TP-Link AX3000 Smart WiFi 6 Router (Archer AX50) – 802.11ax, Gigabit Router, Dual Band, OFDMA, MU-MIMO, Parental Controls, Built-in HomeCare,Works with Alexa

TP-Link WiFi 6 AX3000 Smart WiFi Router (Archer AX50). I have mixed opinions on this router. After a reasonable amount of time reading reviews from different sources, I purchased and installed it. Slow and or dropped connections and video freezes started appearing shortly after installation. I reset it to factory defaults and started again. I had trouble getting my devices to connect. I had to leave it be for a few weeks due to travel. Upon confronting it again a few weeks later, I decided to return it. Luckily Amazon’s return policy came through and I exchanged it for another in kind. This one set up quickly and after 3 days has been performing almost flawlessly. Solid and fast connections are the norm. The one thing that I cannot get to work is the Time Machine backup function. The current Apple file system APFS is not supported. TP-Link’s email support was very timely and after a few emails it was suggested that I format the USB drive with an older format. I did that. My laptops can now find the attached disk, but the backups fail.TM Backup was one of the reasons that I selected this router. My old Apple Airport router executed them flawlessly. I am no longer able to run Time Machine automatically; it must be done manually. Hopefully this will be corrected in a firmware update.The fact that I had a malfunctioning device to start, while irritating, was not a showstopper. A career in IT has taught me that all devices fail, some out of the box, some later down the road. Amazon saved me there. Responsive email support was a plus. However, a feature that does not work (Time Machine) makes it hard to recommend completely..

UPDATE 11/16/21:I purchased another AX3000 - the updated Archer AX55 model. My plan was to use the original - reviewed below - as an access point downstairs to improve coverage. I have not set this up yet. The newer model AX55 is an improvement over the AX50. It doesn't run hot. It seems like the range is better. I have it in my upstairs home office on one side of my 2500 sq ft house and get an OK signal downstairs in my family room. Set up is the same as the AX50. I use an external drive connected to the USB3 port on the back. Seems to work better than AX50. I haven't measured the speed but I put movies on the drive and can stream them without problems on my big screen downstairs in my family room. I am using hard-wired ethernet to my TV.All in all, the newer AX3000 AX55 model is an improvement on the AX3000 AX50 model. Good mid-range router. Does a pretty good job in my 2500 sq ft 2-story home. For most, this is all the router power you will need. Gamers may want to spend more for a gaming router.ORIGINAL AX50 ReviewThe jury is still out. Replaced my Spectrum router hoping for better coverage in my 2500 sq ft 2-story home. The router is in my home office, 2nd floor at one end of the house. I have the 200 Mbps Spectrum plan.Pros:Easy setupImproved coverage over SpectrumLifetime security softwareApp and Online setup options are pretty goodSo far, no dropped signal or rebootsCons:Runs hotAntennas not removableWas hoping for stronger signal downstairsI also purchased Costco's Netgear Nighthawk RAX45 AX4300. Seemed to have slightly better coverage. Didn't run hot. Removable antenna.PROS:Runs coolRemovable AntennaPretty good coverageApp & Online setup good featuresCONS:Security app (Netgear Armor) $70/yr - $45 first yearCoverage is good but not Wow! Just slightly better than TPLinkI changed a setting and the router wouldn't reboot. Tried factory reset, no luck.I'm returning the Nighthawk to Costco. Not worth fooling with a replacement. TPLink AX50 is good enough, cost $125 vs $145 (on sale). Lifetime security software vs. $70/yr Netgear. Whole-house coverage is good enough for my needs. I have my TV, Receiver, Security cameras all hardwired. I ran an Ethernet cable from upstairs, outside wall to downstairs, drilled a hole in the Familyroom wall, pushed ethernet cable through the wall, and connected it to a 7 port ethernet port. Then connected as many things as possible with Ethernet - not having to rely on wireless. My phone gets plenty of signal and bandwidth throughout the house.Bottom Line: TPLink AX50 is a good router for the money. Will handle the majority of your needs in a 2500 sq. ft. home. Runs hot, so make sure good ventilation (prop up for more space underneath). Good value for most people. Not the best out there but for this price, probably the best.

Before I get into my review I want to say that I know a lot about internet and wifi equipment.I have 8 devices connected to my network. Now I will start my review. I purchased a wifi 6 router that the company rockspace made. Now I did like their wifi 5 home mesh system. I still have that product sitting in my closet. However I was disappointed in their wifi 6 router. Here is a link to the review I wrote on it.  https://www.amazon.com/review/R17KHWR84OT3X8/ref=cm_cr_srp_d_rdp_perm?ie=UTF8Well I decided to do some research on other wifi 6 routers. I read a lot of good things about this tp-link wifi 6 router. I liked the specs it provided so I decided to give it a try. This is my first tp-link router. I received it in the mail unhooked the other router hooked this one up and started setting it up. I must say the setup process is simple. You can either do it from a browser on a pc or you can download their app and do it from there. They give you two options to set up the wifi networks. You can either have it set to one single ssid (this will combine 2.4ghz and 5ghz into a single wifi connection.)and it will connect your devices to which network is best for the device or you can have it the traditional way and sperate the 2.4ghz and 5ghz wifi. After I set up my wifi network I went in and changed the channels from auto to what worked best in my environment. I do recommend changing the channels from auto to what gives you the less interference from neighboring wifi channels as that will give you the best performance over your wifi. After I got all my settings where I want them it was time to run a speed test on my desktop pc. It is connected to the router by a cat 5e ethernet cable. The modem is connected to the router by a cat 6e ethernet cable. I pay for 400mbps and 20mbps upload(spectrum internet) I ran my speed test a couple of times to make sure the results were consistent. My speed results were 521.92mbps download and 28.15mbps upload. Those are great speeds and way way above what I pay for. I do a lot of gaming and this router did excellent. It lowered my ping in games and gaming overall felt a lot smoother. It provides great performance over ethernet.5ghz review starts here.To test my 5ghz network I will be using my iphone 12(WiFi 6 compatible device). I started out by testing the speeds right next to the router. The results were 482.8mbps download and 32.6mbps upload. My next test would be in my kitchen which is right outside of my room. I started the speed test. The results were 477mbps down and 23.2mbps upload. The next test would be in the laundry room which is threw my kitchen but you can see my room and the router perfectly from there. My speed test results were 417.3mbps down and 23.1mbps upload. So far the 5ghz network provides excellent speeds over distance.(Old wifi routers I had would drop a bar of signal or two at those spots and would struggle to give me a good speed over 5ghz) My next testing spot would be in my garage which isn't far from my house at all. The results were 285mbps down and 24.8mbps upload.(old wifi routers I had would only give me 1-2 bars of signal in the garage and speeds were horrible) My next testing spot would be in the front of my house. Now their is two walls in between the front of my house and the router. The speed test results were 276.5mbps down and 22.7mbps upload. At all of these  spots I tested the 5ghz wifi at I had full bars of signal and not once did they drop to 1 or 2 bars of signal. Overall the 5ghz band delivers excellent speeds and gives great coverage.2.4ghz review starts here.To test the 2.4ghz network I will be using my google pixel 4a 5g(Non wifi 6 compatible). Since I will be using the same spots to test in I'm gonna put it into a list view.1. Next to the router- 132mbps down and 23mbps upload2. Kitchen- 124mbps down and 21.8mbps upload3. Laundry room- 127mbps down and 23.1mbps upload4. Garage- 81.7mbbps down 21.8mbps upload5. Front of my house- 77.8mbps down and 18.8mbps uploadWhile I was connected to the 2.4ghz in all these spots I did not lose any bars of signal at all. The speeds were great for being on the 2.4ghz connection. 2.4ghz connection is known to have the best range and not that great of speeds but with this router speeds are excellent for this connection.My thoughts.After all my testing was done I was very happy with this router. This router has out performed all my old routers I have ever used. However it does get a little hotter then I would like but it doesn't get hot enough to worry about it causing a fire etc. I recommend putting some space between the back of it and where it's going to be placed so it can have some more airflow. I like how they have a app for the router also. It makes it easier to see what devices are on the network instead of always needing to log in on a computer to check everything. I personally don't have anything bad to say about the router except for the heat issue other then that I defiantly recommend this router.