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Looking for wifi router below 100€ to put behind shitty ISP modem
So, for the flat I'm moving in, we will likely opt for a 250 Mbit/s DSL line which comes with a shitty modem (Fritzbox 7510; 1 Gbit port, no 5GHz wifi..).
Instead of renting a better model from the ISP, I'd rather grab some WiFi router below 100€ to put behind the modem and just own the thing. I've used an Asus RT AC58U in the past (Dualband WiFi, MuMimo, multiple Gbit ports, VPN..) and am looking for something similar again. Wireguard/VPN support would also be nice but is not mandatory.
Any recommendations?
Has anyone had experience with those Tenda wifi routers?
Comments
check TP-Link Archer C64 AC1200 if you want cheap router
That's certainly something along the lines I was looking for. Will keep in mind, thanks!
I gave up looking for a new wireless router because I couldn't find any reasonably-prices Wifi6 ones that could support OpenWRT.
Even though I'd heard terrible things about my new ISP's router [1], it seems to be behaving itself using the Wifi in pseudo-bridge mode behind my own router. (The router's default route is still the disconnected WAN port and I've just disabled DNS so that wifi connected devices can be served from my new router instead)
[1] https://www.theregister.com/2020/02/19/vodafone_transparency/
I keep a supply of Huawei AX3 routers around, they cost like ~£30 and are probably the best performing router-AP combos I've come across for the money. Replaced a few friends ISP-provided boxes with them, no complaints at all.
They don't have a super advanced featureset though - if you're already familiar with the ASUS ecosystem, the ASUS RT-AX53U is probably a good choice.
Oh, and I still have a WRT54G on my network because anything newer causes terrible VoIP quality on my phone. But it'll only do about 12Mbits/s so I have to keep swapping for normal use. But never figured out why VoIP works so much better over a worse connection, but my current guess is it's just everyone has moved to 5GHz now so 2.4GHz is less busy.
If you only have one WAN, I don't hate the TP-Link AC4000 I replaced my trusty Linksys WRT54G2 with when I upgraded to a faster connection. It's behind another router that actually connects to my two WANs & routes non-WiFi traffic, so I just use it for the WiFi. I have total shit cell service in my apartment, so all my phone calls are over its WiFi and it works great.
A few years ago I bought a 100 Mbps one. Good web UI, but disappointed because the CPU in it only achieved 70 Mbps despite having a 100 Mbps port.
VPN-support-wise GL.Inet is probably one of the best in my mind based on OpenWrt and with Wireguard support, but it doesn't have the best bang-for-buck ratio and not so well-known compared to a brand like Asus. I got their cheapest router and liked the software
I have actually used a Glinet Ar150 in the past (died after 2-3 years, though). Cool stuff and definitely awesome when it comes to VPN.
GL.iNet AX1800?
Where do you live? Around here, there is so much used equipment at a reasonable price. There was even a pop-up store in our area selling nothing but used home networking equipment. Among other junk, they had a lot of used ISP-furnished networking equipment that people had replaced with this year's model.
I helped my niece setup her internet that way, saving her a lot of money. It was triggered when the ISP got greedy and upped the modem/router/WiFi box rental from $5 a month to $12. She bought hardware at that pop-up store. I helped her set it up, and she turned in the rented box and stopped paying the rental fee. The ISP probably took the hardware she returned and sold it at pennies on the dollar to that pop-up store. :-)
Do you have local Craigslist, Offer-Up, Facebook market, etc.? eBay?
I'm from Germany, however, I am not sure how trustworthy used routers/equipment would be.
If anything, I'd probably get smth like Amazon refurbished or from another trusted merchant, rather than grabbing smth off ebay.
Are you sure it's a Fritz 7510? Looks like that model is pretty competent.
Tenda is a no-go. I work in cable company and all our customers who have tenda wifi have lot of problems with them. If you want to go that road at least u can check Mercusys, which i believe are sister company with TP-Link, they are better then Tenda in any way and on par with them with price.
Also Huawei and Xiaomi works very good.
If you want tp-link these 2 should be below 100 euros
TP-Link Archer AX10 AX1500 Wi-Fi 6 Router
TP-Link Archer AX55 AX3000 Wi-Fi 6 Router
I really like my Linksys WRT1900ACS-v2. Can find one on eBay for that price and toss OpenWRT on it.
Unfortunately, it only says "AVM Modem". The Fritz 7510 is smth a community member on another forum suggested (because they may have used that service in the past).
I'm about to get a Belkin RT3200, has OpenWRT support and Wifi 6 ( @ralf )
I personally run pfsense on a mini pc, but that's above your budget and no WiFi (Unifi for that) and a switch for LAN ports.
I strongly agree with @emperor . I had tenda. and its terrible.. It not worth it. Luckily I sold it and buy 2nd hand Asus RT-AC86U.
I use this one
https://www.tp-link.com/us/deco-mesh-wifi/product-family/deco-m5/
May i suggest an AC LITE flashed with OpenWrt? This will give you a solid range/signal. (ideally ceiling mounted). -However i would use this as a dumb AP and use the rest of the functions from your fritzbox. (because this option lacks the multiple gigabit ports requirements and has no vpn functions by default (altho you can add those)).
German price search engine: https://www.idealo.de/preisvergleich/OffersOfProduct/5009457_-unifi-ap-ac-lite-ubiquiti.html
Openwrt site: https://openwrt.org/toh/hwdata/ubiquiti/ubiquiti_unifi_apac_lite
If you are on linux/a mac (with brew): https://raw.githubusercontent.com/damadmai/unifi_openwrt/main/flash_openwrt.sh
I suggest mikrotik hAP ac³, you can also install openwrt, also router os on this model have support for zerotier.
You don't have to rent this modem with the Drillisch plans. Just skip the hardware and choose any modem/router with SVDSL modem for Annex-B.
Personally, I'm totally fine with AVM hardware and have used 7530 and 7590 in the past. So far as I know, if you receive the 7520, a cross-flash to 7530 is possible.
There are also rumors that the 7.50 firmware will include wireguard.
You could also go the way with a separate modem like Allnet or Draytek Vigor.
this is toy for big boys. I have neighbor who purchased this device, he was so glad to have it, he describe hAPac3 like device of his dream, and said so many kind and good words how good specifications are, and so on and so on and so on, until one day I visit him, and his wifi failed to work for my smartphone, than i realize that this does not shoot through 1 wall on 2.4Ghz wifi network. I was like "uhm, okay".
Yeah, I knew I could buy my own but, like I said, trying to minimize upfront cost atm (7530 is for 154€ on Amazon, so would need to extend the budget). But yeah, technically with Routerfreiheit I could just opt to pick none and buy a better DSL modem alltogether. Thanks for pointing that out, however, we probably won't do this now due to budgeting reasons. After the 2 year initial phase, if it's still a viable option then, we can cancel the Drillisch modem and replace it.
I have hAPac3 and I'm quite happy with it. Sure its wifi is far from being the best (mikrotik is really lagging behind there) , but I get a decent coverage everywhere in my apartment even through 2 really thick concrete walls, had to use extenders before.
But I don't use wifi that much, except on my phone and I'm happy as long as it doesn't drop the connection. Everything else is wired and it's a pretty good wired router. And for me RouterOS is a big plus
Speaking for myself, most of our family network hardware was acquired used, resulting in considerable savings. Honestly, we have had no serious issues.
If you want specifics, two cable modems and one access point failed over a very long period. That's all. That failure rate would be reasonable to expect if I had bought them new. Everything else was working when replaced, due to obsolescence (and I use them for a long time). From my experience, if the networking hardware works for a few hours after you plug it in, it will keep working for a long time.
Example:
Why buy a current model cable modem for $50 and up when I can get an ISP approved used cable modem for between $10 and $15. Cable and DC power in, Ethernet out. That's it. The capabilities of used modems far exceed the speed of my internet connection.
Like many, I upgrade over time, but I also repurpose equipment as I go. The Apple Time Capsule router/WiFi was converted to a WiFi access point bridge when it was replaced with a better firewall/router. I recently acquired some used business access points. The AirPorts with hard drives will have their WiFi turned off, but remain on the network for backups. The plain AirPorts will be sold, given to family, or donated. The new access points offer many great features, and they will allow us to isolate untrusted appliances, devices, and guests from the primary LAN.
I have a quality, business-class network that has evolved over time, done on the cheap. The choices were easy for me. Your situation may be different in Germany.
Thanks for sharing your experience, mate Interesting! Yeah, not sure why I am that hesitant to get used hw either. Maybe I'll consider this when we upgrade.
I've bought a TP-LINK XDR5430 router. It supports Wi-Fi 6, but I don't have a Wi-Fi 6 device except my server. On Wi-Fi 5 devices (my phone) its max speed is 90MB/s. It cost me ¥330 ($50).
One of its disadvantages is you can't get custom ROM for this router because it has no USB ports.
I'm using xiaomi r3p.. could not be happier..
Used FritzBox gear is often cheap to grab, especially on ebay kleinanzeigen (Germany).
Of course these boxes are more designed towards typical German end users and might not satisfy the needs of every LET nerd.