughput of nearly 11000 Mbps: up to 1148 Mbps on the 2.4 GHz band and up to 4804 Mbps each of its dual 5 GHz bands (for a total of three bands). The additional 5 GHz band can be reserved for gaming devices to prevent other wireless activity from affecting the primary machines.
The Rapture has multiple Gigabit Ethernet for wired connectivity and has an additional 2.5 Gbps Ethernet port for those who are lucky enough to break that 1 Gbps barrier ISP. The extra bandwidth will allow for a single system to communicate with multiple gigabit-type devices at peak speeds or utilize NAS devices able to team ports for higher throughput. The router also uses Game Boost adaptive QoS to analyze network traffic and prioritize gaming traffic ahead of other items. WiFi traffic is passed through eight antennas on top making the router look more like a futuristic trap of some sort.
AX6100 WiFi System
ASUS says all routers will support AiMesh (ASUS technology for mixing multiple routers to create a mesh network) but the new AiMesh AX6100 WiFi System is purpose-built for the task. The AX6100 comes in a two-pack designed to extend WiFi coverage. Additional nodes using other AiMesh-compatible routers are possible to add even if they are based on 802.11ac.
The AX6100, like the ROG Rapture, is a tri-band design. Its total aggregate throughput is up to 6100 Mbps with 4804 Mbps on the first 5 GHz band, the other offering 866 Mbps for 802.11ac devices, while the 2.4 GHz band able to reach 400 Mbps of 802.11n connectivity.
RT-AX88U
The RT-AX88U is said to use much of the same internals as the Rapture but used in a more conventional (read: less expensive) dual-channel design. The two bands support 802.11ax devices with 1148 Mbps on 2.4 GHz and up to 4804 Mbps on 5 GHz band for peak total bandwidth of about 6000 Mbps.
Wireless signals pass through four antennae with the wired connections managed by a Gigabit WAN for the ISP, and eight Gigabit LAN ports for local devices. Many routers only have four which makes this device good for multiple wired users in close proximity, or pre-wired homes with multiple desktop/media devices. Both the RT-AX88U and the ROG Rapture are powered by a quad-core processor (not named). It has dual USB 3.0 ports for shared peripherals as well.
The ROG Rapture GT-AX11000, AiMesh AX6100 WiFi System, and RT-AX88U will be available in Q3 2018. Pricing information was not listed.
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19 Comments
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mode_13h - Monday, June 4, 2018 - link
I wonder if that's a hard-wired WAN port, because it would make more sense to have your fileserver or NAS plugged into it - especially since virtually nobody has > 1 Gbps ISP.stanleyipkiss - Tuesday, June 5, 2018 - link
Talk about yourself. I live in a country of MOSTLY 1 Gbps ISP connections. We're moving to 10 Gbps.deepblue08 - Monday, June 4, 2018 - link
Looks like you can summon demons with those things. Or have I been playing too much Doom?CaedenV - Monday, June 4, 2018 - link
Pretty sure next year's WiFi routers are just going to be porcupines with a plastic shroud.Seriously... if you need this many antennae on your router then you are doing something terribly wrong.
fred666 - Monday, June 4, 2018 - link
dual 5 GHz radio is pretty dumb. Already with 160 MHz channels there aren't many channels usable. Even with 80 Mhz channels, it doesn't leave that many choices. It will just give more interference.More speed on the 2.4 GHz band is also interesting. I wonder if this is using 40 Mhz only and if this is standard or a proprietary extension.
zodiacfml - Tuesday, June 5, 2018 - link
If it is capable of DFS, more channels available.The capabilities though are too overkill for home use. I see these products more suitable in SOHO or school setting.
zepi - Monday, June 4, 2018 - link
Someone please make an ax router that doesn’t look like a spaceship from teenagers dreams.You can say whatever you like about apple, but at least Airport extreme / express don’t look too bad even if one doesn’t hide them.
iwod - Tuesday, June 5, 2018 - link
I was hoping 802.11ax will be their last Router product. But they didn't even wait and decide to close it.Anyway has 802.11ax been ratified yet? None of the draft has even passed the commitiess. Draft 1 and 2 both failed if I remember correctly. And btw someone mess with the Wiki entry to delete all the info.
tplinkrouter - Wednesday, July 11, 2018 - link
What is the best Router for the office area? if you have any suggestions regarding this. you can share with me, on this link https://www.tplinkroutersupport.com/