Asus RT-AC68U Dual-band Wireless-AC1900 Gigabit Router

Wow. This is one super-fast router. Using the AC band with my Nexus 5 shows just how fast AC speeds are. I am able to play Hi-profile HD movies several feet away from the router without the slightest lag. I earlier owned the RT-N56U, and this one beats it all hands down. It has a dual core processor, and the results really show. I have a 2TB HDD connected to it on the USB3 port and have been using this as my media server. At any given time their are at least 5 clients connected to it, and it handles every one of them like a champ. Pros: - 802.11AC is here to stay. If you want the latest and the greatest (at least what's available in India) look no further. - Dual band. You can setup networks simultaneously on the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands. - Guest network facility. - USB 3.0. It actually works, I get sustained speeds of ~40MBps for read and write. - Dual core processor means the router excels at all the extra non-router features like DLNA, SAMBA, FTP servers. - Intuitive admin interface. - Stealth mode, can switch OFF those pesky LEDs. - Excellent range. I get good signal in every corner of my house. Cons: - Can get a little hot at times. - No wall mount option. Is on the bulkier side, takes up desk space. - Price.

I switched from a 3-4 year old Netgear router to this. I bought it after reading some great reviews and recommendations from friends. It's an expensive buy so I wanted to be careful. I was buying this for the next 3-4 years, so it *had* to be worth the Rs 18725 investment. It isn't. DO NOT BUY THIS. I tried returning it, but Flipkart isn't willing to take it back. The biggest problem is the reliability of the networks that this router sets up. Speeds keep dropping while I'm browsing, and this is across my Macbook Air and my Xiaomi Mi2 android handset. Chrome, for the most bit, is stuck on "Connecting...". On the phone, most apps don't get much speed. My phone displays connectivity as per kbps, and it's gone to 0.2-20kbps with this router, from ~200 kbps with my old netgear one. I'm on an MTNL 2mbps connection. Every few minutes, and I'm forced to switch from the 2.4 GHz network to 5GHz, else switch off wireless and connect again. Once that also fails, I'm forced to switch back to 2.4 GHz, which means that the connection has be refreshed every few minutes. The router has an in-built firewall, and this problem persists even if I disable the firewall. Since my phone doesn't connect to 5GHz, I'm forced to use mobile data instead of WiFi. Most devices I own do not work on 5 GHz, so you should be careful before you buy. I was running two regular and 2 guest networks, one each on 2.4GHz and 5GHz. and not all my devices can work on the 5GHz frequency. I removed the guest networks, hoping that might free up some frequencies, but that hasn't helped. Most websites still time out. The only thing that has improved is the reach, but that is useless if the router does not work properly. Therefore: DO NOT BUY THIS ROUTER. I'm switching back to my old router, and am going to check with Asus about what they can do. Another thing you should be aware of: the router software can be a little tricky, and the USB based NAS setup can be confusing to set up. Asus' guides, whether online or the printed booklet, do not cover all the aspects of setting this up. Some settings, especially for DLNA and NAS, were not even mentioned online, and it was difficult for me to figure things out. I'm very disappointed because I thought this router would be an upgrade, and was hopeful of a superior wireless experience. The exact opposite has happened, and now I'm left with a piece of expensive junk. Ps: This review was written by Nikhil Pahwa. Was purchased by Rakesh Bhatt on my behalf.

Bought this for its advanced features - 3G backup , storage, printer , dual band and large area coverage. Connected it to a Cisco Linksys ADSL modem connected to an MTNL 8Mbps ADSL WAN and a 3G Airtel Dongle as back up . The user interface to configure the router is a delight : intuitive and does exactly what you think it should do. Detected the WAN and connected without a hitch. Dual band 5Mhz and 2.4 Mhz networks work without any problems. MAC address filtering /QOS - yet to configure Backup 3G - have not tried it in a real ADSL failure situation but simulated by disconnecting phoneline. Connected a Samsung SCX - 4300 printer and chose LPR for clients to connect . Could print from Mac s and Windows without a problem. Everything worked first time with no hiccups. I am yet to connect a storage drive for sharing . Increased the tx power from 80 mW to 150 to improve coverage across rooms. Overall the router exceeded my expectations on features, ease of use and user interface. Pricey though but if you rely on the Internet heavily for work and pleasure , worth the price. I have not really compared other equivalent models but I have no reason to regret purchasing this. Flipkart delivered this outstandingly quickly - had this the next day after order. ------------------------- This is an update . The dual WAN backup is not working ( atleast I am not able to get it to switch over to 3G reliably. I have written to ASUS tech support. Will post any updates on this issue. However be aware this feature is not reliable atleast in my case. The storage - I am deferring because I found a security warning about a vulnerability in older firmware when you connect storage . I did not want to risk it. So at this point I am downgrading my rating to 4