Your enthusiasm is great, it really is. And I own the AirPort Extreme too. But last time I checked it's definitely not at the top of the totem poll of AC routers....
I just love it for its ease of use
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Don't bother with wireless AC
- Thread starter Patrick G
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Your enthusiasm is great, it really is. And I own the AirPort Extreme too. But last time I checked it's definitely not at the top of the totem poll of AC routers....
I just love it for its ease of use
Linksys routers are crap IMO, I have an Asus AC-68U and that thing is a beast! Granted I live in a two bedroom apartment, so I have no issues getting 802.11ac everywhere. The only exception is the parking lot where it switches to 2.4GHz. It's not just AC, 802.11n when used on 5GHz is the same thing, it's just the way RF works.
I wouldn't say it's wasted though, I pull 177/24 down on with a speed test, so AC is needed to get the full speed I pay for.
I wouldn't say it's wasted though, I pull 177/24 down on with a speed test, so AC is needed to get the full speed I pay for.
Yeah Asus makes a decent router from what I've heard.
And yeah that's what I was getting at with my first post. Don't really thing the OPs problems is a direct result of AC itself. It's the 5ghz frequency and how it's inefficient in his particular setup. 5ghz band does not = ac
I considered replacing my Linksys E4200 with an AirPort Extreme..... Until I read the review on smallnetbuilder. It's close to the bottom of AC routers and especially so at that price point. Glad I went the way of Asus as this router is awesome.
It what you describe is typical performance of a WRT1900AC, then no, my post is the opposite of a joke.
I simply described the range of the 5GHz band being shorter than the range of the 2.4GHz band. That's typical performance of each and every dual band router on the planet.
Yep, including my Airport Extreme.
You also described in more detail your actual user experience, which is nothing like mine with my Airport Extreme.
If you have separate networks set up try telling the iPhone to "forget" the N network. I assume it won't automatically connect to it without a password. Worth a try.
I have a asus Ac router. On my 2.4 network I top out at 15mbps on my speed test. The Ac band gets almost my full 60 Mbps with a amazing 3ms ping.
I also did my first sync over wifi and it moved 40 gb of music to my phone in about 30-40 minutes. This would have taken years over the 2.4.
Ac is well worth it. Separate the networks and you will be fine.
I also did my first sync over wifi and it moved 40 gb of music to my phone in about 30-40 minutes. This would have taken years over the 2.4.
Ac is well worth it. Separate the networks and you will be fine.
my AC66R allows for separate SSID for each band. 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz. The 5 gets better speeds, but isn't as solid of a connection around the entire house as the 2.4 seems to be.
That said, when I'm using the 5GHz network on my MBA or my iPhone 6 plus, it's obviously able to handle much more data.
That said, when I'm using the 5GHz network on my MBA or my iPhone 6 plus, it's obviously able to handle much more data.
I can't believe that they are giving out that router. I paid $230 for mine. It is a unbelievable router, and anyone with T-Mobile should jump on it.
Even the 80211.n performance is exceptional.
Even the 80211.n performance is exceptional.
That appeared to be in terms of Ethernet performance, not WiFi peformance. Quite frankly, that is more important to me.
Wireless-AC is tricky because the distance is very limited to get AC throughput. When I built out my home network I used Ubiquiti UniFi UAP-ACs. They were touch and go a year ago, but now super stable. I also have one on each floor (3) of the town home mounted in a staggered pattern and set to the lowest power rating on 2G and 5G. This helps devices roam between APs and lets static devices like AppleTVs get on the nearest and fastest AP. So far, the iPhone 6 Pluses in our house do just fine. Actually better at connecting than the 13" Retina MacBook Pro original did. My iOS 8 problems on Retina iPad Minis were solved by resetting network settings and turning off WiFi under Settings > Privacy > Location Service > System Services. FWIW, I'm on 8.0.2 on all devices.
I switched to Verizon Fios recently and the modem is a built in router and the range is absolute BALLs on it.
Can't even get signal in my basement when my old linksys router worked well.
Looks like I am in the market for a new router, and this topic talked about the Airport.
Are they actually good , or is it better to just get those $50ish routers?
Can't even get signal in my basement when my old linksys router worked well.
Looks like I am in the market for a new router, and this topic talked about the Airport.
Are they actually good , or is it better to just get those $50ish routers?
Love the AC connection! This is with Comcast (South NJ) and my R7000 Netgear router:
http://www.speedtest.net/my-result/i/975543725
I am two floors and 90 or so feet away from my router. Excellent signal distance (I get ~40mbs over 350' away by my shed outside).
http://www.speedtest.net/my-result/i/975543725
I am two floors and 90 or so feet away from my router. Excellent signal distance (I get ~40mbs over 350' away by my shed outside).
I wish!!.... My 5ghz band is significantly deteriorated just one room away--maybe a 25-30 ft distance