Router Shopping

[GalaxyGamer]

so in the market for a new router and I and a few questions.  I'm willing to pay $150 CAD($115 USD). some questions i have are 

1. does a router really matter if I am only able to push 25mbs down? 

2. Is buying second hand or refurbished a bad idea 

3. any recommendations?

 

if there's any other info you would like, let me know.
my current router is a d-link dir-605l.

[Donut417]

4 hours ago, GalaxyGamer said:

so in the market for a new router and I and a few questions.  I'm willing to pay $150 CAD($115 USD). some questions i have are 

1. does a router really matter if I am only able to push 25mbs down? 

2. Is buying second hand or refurbished a bad idea 

3. any recommendations?

 

if there's any other info you would like, let me know.
my current router is a d-link dir-605l.

1) A router is needed if want more than one machine using your internet. Now days most ISP's supply a gateway that is essentially a modem and router in one box. ISP supplied boxes generally have crap WiFi performance and lack features.  

2) You will probably be fine. As long as the router is relatively recent. Meaning its up to the current standards. Which would be AC wireless. 

3) I have the Synology RT2600 AC, while its out of your budget, it has a little brother that might be in your budget. The TP Link Archer C7 or C9 Ive heard good things. ASUS and Netgear both make good products from what I have read. 

 

What it really comes down to is what features you need. QoS options, Dual band (All AC wireless should be dual band), USB ports on the router, etc. 

[GalaxyGamer]

14 hours ago, Donut417 said:

1) A router is needed if want more than one machine using your internet. Now days most ISP's supply a gateway that is essentially a modem and router in one box. ISP supplied boxes generally have crap WiFi performance and lack features.  

2) You will probably be fine. As long as the router is relatively recent. Meaning its up to the current standards. Which would be AC wireless. 

3) I have the Synology RT2600 AC, while its out of your budget, it has a little brother that might be in your budget. The TP Link Archer C7 or C9 Ive heard good things. ASUS and Netgear both make good products from what I have read. 

 

What it really comes down to is what features you need. QoS options, Dual band (All AC wireless should be dual band), USB ports on the router, etc. 

8

i will look into those routers thank you. the isp that im with does not supply, unless i buy theirs for $200. i'd rather buy my own. they do supply this brick which acts as a modem though. should i save for a slightly more expensive router? also the only feature i was mainly looking for was QoS(so i can prioritize my PC over all other devices) and Mu-MiMo(because it seems useful) and dual band. 

 

thank you in advance for responding, very much appreciated and also helpful. I've spent a couple hours researching different routers, possibilities for what ones to buy, finding the cheapest site to order from, and its really difficult because i dont want to buy a bad router.
 

[Donut417]

3 hours ago, GalaxyGamer said:

i will look into those routers thank you. the isp that im with does not supply, unless i buy theirs for $200. i'd rather buy my own. they do supply this brick which acts as a modem though. should i save for a slightly more expensive router? also the only feature i was mainly looking for was QoS(so i can prioritize my PC over all other devices) and Mu-MiMo(because it seems useful) and dual band. 

 

thank you in advance for responding, very much appreciated and also helpful. I've spent a couple hours researching different routers, possibilities for what ones to buy, finding the cheapest site to order from, and its really difficult because i dont want to buy a bad router.
 

Just an observation QoS sucks most consumer grade routers. Though routers that have 3rd party firmware support have better options if you use 3rd party firmware. 

[GalaxyGamer]

31 minutes ago, Donut417 said:

Just an observation QoS sucks most consumer grade routers. Though routers that have 3rd party firmware support have better options if you use 3rd party firmware. 

ok thanks i was looking at this router. is it any good? 

https://www.amazon.ca/Dual-Band-Super-Fast-Gigabit-MU-MIMO-RT-ACRH13/dp/B01LXL1AR8/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1542482797&sr=1-3&keywords=asus+mu-mimo

[Donut417]

5 minutes ago, GalaxyGamer said:

ok thanks i was looking at this router. is it any good? 

https://www.amazon.ca/Dual-Band-Super-Fast-Gigabit-MU-MIMO-RT-ACRH13/dp/B01LXL1AR8/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1542482797&sr=1-3&keywords=asus+mu-mimo

Unfortunately I'm not familiar with Asus firmware. So I really can't say. I know Asus makes good routers but as far as how good some of the features are going to be I can't say. 

[GalaxyGamer]

26 minutes ago, Donut417 said:

Unfortunately I'm not familiar with Asus firmware. So I really can't say. I know Asus makes good routers but as far as how good some of the features are going to be I can't say. 

also the final thing, is mu-mimo worth getting? or does it really not matter?

[Donut417]

3 hours ago, GalaxyGamer said:

also the final thing, is mu-mimo worth getting? or does it really not matter?

Id say if you had a lot of devices maybe. My router has this feature and I didnt even know. LOL. I myself dont have a lot of WiFi devices and the devices I do use on WiFi, its not like all of them are in use at the same time. 

 

Lets just say I havent noticed any difference between my old DIR835 and my Synology RT2600AC when it comes to WiFi performance other than slightly more range. The only reason I got this router is the old one still had the WPA2 exploits. I wasnt sure when DDWRT was going to issue a patch, or if they were going to issue a patch. 

[LinusOnLine]

Unless you buy wifi cards for your units that can support mu mimo it is kind of pointless.