TP-Link Archer AX6000: An All Rounder Wi-Fi

A couple of posts earlier we presented the Netgear AC1750 R6400 Wi-Fi router which supports data transfer rates up to 1750Mbps and packs in plenty of other extra features for connectivity and security. In today’s post we will introduce the TP-Link Archer AX6000 which has way better specs and a higher calibration. It is one of the best Wi-Fi 6 routers that packs in a lot of features to support a larger network. You can also call it a budget Wi-Fi 6 router given all of it’s features. Let’s get to know the features first and then proceed with the review. But for those of you who want a summary; The TP-Link Archer Ax6000 has a better throughput performance, and 8 whooping ethernet ports and it is easy to install and setup. However it is a bit expensive and has limited mobile app control.

TP-Link Archer AX6000 Specs

Listed above are some of the most essential specs of determining a Wi-Fi router’s performance. There is much more to know in terms of the technology used, security measures, WAN Types, Cloud Service and so many other criteria. First let us begin with the build quality.

Build Quality and Design

It is larger in size perhaps because of so many ports and the 8 antennas that makes the router resemble an upside down spider. These antennas can’t be replaced if broken. There are buttons for Wi-Fi On/Off, Power On/Off, LED On/Off, WPS and Reset. As we mentioned in the specs, there is one USB-Type C and USB-Type A port to connect to devices like a printer or an HDD. Another outstanding feature of the AX6000 is that it never overheats even during heavy usage and maximum utilization. This is due to the presence of vents at the top and bottom for optimum air flow. Wall mounting is easy with the rubber feet underneath.

But of course the aspect that makes the TP-Link Archer Ax6000 stand out is the presence of 8 gigabit LAN ports. Plus the 2.5 gigabit WAN port. Although experts say that sometimes the cables are hard to remove because of the tight fit on the top row of ports. In terms of coverage, the 8 antennas form a signal-boosting array to cover more area and the beamforming technology utilizes the 160MHz bandwidth channels to ensure optimum data rates from multiple devices. The Wi-Fi is dual band as shown in the specs, which positions the AX6000 behind some tri-band routers, but I think you will find these bandwidths and coverage more than enough. The LED turns red during startup and turns blue at steady working state, orange when connected to the internet and red again when there is no internet. That’s about it for design, Now let’s see how glamourous the performance is.

TP-Link Archer AX6000 Performance

Before we get into the actual statistics of the performance, there are a few additional features to know about the AX6000. It utilizes 4×4 MU-MIMO, OFDM modulation and Airtime Fairness for network efficiency. In terms of network security, there are so many protocols installed such as malicious site checker, port intrusion prevention and infected device isolation. You can configure all of these settings with the App about which we will talk later. Cloud services include auto firmware upgrade, OTA firmware upgrade and DDNS. There are many more features with regards to DHCP, NAT forwarding and several other specifications but we will focus on the basic performance of the router. First of all you can use the web page or the app to configure the router. Start with the administrator password, the time zone, connection type and finalize the credentials for both the 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequency bands.

According to the experts at pcmag and tomsguide, The throughput for the 5GHz was satisfactory at 880+Mbps when the distance between the device and the router is set to 15 feet and 390+Mbps at a 30 feet distance. The throughput drops to a very minor reading as the distance expands up to 90 feet. As for the 2.4GHz frequency band the throughput clocks at 120+Mpbs at less than 30 feet. It drops down to almost 55Mbps at 30 feet. The USB 3.0 port has read and write speeds of 70+Mbps. You can expect unhindered multifunctionality with the AX6000. Multiple devices can be connected to the web and utilize the bandwidths well for streaming, web surfing, emailing, even gaming without interruption.

Setup

After you have completed the initial admin configurations and other basic settings, you can begin to mess around with the features. You can configure USB sharing settings, create a guest network(for both bands), use parental controls to set up the filters for different content, QoS settings for gaming, surfing etc. Also there is the VPN server, the cloud services such as the firmware upgrades. Additionally, you can shift between router and access point mode, configure channel width settings, enable/disable OFDMA, enable band-steering and work with the Smart Life Assistant.

However there are some more advanced configurations that can only be done through the browser and not the app. This is the best way to optimize the router performance. It has a page that shows the status of memory and processor usage and help for troubleshooting. The system tools allow you to control the LED light, schedule reboots. Also the Traffic Monitor tools allows you to analyze all the incoming and outgoing data transfers and zoom in on a specific system.

TP-Link Archer AX6000 Review

The Archer AX6000 has a 2-year warranty and support policy, so if anything goes wrong you are on the safe side. But seriously this is a well optimized, powerhouse of a Wi-Fi router. Eight ports and 8 antennas with 802.11ax technology plus the numerous features for network security, customizing, connectivity optimization and an intriguing design. However you have to remember that it is best used with Wi-Fi 6 supporting clients to obtain the maximum benefits. The web version is better if you want to really tweak the settings and enable different safety configs. With all this said, the tp-link archer ax6000 price presently is $265.98. So if you are interested in a valuable Wi-Fi 6 router, you can consider the archer AX6000 as a good candidate.

TP-Link Archer AX6000 vs Asus RT-AX88U

A very much anticipated comparison among Wi-Fi 6 routers. Before we get into the comparison, let’s take a quick look at the major specs of the Asus RT-AX88U;

• IEEE 802.11a,b,g
• Wi-Fi 4,5,6
• 802.11ax (2.4GHz) : up to 1148 Mbps
• 802.11ax (5GHz) : up to 4804 Mbps
• 4 antennas
• 1.8 GHz quad-core processor
• 256 MB Flash, 1 GB RAM
• RJ45 for Gigabits BaseT for WAN x 1,
• RJ45 for Gigabits BaseT for LAN x 8,
• USB 3.1 Gen 1 x 2
• Mesh technology

There are many more features for network security and other technologies, but I’m pretty sure that the major differences between the two are well highlighted from the above specs. Although the speeds listed on paper are identical, there are differences in real time testing. For example, in the 2.4GHz throughput tests the AX88U was faster by several Mbps in close proximity and 30 feet. In fact it is 20Mbps faster than the AX6000 in close range. And it was the same with the 5GHz band. However the way I see it, the most prominent feature of the Asus Wi-Fi is the mesh support to enhance greater coverage in an environment.

It also has Inter-VLAN routing, DNS caching for being query convenient, PPTP server for secure connections to a LAN network and outdoor capability. Not to mention that it is smaller than the AX6000 as well. In all other aspects apart from those mentioned above and the antennas, both the Wi-Fi routers are of the same calibration. They both have the same network protocols and security settings and almost identical performances. But all of the extra features of the AX88U comes at a higher price, which is almost $300.

TP-Link Archer AX6000 vs Netgear Nighthawk AX8

Another Wi-Fi 6 router comparison that tech savvy folks venture about. Again let’s take a look at the specs before proceeding for the comparisons and the contrasts;

• 802.11ax Dual Band WiFi (AX6000)
• 2.4GHz AX: 4×4 (Tx/Rx) 1024 QAM 40MHz, up to 1.2Gbps
• 5GHz AX: 4×4 (Tx/Rx) 1024 QAM 160MHz, up to 4.8Gbps
• Backwards compatible with 802.11a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi
• 4 antennas
• Six (6) 10/100/1000 Mbps Gigabit Ethernet ports (1 WAN & 5 LAN)
• Dual Gigabit Ethernet Port Aggregation
• Two (2) USB 3.0 ports
• 64bit 1.8GHz quad-core processor

Although both the Wi-Fi routers appear identical at first impression on paper(except antennas and speeds), the clear winner in this rivalry is the TP-Link for many valid reasons. In tests for throughput speeds at 50 feet the TP-Link was faster than the Netgear. However at about 90 feet the Netgear still managed to pull off about 20Mbps in contrast to the TP-Link. And according to tomsguide, the Netgear had a better throughput when there was a wall in between. It was almost 30% better than the TP-Link.

Nonetheless, the price tag doesn’t justify these performances for it is a whooping $389 compared to $265 of the TP-Link. The TP-Link outranks Netgear in many aspects. It has MAC address filtering, 3 more ethernet ports, network services filter, port filtering and IPsec Passthrough. But Netgear has a PPTP server. Apart from these, the rest of the specs are the same for network security, modulation techniques and connectivity optimization.

Summary

That’s about it for the TP-Link Archer AX6000 Wi-Fi 6 router. It is a great all rounder Wi-Fi router with excellent features for fast uninterrupted network connectivity, better customization, valuable network security settings and plenty of ports for devices. It would have been perfect if they had integrated mesh technology support. And also there is a slight issue of user activity overlapping because you can login from the app and the web browser at the same time. Still, for a small scale environment I’d say that it would be a good functional fit.