Which is best WiFi router among Linksys, D-Link and Netgear?

With the growth of technology over the years, networking devices have become more sophisticated and it has also become quite difficult to make the right choice of device for your home or office. There are a number of well-known networking device manufacturers who provide routers supported by latest technology, but how do we decide which one would be best suited for our connectivity needs. Here, we would try to compare some of the most popular routers of some of the top networking device manufacturers in the industry including Linksys, D-Link, and Netgear.

Netgear Nighthawk R7000:

Nighthawk is a specialized range of routers by Netgear, optimized for over-the-top performance for professionals and hi-end users. It is among the best in AC1900 category of routers, known for providing great performance and high data transfer rates. Netgear Nighthawk R700 boasts of a dual-core Broadcom B4709A SoC that runs at 1GHz and 256MB of RAM along with 128GB of flash memory. The chipset for both 2.4GHz and 5GHz radios is the Broadcom BCM4360.  

Advantages:

It has four Gigabit Ethernet LAN ports and a single Gigabit Ethernet WAN port along with a USB 2.0 port and USB 3.0 port to connect to printers or external storage devices for network sharing. It offers one of the best performance on the 5GHz band, and a host of extra features to make it one of the top choices for home and office networking requirements. Given its range of features, it is also relatively affordable for those with a bigger budget.

Disadvantages:

This router offers great performance but it’s quite bulky as compared to most other routers in the category, attracting some unwanted attention. Add to that, its performance on 2.4 GHz is quite good but not nearly as competitive as what other routers have to offer. It also does not allow access to parental control feature through its web interface, an essential for parents who would want to stay in control of their kids’ online activities. User-friendly Netgear Genie mobile app doesn’t work on the internet as well.

D-Link DIR-880L:

It is another powerful networking device, counted among the best in the category of AC1900 routers. It is powered by dual-core Broadcom BCM4708A SoC running at 800MHz, and has 256MB of RAM and 128MB of flash. The design is not much of a value-addition though and is more or less conventional. It has a standard single Gigabit Ethernet WAN port and four Gigabit Ethernet LAN ports located on the back of the router. It has a USB 2.0 port on the back and USB 3.0 port on the side to the left.

Advantages:

It can be managed quite easily through the cloud and can be an ideal choice for consumers looking to acquire D-Link powered connected-home portfolio. It can share up to two USB devices over the network. Intuitive setup and stylish user interface are some of the other advantages, apart from the fact that it offers real value-for-money to users.

Disadvantages:

This piece of technology offers the maximum data transfer rate of 1.3 Gbps on the 5Ghz band and 600 Mbps on the 2.4 Ghz band which is benchmark wireless performance in this category but fails to provide nearly as competitive performance for 802.11ac networking as some of the slightly expensive counterparts do. Apart from that, its SharePort hobbles USB data storage sharing which is less than desirable. There are no indicators for the LAN ports. There are no LED indicators for Ethernet Ports as well, which can cause some issue with users. On the right is an unmarked button for WPS setup.

Linksys WRT1900ACS Router:

It is rated among the best in AC1900 routers in the market and offers solid performance in the category of dual-band Wi-Fi routers used by professionals. Linksys comes with powerful monitoring software and boasts of an advanced 1.6 GHz dual-core CPU along with impressive 512 MB RAM. It offers wireless speeds of up to 1900 Mbps and a sleek design to make it a perfect addition to your space.

Advantages:

It comes with USB and eSATA ports, can be setup very quickly and smoothly, and is supported by powerful monitoring and management apps. It can handle four independent lanes of data traffic and can perform at 600 Mbps speeds in 2.4 Ghz mode and 1300 Mbps speeds in 5Ghz mode with a total peak performance of 1.9Gbps.

Disadvantages:

It is bigger than most other routers in the category and lacks MU-MIMO capabilities which would allow for better traffic management.