This was posted 4 years 4 months 2 days ago, and might be an out-dated deal.

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ASUS RT-AC86U, AC2900 Dual Band Router with MU-MIMO $287 Delivered @ Amazon AU

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ASUS RT-AC86U, AC2900 Dual Band Router with MU-MIMO $287 Delivered @ Amazon AUAffiliate
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paul11 on 24/08/2020 - 23:55 amazon.com.au (1887 clicks)
Last edited 26/08/2020 - 15:32 by 1 other user
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I am back looking for a powerful (single unit) router after experimenting with mesh routers and came across these routers at Amazon.

Asus AC2900 Dual Band Gigabit WiFi Gaming Router

This router is back on sale at Amazon at even lower price. It was quite popular on Ozbargain last time it was on sale.

Next best price is $335 at Centrecom

D-Link DIR‑1960, EXO AC1900 Smart Mesh Wi‑Fi Router

Amazon has another router D-Link AC1900 on sale for $142 (free shipping with prime) with decent specs. Next best price for this router is
- $199 at Centrecom.
- GoodGuys selling it for $279.

Review here

Price History at C CamelCamelCamel.
Computing ASUS Wireless Router

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closed Comments

  • pkh on 25/08/2020 - 00:21
    +2

    Hi guys, I currently have the RT-AC68U, what would the advantages be of upgrading to the RT-AC86U? This looks like a great deal, a fathers day present to myself ;)

    • pkh on 25/08/2020 - 00:38
      +3

      I waited too long, sold out :(

    • davidoh on 25/08/2020 - 00:44
      +1

      I wouldn't recommend upgrading to the AC86U from personal experience. Had issues with no 2.4GHz or it dropping out, now issues with the WAN port not working, and this is the replacement unit for my original AC86U that died randomly within a couple of months of owning it.

      Only recently found out the 2.4GHz band issue is pretty common issue with this router. May not be important for some but many IoT things only work on that band.

      For similar money I've heard good things regarding the TP-Link Archer AC4000/C4000 on AmazonAU for $272.86:
      shorturl.at/dgtw6

      If you wanted the AC86U, you should notice better range, and with MIMO-MU, if you have a lot of devices (10+) you should notice less of a performance hit.

      edit: saw you said sold out - check out the TP-Link one I mentioned

      • Springfield on 25/08/2020 - 07:23
        +2

        I have had the opposite experience, the RT-AC86U is the best router I have ever owned.
        Using Merlin firmware that gets regularly updated.
        I have read some forums where if you have trouble with 2.4GHz it is because of heat, you could try something like this
        https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/1Set-Cooling-Fan-USB-Fan-Cooler-…

        • jackwilk on 25/08/2020 - 08:22
          +1

          How is Merlin on this router - stable, any dropouts etc? Have you tried OpenVPN?
          Thinking of moving from 68U but it's still running solid.

          • Springfield on 25/08/2020 - 08:45
            +3

            @jackwilk: Merlin is rock solid with no dropouts and can access more settings than the stock Asus firmware. Have not tried OpenVPN yet.
            Personally, if I had the AC68U probably would not upgrade, I went from a ZTE H268A, so the bar was set very low to begin with.

        • K1D A on 25/08/2020 - 12:18

          Same, had RT-AC68U for few years, its good/stable but lacking in range,

          finally decide to bite the bullet and pay $300 (with $50 cashback) for RT-AC86U from hardly normal, and its a noticeable improvement in range and with multiple (sometimes up to 10) devices connected at the same time and haven't encounter any significant issue with it, so my personal overall experience with it has been great.

          but I guess it depend on your requirement, but I recon in a long term, a good router is worth the investment in this day of age, especially if you paying for something like a fibre 100+ down connection.

          $287, if its AU stock is a good price for it.

          • neonlight on 25/08/2020 - 13:13

            @K1D A: I got merlin rt-ac68u running. If I buy this and put merlin firmware on it can I still use AI mesh setup for both units?

        • neonlight on 27/08/2020 - 10:42

          Ah do you have to get these fans else the device overheat?

    • tightasian on 25/08/2020 - 07:39
      +2

      Use both for Aimesh

  • fredblogs on 25/08/2020 - 00:25

    How did you go with mesh routers?

    • paul11 on 25/08/2020 - 00:27

      Didn't had a good experience. As long as I was connected to the primary node, speed was good (almost 80Mbps). On secondary nodes, speeds decreased by almost 50% (around 40Mbps). Hated that. Tried repositioning the secondary node/router, but no improvement.

      • scuderiarmani on 25/08/2020 - 08:43
        +1

        Which models?

        • paul11 on 26/08/2020 - 18:08

          Tenda MW6 Mesh router

          • fredblogs on 26/08/2020 - 18:25
            +1

            @paul11: Probably not good to judge mesh based on that model :)

      • howdydood on 25/08/2020 - 13:08
        +1

        I had that issue with some of the first mesh firmware, how long since you tried? For at least a year though the new firmware has been rock solid with full speeds from any of the mesh nodes I connect to. I'm running Merlin

  • beeepbooop on 25/08/2020 - 00:26

    Finally I found it

  • highon2str on 25/08/2020 - 00:28

    Is this aus stock with an aus power adaptor and warranty?

    • skid on 25/08/2020 - 07:38

      Yes, it is.

  • drl on 25/08/2020 - 00:35

    OOS…:(

  • deelaroo on 25/08/2020 - 00:48
    +4

    The cooler it looks the better it works.

    Also more antennas = faster.

    • eriklee on 25/08/2020 - 11:14
      +3

      if you paint red stripes down the side that also gives it a 20% speed increase.

  • larkan on 25/08/2020 - 08:05

    Back in stock?

  • pkh on 25/08/2020 - 08:08

    Back in stock, 2 left.

  • bonezAU on 25/08/2020 - 08:27

    It's out of stock, but only until 27th August.

    • coupleofdays on 25/08/2020 - 10:30

      I think back in stock. 4 left at time of writing.

  • highon2str on 25/08/2020 - 08:46

    I ended up going for the TP-Link Archer AC4000 that davidoh suggested. Sold by Harris Tech who have decent after sales support.

    • PasqualeOz on 25/08/2020 - 08:52

      One draw back from personal experience with TP Link is they don’t support VPN client I.e. no Nord support. Asus is preferred brand for this. I hope this is not an issue for you

      • highon2str on 25/08/2020 - 10:03

        Yeah good eye - that was mentioned in a review too. We don't use VPN at home so we should be all good!

        • PasqualeOz on 25/08/2020 - 10:29

          Good to hear, enjoy your new router :)

  • Deepchild on 25/08/2020 - 08:57
    +5

    back in stock - still $287

  • BenK-Oz on 25/08/2020 - 09:57
    +1

    great thing is this is also a mesh router ;)

  • dc87 on 25/08/2020 - 10:02

    What do you think will be the lifetime of this router? Since the AX86u was only just released.

    • BenK-Oz on 25/08/2020 - 10:22
      +2

      68u is still getting updates, asus is pretty good with updates

  • kummo on 25/08/2020 - 10:22
    +1

    Waiting for a ASUS rt-ax88u deal, does anyone know if there are any at the moment?

  • Osiris on 25/08/2020 - 10:41

    Was thinking of upgrading to Deco M9 mesh, fascinating the OP tried mesh and is coming back to single point. Anyone else in same boat?

    • This Void on 25/08/2020 - 11:19
      +2

      I'm using two Deco M5 units (bought a 3 pack but even 2 will cover everything in our place), and I'm completely happy with them. I get full speed in the backyard whereas single Wifi units struggled with half that distance/obstacles.

  • Devil on 25/08/2020 - 10:44
    +1

    Any recommendations for good ones on sale with VOIP?

    • Twix on 25/08/2020 - 12:46

      Which company provides your VoIP service?

      • Devil on 25/08/2020 - 15:02

        Aussie BB

        • Twix on 25/08/2020 - 17:53

          Maybe the TP-Link Archer VR600v?

          If it was me I would purchase a Yealink or Gigaset IP handset or ask Aussie BB for an ATA if you want to keep your old handset and this way you have a much larger variety of routers to choose from.

          • Devil on 25/08/2020 - 18:45
            +1

            @Twix: Thanks @Twix, will check that one out.

            Not a bad idea about just grabbing an ATA though, don't think Aussie BB will give me one though (no contract).

            I've got the Telstra Smartmodem with VOIP posts, but unfortunately only works for Telstra!

            • Twix on 25/08/2020 - 18:50

              @Devil: Aussie BB sell ATAs for like $100. If you have the Telstra Technicolor version you can install different firmware that will give you access to the VoIP section.

              • Devil on 25/08/2020 - 22:59
                +1

                @Twix: Thanks for that! I didn't know the Telstra smartmodem could be flashed. I am on the Technicolor model.

                Just been reading up on it though and I might be out of luck: To use this guide you must be on firmware 17.2.0188-820-RA or lower. I'm sitting on 18.1.

                Will keep looking around to see if there's anything newer.

                  • Devil on 26/08/2020 - 20:17
                    +1

                    @fredblogs: Thanks Fred! Saw that in my google search, but unfortunately got lost in all the technical jargon :(

                    The few sites that I found that were a bit simpler said that the current firmware 18.1.c wasn't hackable.

                    Might just be easier to grab an ATA like first suggested.

  • this is us on 25/08/2020 - 11:19

    Excellent router

  • vxm on 25/08/2020 - 11:30

    Is it better than Telstra smart modem 2?

    • robertm on 25/08/2020 - 13:04

      Can you be more specific?

      • fredblogs on 26/08/2020 - 23:06

        wifi range, speeds at long distance?

  • norkle on 25/08/2020 - 12:02

    Anybody using the Asus routers with wired backhaul?

    Also, anyone using them with custom firmware in a mesh?

    • howdydood on 25/08/2020 - 13:12

      Yes I have a RT-AC86U running Merlin as the main router with two RT-AC68U wired mesh nodes - all running Merlin without any issues at all with great coverage and speeds. I read recently on the forum that there is no advantage in running Merlin on mesh nodes, its recommended to run stock Asus firmware on them.

      • norkle on 25/08/2020 - 13:16

        So do you just tell the nodes to be nodes in the mesh, and then all mesh admin is done on the main?

        • howdydood on 25/08/2020 - 13:19

          Yes - you factory reset the one you want as a imesh node then add it from the main router - it's covered pretty well on the Asus webpage

        • norkle on 25/08/2020 - 13:51

          Cool, thanks.

          And Merlin is similar? Merlin on mesh router, and reset Merlin or Asus stock on nodes?

          • howdydood on 25/08/2020 - 20:40

            @norkle: Yes thats right - the nodes can run either merlin or asus stock, however no benefits from merlin on a node

      • IVN86 on 26/08/2020 - 00:56

        Can I ask where can i get the merlin software for the AC86U?

      • neonlight on 27/08/2020 - 09:51

        However what if you need to use Split tunnel? and more options for VPN you would need to use custom firmware for that?

        I would imagine you need Merlin on the main router RT-AC86U on Merlin then the AC-68U as node can be stock or merlin

      • neonlight on 29/08/2020 - 20:14

        Why is it better to run stock firmware on Aimesh nodes? Only thing it's easy to upgrade firmware

        • howdydood on 29/08/2020 - 22:09

          It's just the recommended setup by Merlin himself - I run merlin on my nodes as I've enabled entware on them and I'm running snmp so I can monitor them. Upgrading them means I just have to upload a file manually, so not too hard

  • neonlight on 25/08/2020 - 13:09

    Can I get AI mesh working if I got RT-AC68U already?

    • howdydood on 25/08/2020 - 13:13

      Yes for sure - before i got a RT-AC86 I had 2 x RT-AC68U running iMesh perfectly

      • neonlight on 25/08/2020 - 13:14

        Yeah but that's with merlin firmware as well for all of them and RT-AC86 as main unit?

        • howdydood on 25/08/2020 - 13:16

          I'm running merlin on them all, however imesh will work fine using stock Asus .. in fact, merlin recommends running stock ASUS firmware on the imesh nodes as merlin adds no benefits to nodes. And like I said, before i got the RT-AC86U, I had 2 x RT-68U meshed - one as the main router and the other as a node

          • neonlight on 25/08/2020 - 17:46

            @howdydood: yeah I want it run Aimesh with merline firmware with all of them. i recall merlin firmware said its custom firmware does not support Aimesh is that still the case?

            • howdydood on 25/08/2020 - 20:47

              @neonlight: No, about a year or so ago Merlin didn't support Aimesh, however Merlin totally re-wrote the firmware and they all work with AiMesh now. However, Asus just released Aimesh 2.0, and Merlin says he will need to investigate how hard it will be to incorporate v2.0 into Merlin firmware …

              • neonlight on 26/08/2020 - 09:55

                @howdydood: I see so current Merlin supports Aimesh 1.0 on both models

  • 11CENTS on 25/08/2020 - 14:18

    Anyone know if this router is good to block certain apps or games or websites on certain times?

    • norkle on 25/08/2020 - 15:03
      +2

      That's a lot harder than it used to be, with browsers generally enforcing encryption now. There are ways to do it, but not simply block youtube.com or similar.

      You can setup a proxy, and require everyone to go through that, or you can install software on the devices you want to manage.

      If you were technical, you could mess with dns etc, but then you'd probably already know that :-)

  • MelbourneJames on 25/08/2020 - 15:49

    If it’s out of stock, you may want to consider the Asus Blue Cave for $200 on Amazon. I love mine - range is surprisingly fantastic despite it having no external antennas.

  • Ttpaa on 25/08/2020 - 17:15

    Guys, im with vodafone 100/20 HFC NBN, living in a small unit the router is in the living room and its about 10 metres from my room, where all my devices are.

    The vodafone hubs wifi seems unstable with me getting 2 bars out of 4 on my phones wifi sometimes.

    Would upgrading to any of those modems be a good idea?

    • Twix on 25/08/2020 - 17:56

      Yeah upgrade and my pick is the Asus router.

      HFC = NBN connection device and router.

  • T1OOO on 25/08/2020 - 19:39

    What’s the best router that also has 4g ??

    • howdydood on 25/08/2020 - 20:44

      All Asus router have USB tethering with Android phone or connect a USB 4G dongle - can be setup as fail-over, load balancing or manually selected.

  • borgsta on 26/08/2020 - 14:46
    +1

    This is back in stock now and still at $287. Suspect it is extremely limited though

  • Stevie51 on 26/08/2020 - 19:08

    I have the RT-AC5300. Bit of overkill but I get wifi halfway up my street. Merlin was a great improvement. I’ve had the router maybe, 5 years now. It’s never failed

    • fredblogs on 26/08/2020 - 23:07

      how about through 3 brick walls?

      • Stevie51 on 28/08/2020 - 19:42

        It used to work fine in a 5BR 3 story house on the lower level. Speeds still varied of course. I didn’t realise a good router makes such a difference on top of the modem they just send you.

      • MelbourneJames on 28/08/2020 - 21:10

        My Blue Cave goes through 4 brick walls of mine with no loss of speed at all. Looks cool too!

        • fredblogs on 28/08/2020 - 21:13

          That's without using its mesh feature?

          • MelbourneJames on 29/08/2020 - 12:10

            @fredblogs: Yes, I only have the one. Bought it in case I did need to mesh it but there’s no need for it.

  • jingsu6688 on 26/08/2020 - 20:52

    I know warranty, I know it is in China, I know… but

    How do we in Australia have to pay so much more than in China?

    https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=581997410740&ali_refid=a…

    It is only about AUD$150!

    • neonlight on 27/08/2020 - 15:13

      Aussie Tax you know it. pay the price to live in Aus

    • fredblogs on 27/08/2020 - 15:59

      could import it?

  • iBennyz on 27/08/2020 - 12:33

    Ordered the RT-AC86U last night, thanks OP! :)
    Looks like the price has gone up today to $338.00

  • davidl820 on 28/08/2020 - 11:01

    Got the shipping notification yesterday arvo and received it just now. They did an overnight express with it, very impressive .

    It has an EU plug and come with a UK plug adaptor. Now I just need to see if I have a spare adaptor at home , or a power adaptor that has the same output :)

    • skid on 28/08/2020 - 21:26
      +1

      There's also an AU plug in the box.

      BTW, back in stock for $287.

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