ASUS ROG Rapture GT-AXE16000 WiFi 6E $450

Bought this for same $ on 1/3 and just finished setting it up with Xfinity Gigabit Extra plan, XB8 Gateway, factory reset & set to bridge mode. WOW what a speed difference! Planning on switching to AT&T Fiber when they finish install in our neighborhood so this should get even better.

It really is faster?

I highly doubt it, and feel like $500 routers is snake oil. However, I would love to be proven wrong. If anything I feel the software will make a bigger difference.

I was doubtful also, but with 60-70 devices typically connected this really has helped tremendously. A few things we've immediately noticed since install: how much quicker notifications are and how quickly a live stream starts for the 3 outdoor Nest IQ 4K cameras which are recoding 24/7 - before they were so slow to notify and even slower to open a live feed, delays were laughable when the additional cameras turn on when away. Another thing is how clear the Apple TV 4K nearest the router is now, even apps start streaming quicker, also the picture improvement on the TCL 4K Roku TV furthest away. On my iPhone 15 Pro Max I'm seeing between 700-1300 mbps download speeds depending on proximity. Checking the ASUS stats show the RAM usage is sitting at 37% of 2GB without any TVs streaming or gaming. The specs are as great or better than most, plus no subscriptions for notifications or security. It doesn't seem like the internet is bogged down anymore, we definitely need to do more real world testing, and time will tell, but so far we're happy.

Okay. I see what you're saying. The issue you had was more about the processing power of the device to handle all the streaming devices concurrently you have in the home. In the future, I suggest considering a more enterprise level router such as the Ubiquiti Dream Machine with Access Points.

https://ui.com/us/en/cloud-gatewa...am-machine

I personally use Asus router myself, as I like the AsusWRT Linux based OS. It works great for home use in a smaller environment like a condominium.

I disagree that the dream machine is faster for 60-70 devices. I switched from an AX11000 to the dream machine and it is NOT faster. Game latency is 2ms slower, minimum.

But I have much better control over my network and what ports/applications/etc which is necessary to ensure my young kids don't venture too quickly into the darker places of the web.

Only copium I have is that their gateway solution added to the dream machine may resolve the slightly slower latency and speeds, but I honestly don't want to spend that much lol. Wish I did more research before purchasing their AP and Dream Machine. Ended up being a sidegrade if anything