This web page was created programmatically, to learn the article in its unique location you possibly can go to the hyperlink bellow:
https://www.tomshardware.com/networking/routers/asus-rog-strix-gs-be18000-wi-fi-7-gaming-router-review
and if you wish to take away this text from our website please contact us
Why you possibly can belief Tom’s Hardware
Our professional reviewers spend hours testing and evaluating services and products so you possibly can select the very best for you. Find out extra about how we check.
The final gamer-centric, tri-band Wi-Fi 7 router we examined from Asus was the RT-BE96U, an arachnid-esque router with sturdy 6 GHz efficiency and a wealth of configuration choices. We now have our palms on the ROG Strix GS-BE18000, one other tri-band Wi-Fi 7 router with a gaming focus, however with a much less animalistic look.
The router is stacked with options, providing seven 2.5 GbE LAN ports (plus one 2.5 GbE LAN port), a USB 3.0 port, configurable RGB lighting, and a comparatively compact type issue. Asus presents all of this in a router with a road value of round $450, however the lack of a ten GbE LAN port and efficiency that may’t fairly match its friends signifies that it isn’t ranked among the many finest Wi-Fi routers. The lack of a ten GbE LAN port and comparatively subpar 2.4 GHz efficiency.
Design of the Asus ROG Strix GS-BE18000
At first look, the ROG Strix GS-BE18000 doesn’t even look very like a router — the truth is, it seems extra like an Asus small type issue PC than a router. It has a tall, book-style design with no exterior antennas (the router’s eight antennas are all inside). The entrance face of the router has a big RGB-illuminated ROG brand and 4 standing LEDs within the lower-right nook (Wi-Fi, LAN, WAN, Power). You’ll additionally discover a beneficiant smattering of “Republic of Gamers” printed on the entrance of the router.
Where the actual motion occurs, nonetheless, is on the again of the router, which is loaded with ports. It’s not typically that we see eight Ethernet ports on the again of a gaming router, however that’s what you’ve got assembled right here. Asus gives one 2.5 GbE port for WAN, and 7 2.5 GbE LAN ports (two of that are designated as Gaming ports with automated community prioritization). There’s additionally a USB 3.0 port that can be utilized for exterior storage or connecting a smartphone or USB mobile modem for Wi-Fi hotspot connectivity. One factor that you simply gained’t discover is a ten GbE port, which is anticipated at this value level for a gaming router.
As for wi-fi connectivity, the ROG Strix GS-BE18000 is a tri-band Wi-Fi 7 router with 2.4 GHz (2×2), 5 GHz (4×4), and 6 GHz (4×4) bands. The 2×2 2.4 GHz radio is a downgrade from the 4×4 association on the RT-BE96U, leading to a theoretical most of 688 Mbps somewhat than 1,376 Mbps on the two.4 GHz band.
Asus ROG Strix GS-BE18000 Specifications
|
MSRP |
Wi-Fi Standard |
# of Bands |
2.4 GHz Speeds |
5 GHz Speeds |
6 GHz Speeds |
Coverage |
Ports |
|
|
$449.99 |
Wi-Fi 7 |
3 |
688 Mbps |
5,764 Mbps |
11,529 Mbps |
3,300 sq ft |
1 x 2.5G WAN, 7 x 2.5G LAN 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 |
|
|
$549.99 |
Wi-Fi 7 |
3 |
1,376 Mbps |
5,764 Mbps |
11,529 |
5,400 sq ft |
1x 10G WAN, 1 x 1G WAN, 3x 1G LAN, 1x 10G LAN, 1x USB 2.0, 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 |
|
|
$599.99 |
Wi-Fi 7 |
2 |
1,376 Mbps |
5,760 Mbps |
11,520 |
3,600 sq ft |
2x 10G WAN/LAN, 4x 2.5G LAN, 1x SFP+, 1x USB 3.0 |
Setting up the Asus ROG Strix GS-BE18000
The ROG Strix GS-BE18000 will be arrange by way of the normal internet interface in a desktop browser or Asus’ wonderful smartphone app. I opted for the latter, because it’s the quickest possibility. After plugging energy into the router and connecting a cable to the WAN port, I tapped “Add a Network” within the smartphone app, then scanned the QR code on the underside of the router.
After a few prompts from the setup program (naming SSIDs and setting passwords for every band, establishing an admin username and password, and so forth.), the set up course of was full. From begin to end, together with rebooting and community optimization, the method took about 5 minutes.
When the setup course of was full, I used to be given the choice to bind the router to my Asus account, which lets me handle it after I’m not on my dwelling community. In different phrases, so long as you’ve got a secure web connection, you should use the Asus Router app to entry and handle the ROG Strix GS-BE18000 from anyplace.
The ROG Strix GS-BE18000 additionally helps Automated Frequency Coordination (AFC), permitting for boosted energy ranges on the 6 GHz band. Instead of utilizing the default Low Power Indoor profile, in case your native area permits it, AFC can allow the Standard Power Profile, which will increase the vary of the 6 GHz band. I used to be ready to make use of the Asus Router app to confirm my location and allow AFC.
Asus ROG Strix GS-BE18000 Software
The ROG Strix GS-BE18000 makes use of the AsusWRT 5.0 platform with a gaming-oriented focus. While the interface might seem acquainted to individuals who have used earlier Asus routers, the model used on the ROG Strix GS-BE18000 makes heavy use of black and shades of pink. You’ll additionally discover the Republic of Gamers branding within the prime proper nook of each web page.
The first web page you will see when visiting the desktop Web GUI is the Dashboard, which gives at-a-glance data such because the variety of related shoppers, web connection standing, wi-fi band standing, community site visitors, ping instances, and fast controls for the RGB brand on the entrance of the router.
If you need to delve deeper into configuration settings, the left panel is the place you management each facet of the router. Since the ROG Strix GS-BE18000 is Asus AiMesh appropriate, you possibly can add appropriate wi-fi nodes from the AiMesh menu. At the identical time, AiProtection presents a complete suite of free security tools from Trend Micro. You’ll find features like malicious site blocking, intrusion prevention, and device isolation for infected network devices.
Image 1 of 5
There are comprehensive parental controls that can be implemented on a per-MAC basis, Game Boost (prioritized network traffic, mobile gaming acceleration, Open NAT for port forwarding), Adaptive QoS, Amazon Alexa integration, and much more. Asus even goes above and beyond with how it allows you to utilize the USB port.
Not only can you use it for network storage, but you can set up a network printer server by connecting your USB printer directly to the port, add internet connectivity to your network via a USB cellular modem or smartphone, and even create a Time Machine backup server for Macs.
Like most modern routers, the ROG Strix GS-BE18000 also features an integrated Speed Test utility. Using a MacBook Air connected via the 6 GHz band, I witnessed 1,600 Mbps down and 1,300 Mbps up from my 2 Gbps fiber connection.
Asus ROG Strix GS-BE18000 Performance
We tested the ROG Strix GS-BE18000 with our long-serving Wi-Fi client testing rig, which consists of an MSI Pro B650M-A Wi-Fi motherboard, an AMD Ryzen 5 7600 processor, 32GB of DDR5 memory, a 1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD, an MSI Herald-BE Wi-Fi 7 adapter, and Windows 11 Home. As always, our testing server was a Windows 11 Home machine with a 10 GbE network card connected to one of the 2.5 GbE ports on the ROG Strix GS-BE18000.
Our iPerf3 throughput tests are conducted at six-foot and 25-foot distances, with and without network traffic. In the congested traffic tests, we add six wireless clients streaming 4K YouTube videos across multiple wireless bands.
I’ll preface the performance results by mentioning that the ROG Strix GS-BE18000 was running the latest public firmware (we do not test beta firmware on routers). With that said, overall performance was good, albeit a step or two behind the pricier RT-BE96U in 6 GHz and 2.4 GHz performance.
Image 1 of 6
Testing iPerf3 on the 6 GHz band at short range (6 feet), the ROG Strix GS-BE18000 just barely squeaked past the 2 Gbps mark, although that was roughly a third less than the RT-BE96U (3,040 Mbps) and the TP-Link Archer GE800 (2,830). When moving out to our long-range test (25 feet), the ROG Strix GS-BE18000 lost about a quarter of its performance, falling to 1,467 Mbps compared to 1,980 Mbps for the RT-BE96U. The Archer GE800 barely gave up any ground at 25 feet, registering a still-impressive 2,730 Mbps.
The 5 GHz test was interesting, as we saw much higher performance with the ROG Strix GS-BE18000 than with the RT-BE96U. The former hit 1,273 Mbps at short range and 497 Mbps at long range. The latter was well off the pace at 720 Mbps and 565 Mbps, respectively. The Archer GE800, on the other hand, topped 1,800 Mbps at short range and nearly hit 1,400 Mbps at long range.
The ROG Strix GS-BE18000 vastly underperformed on the 2.4 GHz iPerf3 test, with 122 Mbps at short range and just 39 Mbps at long range. For comparison, the Archer GE800 managed 187 Mbps and 131 Mbps, respectively.
Our ROG Strix GS-BE18000 review unit showed minimal performance degradation with congested traffic. The gap between the ROG Strix GS-BE18000 and the more performance competition shrunk dramatically, with the router achieving 1,823 Mbps at short range and 1,400 Mbps at long range on the 6 GHz band. For comparison, the RT-BE96U put up numbers of 2,493 Mbps and 2,003 Mbps, respectively.
It again leapfrogged the RT-BE96U in the 5 GHz test, maintaining 1,200 Mbps at short range and 425 Mbps at long range. The RT-BE96U was well behind, at 388 Mbps and 208 Mbps, respectively. The overachieving Archer GE800 smoked both Asus routers, however, with 1,290 Mbps at short range and 1,005 Mbps at long range.
When switching to our final 2.4 GHz congest iPerf3 test, the ROG Strix GS-BE18000 continued to underperform with 96 Mbps at short range and 37 Mbps at long range.
When it comes to wireless testing, your mileage will definitely vary. The results I obtained in my home environment may not mirror those you see in your apartment, home, or office. Home construction, wall thickness, the choice of flooring materials, and even the number of walls between the router and clients can affect performance. However, the numbers presented should give you a ballpark estimate of how the ROG Strix GS-BE18000 should perform and are comparable to our previous tests, as our testing locations and methodology remain the same.
Bottom Line
On paper, the Asus ROG Strix GS-BE18000 looks great. It’s a tri-band router offering a combined 18 Gbps of throughput across its 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz bands. It features a compact design, RGB effects to appeal to gamers, gaming-centric hardware and software features, excellent configurability, and a whopping seven 2.5 Gbps ports. If you’re a specs chaser, it’s hard not to be impressed.
When it comes to performance, the ROG Strix GS-BE18000 generally fared well. While its 6 GHz performance couldn’t quite catch the RT-BE96U, it crushed it on the 5 GHz band. The only places where the ROG Strix GS-BE18000’s performance really fell flat compared to its peers were in long-range 2.4 GHz tests. This could be an issue if you have IoT devices, particularly exterior security cameras, that might be placed farther from your router.
But in the end, the TP-Link Archer GE800 outpaces the ROG Strix GS-BE18000 in performance across the board, and it also throws in a couple of 10 Gbps ports (which you won’t find on the ROG Strix GS-BE18000). Unless you need the additional 2.5 GbE ports that the Asus offers, the Archer GE800 is a more solid choice.
This page was created programmatically, to read the article in its original location you can go to the link bellow:
https://www.tomshardware.com/networking/routers/asus-rog-strix-gs-be18000-wi-fi-7-gaming-router-review
and if you wish to take away this text from our website please contact us
