Advice Request A good router with good security and connectivity for $100 - $200?

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SumTingWong

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What is the best or good router with good security and connectivity? Looking around $100 - $200. Under $100 would be great too. Suggestion and recommendation are welcome.

On the list:
  • NETGEAR Nighthawk Smart WiFi Router (R7000) - AC1900
  • ASUS RT-AC66U B1 AC1750 Dual-Band WiFi Router
  • TP-Link AC4000 Smart WiFi Router
 

blackice

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ASUS supports their routers for a very long time (5 years or more). I have a preference for their routers. And you can always flash Merlin’s firmware. Some people really like Netgear, I haven’t used theirs in a long time. But you are kind of comparing routers in different classes in terms of WiFi. That TP-link is way more powerful than the other two. The AC68U would be closer to the Netgear, but the AC86U is much more current and probably would be supported longer. The 86U is also now under $200. And comes with a lifetime AiProtection from Trend Micro. Which, some people love and some people hate. But I think Trend Micro also does the security on other brands as well, though I think TP-Link switched to Avira for their HomeCare pro or whatever they call it. I’d recommend an Asus AC86U, personally. I had an AC68U and it served me well for years. Also, if you have a small house/apartment and not too many devices the Gryphon Guardian (I think it’s going for just over $100 right now) is a very secure router, but lacks power user tweaking.
 
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Brahman

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It has an ARM quad core processor and router os is updated more frequently than any other os for routers. It also supports DOH and have a very good firewall.
 
F

ForgottenSeer 85179

"Fritzbox" from AVM are very good, secure and get long updates (5 years if I'm not wrong).

They're now provide English beside German (it's a German company) so it's more open for international.

I personally use the FritzBox 7590.

Also router is the first protection against open Internet. Don't save your money on the wrong end.
You can't get best security with cheapest products
 

SumTingWong

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Get one that supports WiFi 6
AX56U in that case (based on budget).

Thanks. Security is good out of the box?
"Fritzbox" from AVM are very good, secure and get long updates (5 years if I'm not wrong).

They're now provide English beside German (it's a German company) so it's more open for international.

I personally use the FritzBox 7590.

Also router is the first protection against open Internet. Don't save your money on the wrong end.
You can't get best security with cheapest products

Are the 3 routers I listed good for security? I am currently using my ISP provided router.

Avoid the Zyxel ones, had a number of security features years ago but connectivity was horrible. Linksys were always reliable but maybe look at a hardware firewall and use a standard router.

Which one?
 

ErzCrz

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Thanks. Security is good out of the box?


Are the 3 routers I listed good for security? I am currently using my ISP provided router.



Which one?

It was an old router I bought a few years ago but connection kept dropping. It may have just been WPA2 issue or something but signal wasn't great either. It was just easier to lock down my old Linksys router and more reliable at the time. It may have been a couple of years ago now but yeah, the experience with it wasn't great.
 
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blackice

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Thanks. Security is good out of the box?
There are a couple things to tweak in the settings, but you get that with most routers. Like UPnP is on by default. On that specific note they keep their version of miniUPnP pretty up to date and it is not vulnerable to many of the latest issues with UPnP. It takes about 5 minutes to change the few things that matter when you set it up. If you want an even more secure router the AX56U and AX58U support Merlin’s firmware, you can check it out over at the Small Net Builder snbforums.com, in the ASUS forum. He is very active in his development of the firmware in the forums. Probably worth taking a peek around there if you are interested in an ASUS router. Lots of knowledge to be gained.
 

Lenny_Fox

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Hi, I just bought the Archer Triband C4000 (for 140 euro). Due to Covid19 we have to work at home and with tri-band and a better internet download speed with different ISP we hope to minimalize stutter in web-meetings. With1Gbs glassfibre and internet TV, (NL-ziet, Netflix, PrimeTV and Dplay) we pay 5 euro's less per month :) compared to our current cable TV ISP (Ziggo).

As far as I understood the reviews of TP-link AC4000, it is possible to give the two 5Ghz networks different names, so we can force devices to specific SSID lanes. I will move all our personal mobile phones to the 2.4 Ghz network and the Android TV's on the 2.4 Ghz guest network. I will give my girlfriend her own 5Ghz network (work laptop, her work smartphone and her private tablet) and put my work phone and desktop in the other 5Ghz network.

Nice bonus is the Trend-Micro powered HomeCare security, which TP-link calls an anttivirus.

1607599414517.png

source: link
 
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Nevi

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I use a Sagemcom fast 3890V3 from YouSee in Copenhagen. It has most of all the new configurations. I only run in Wi-fi, and it really give me the speeds I have been promised, both on computer and TV. It actually look like a big space ship. I use the 5 GH conn. but it also have the 4.2.
1607590638424.png
 

Lenny_Fox

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The TP devices are affected often by security problems so keep a eye on updates.
That are not security problems, it are features build in as back doors for the Chinese government , why did I buy it o_O I am doomed :eek:

My girlfriend will end up in a Shanghai brothel, I will be a content creator feeding the trolls on social media (the Chinese agents arresting me combined my two professions, being a cook and digital marketeer).
 

bayasdev

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Never trust the black box stock firmware that comes with consumer grade routers, get yourself an OpenWrt capable router like the Netgear R7800 and add all the packages you may need like Adblocking, VPN, encrypted DNS, QoS and other cool networking stuff. You can even compile your own OpenWrt builds and achieve absolute control over your home network.

Avoid Broadcom routers like the Netgear R7000 or most Asus models at all costs because Broadcom it's a company that hates the open source community and consequently affects its users' freedom to run custom firmware on their devices locking them to use that black box dumbed down stock firmware with zero cool features and an unknown number of security backdoors/vulnerabilities.
 

Lenny_Fox

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@geminis3 Two things come to mind

1. Getting more controle over my life is a greater concern than getting control over my router (just bought a chinese router)

2. My black hole is bigger than yours
 

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