In the market for a basic router and spotted this on what seems a new ATL (2021 Kogan price error(?) aside).
Model's a few years old but still seems good enough.
4x Gigabit LAN, 1x Gigabit WAN
1201 Mbps @ 5 GHz
300 Mbps @ 2.4GHz
FTTP/FTTC/HFC compatible out of box. No built-in modem for FTTN/FTTB.
Also worth pointing out the chinese backdoor implications of TP link. Yes american brands have an american back door, we know.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-12-19/us-mulls-banning-tp-l…
It depends what kind of backdoor shenanigans you're into. Personally I don't go in for these backdoor shenanigans. Sure, I'm flattered - maybe even a little curious…but the answer is no!
In the '60s, I made love to many, many women, often outdoors, in the mud and the rain, and it's possible a man slipped in. There would be no way of knowing.
Easy to solve this backdoor vulnerability. Read my comment below:
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/comment/16179242/redir
@Aureus: Take over my devices control through internet if anyone can :P I have changed a lot of settings in my devices. NextDNS is one of my gatekeeper along with other gatekeepers …
These features are still not strong enough?
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/comment/16179404/redir
@neoleo: You are recommending using a fancy DNS server. That won't offer any protection for vulnerabilities/backdoors in your router.
@neoleo: I can almost hear the bad actors from unfriendly foreign nations now banging fists on their desks, DAMN !!!! how could we have forgotten about a simple dns change.
Just try it once or twice though.
Answer is you are not important enough to be hacked
dont be like Americans and be blind to the fact that their own companies do far worse
How about Australia? Does NBN box have a back door?
No need, NBN has full control of it already.
Also, Australia has a meta data retention law that requires ISPs to monitor what you do and keep it for 2 years for warrantless access by law enforcement…. so…. you're being watched no matter what…. we are peers of North Korea and Chai-na….
except there is no Chinese backdoor. No evidence ever put forward there is one and we can be sure if US authorities knew of one they'd tell you. However we do know the US Gov puts backdoors in everything it can. The more likely reason for the TP-Link ban is that US Gov knows that TP-Link will not cooperate with them to give them backdoor access to all their devices. The NSA is the only backdoor bandit we should be worried about.
Yep, US put backdoors in everything but the Chinese government wouldn't. Too busy implementing facial recognition technology on their own people I guess.
Phew !! feel relieved now from the worry. lol
Whilst this does help with security it is unlikely to stop a backdoor, if one were to exist, unfortunately. Might be worth researching what DNS actually does, it's just an address book, you can still communicate via direct IP.
Maybe change to DD-WRT firmware if/when supported. I checked quite a lot of TP-Link routers are supported. Almost forget about this workaround.
https://forum.dd-wrt.com/wiki/index.php/Supported_devices#TP…
Please don't give security advice when you obviously know nothing about security.
You do understand that NextDNS will do nothing against firmware bugs/vulnerabilities or intentional backdoors.
Sorry I didn't mean to be rude or offensive but again… Those NextDNS features do nothing to protect against various attacks against these cheap routers. How are you going to protect against hard coded backdoors with default creds? The only way to secure these vulnerable routers is to throw them in the rubbish or don't buy them in the first place.
You can't trust the hardware hence why USA wants to ban them, and I imagine they have had many smart and skilled researchers look into these routers and have come to the conclusion they are bad.
And I'm not saying Western routers are much better, so I'm not picking on China. There is just a lot of crap consumer/enterprise devices out there.
Okay, I understand what you mean. TP-Link routers are everywhere …
A geniune question and seeking advice from fellow ozbargainers (Not google).
Can someone advise which mesh routers are good (noting many of the routers have vulnerabilities but looking for a one with less vulnerablaities).
I recently bought Deco BE65 from Amazon and haven't opened yet as am not completely sure if I should go with TP link or some other brand??
Thanks
TP link mesh routers are amazing, reliable, and literally everywhere. I believe if there was a genuine problem we would have heard something from our own government on the topic.
The ABC article at least highlights that other brands also have problems. Also, TP Link have a massive market share. They don't want to compromise that so they can hack into your wifi lights
Just get a Fritz box and be done with it. German FTW!!
lol, what's wrong with picking on china when it's openning against the west ;)
reference:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolf_warrior_diplomacy
Personally I think the TP-Link vulnerabilities are a bit overblown for home users (I wouldn't deploy it in enterprise or critical infrastructure) and not convinced alternatives from US will be much safer or less susceptible to vulnerabilities/backdoors.
Yeah, sometimes I still read news about vulnerabilities in Netgear, D-Link, etc. So, more expensive routers and even Western routers are not immune from security vulnerabilities and attacks.
Can use STUDENTB20 via Student Beans website to get 2 for $94.46 if you need a mesh network to cover bigger area.
Was $69 at time of posting, that's what prompted me to check eBay. They're quick..ish :)
How is this any better than my very old asus rt-ac87u?
What is the maximum Wi-Fi speed of ASUS RT AC87U?
HIGHLY COMMENDED BEST WIRELESS ROUTER BRAND PC Pro Excellence Awards in 2012, 2013 and 2014. The new RT-AC87U takes wireless performance to a new level! Enjoy the world's fastest 5 GHz speeds of 1734 Mbps, plus 600 Mbps on the 2.4 GHz band for a total combined speed of up to 2334Mbit/s.
you can find this for approx the same price, am i missing something?
Your router is not a WiFi 6 router.
That's a Wifi 5 router.
If a backdoor can be solved, then its technically not a backdoor. we don't even know how and when a backdoor can be triggered or opened.
DD-WRT firmware for routers exists.
Maybe change to DD-WRT firmware if/when supported. I checked quite a lot of TP-Link routers are supported. Almost forget about this workaround.
https://forum.dd-wrt.com/wiki/index.php/Supported_devices#TP…
OK security conscious people, can I ask what the preferred, most secure brand/model recommendation would be if one was concerned with avoiding TP Link?
I’m fitting out a new place (single storey, 3br) and will use this for ~5 years plus. Thanks.
It's common to keep router for long term until it is broken …
Only single storey and 3 br, very expensive routers are not necessary.
Do you have max budget for this?
I don't we can solve hardcoded backdoors.
Maybe change the firmware to DD-WRT firmware if/when supported. I checked quite a lot of TP-Link routers are supported. Almost forget about this workaround.
https://forum.dd-wrt.com/wiki/index.php/Supported_devices#TP…
I would personally avoid most of Wifi6 TP-link routers since they seem to use EU firmware that comes with a lower EU transmission power that may or may not affect you depending on how far away your devices are from the router.
I believe these EU firmware also allow access to 5Ghz Wifi channel (120,124,128) that are actually not allowed in Australia although i guess the regulators here in AU are not that strict.
They seem to change to US firmware/model for their 6E and WIFI 7 models which would be preferable.
Yep I just returned the be3600 router, 'wifi 7' but not. Range was worse than my Telstra gen 3 modem, and couldn't handle my smart devices
Ooh there are still EU models sold in Australia for their wifi7 router.
Lucky you can still return it.
I had the Archer AX55 and it had a major floor where the 2.4GHZ band was completely useless with no way to fix it. It had unusably slow speeds and were many threads online complaining about just that. Upgraded to the AX55 Pro and it works fine so not sure if this model would have the same issue or not.
Any idea of Wifi performance (aside from Wifi 5 > 6), coming from a Telstra Smart Modem 2? (Asking for a friend)
I bought the tp-link be3600 and the range was worse than the Telstra gen 3. Also couldn't handle about 23 devices, so I dont think this cheap one would be better
My recommendation would be to avoid TPLink and DLink. I work in IT but for the record, that is not my professional/employer's opinion, just my own.
And this guy's recommendation: who I trust. He knows his stuff…
"Low Level" channel on youtube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCdZaSu68Kk
Can I have this as my main router plugged into the nbn box and add Deco M5 satellites to get mesh throughout the house to have faster wifi speeds?
I have a double storey house with 100mbps Internet connection (HFC). My NBN modem and existing wifi 5 router is downstairs. Upstairs in one of the rooms where I work the wifi signal is weak and internet is only ~50mbps. Any idea how much the wifi 6 will improve the internet speed in this situation if I replace my existing router with this one?
You'll probably get a better result with a repeater that is placed in a well chosen spot in between.
thanks, any recommendations for repeater? is it possible to setup another normal router for this purpose?
Where do you put the router? On the floor, table, wall or on the ceiling? In the corner, or middle? Router placement is also important. Put it on the ceiling or on the wall quite high.
Login to check and change the router settings. For longer range, 2.4 Ghz is better and has stronger signal than 5 Ghz, but slower speed … Try both and check the speed and signal strength.
Network signal strength may also be changed if the setting is available.
Changing WiFi channel may also help if too many different WiFi network around.
You could get two of these to make a cheap mesh. Should give you much better results.
I also have 100Mbps HFC, double storey (double brick, double concrete) and a setup like that was much better, but it wasn't seamless until I put in some Ethernet going downstairs (my HFC comes into the top floor.)
@McFly: Nope, u cant
"Q3: How do I set up a OneMesh™ network for different types of devices?
A3: You can use a OneMesh™ Wireless Router or Modem Router with several sets of Range Extenders or Powerline Adapters to create a OneMesh™ network. Be aware, you cannot create a OneMesh™ network between two routers."
From TPlink FAQ
I'm using the eero 6+ I got from Superloop and signal is good upstairs, only 1 unit at my downstairs study. If you want cheap the eero 6 is $135 on Amazon should be still good.
Mercusys MR60X is only $36 on Amazon (and 20% off if you buy two mercusys products)
can multiple mr60x , typing on their website doesnt show mesh
how come it is not a deal on ozbargain?
If you mean does the MR60X support EasyMesh then the answer is yes - but not V1.
https://www.mercusys.com/en/solution/easymesh/
Will prefer the Xiaomi AX3000T - it has OpenWRT support unlike this device.
Serious question for all people worried about backdoors. Why do you think of 8 billion people in the world, Chinese government will target you? What are you trying to hide?
Do you also not use tiktok?
First it might not be you who is the target, but your country. If war erupts over Taiwan and AU, as usually, sides with the US, who actually don't care about Taiwan at all, but will use any excuse to limit the influence China is building around the world, we can very quickly become a target.
The other problem with the very existence of backdoors is that there is a non-zero chance for someone else to get in too. One day you might just find all your credit cards maxxed out and savings accounts empty…
"One day you might just find all your credit cards maxxed out and savings accounts empty…"
2FA is your friend.
Do you also not use tiktok?
Never have, never will.
I also prefer my router to be the not easily (communist party) hackable type.
UR pefect target for C/iA ;) masters of propaganda & spying.
I just installed Xiaohongshu redNote as backUp & avoid WhatsApp with direct monitoring by C/iA. Only use western media for anti-propaganda ;)
L/oL
If my internet goes down, then my productivity stops. If that happens to ~5 million Australians all on the same day that China invades Taiwan, it will create havoc.
It's not so much about trying to hide things or them getting your data. Yes. You may or may not be a sufficiently valuable target. However, backdoors or any sort of zero-day vulnerabilities could also afford attackers the ability to co-opt your home devices to a botnet. Once co-opted, attackers could use your devices as proxies for further attacks along the chain on other entities (obfuscating the source the attack) or just do anything the botnet's command and control server decides.
This is not limited to the Chinese government or any government agencies with ill-intent. It could be any malicious parties.
@BeefBiryani Can I have access to your router please? If not, why not?
Sure you can. I believe if you can hack in to my network then you deserve to. Be my guest.
buy 3 or 4 and mesh it? worth it or not?
Why not? https://www.ozbargain.com.au/comment/16180167/redir
Mercusys is even cheaper. https://www.ozbargain.com.au/comment/16180600/redir
It should work with g.fast FTTB, given it has PPPOE and g.fast connections come with a bridge modem.
Probably get negged though can get a Xiaomi wifi7 be5000 for 80 bucks
I have a TP-Link ax1500 modem router. Reckon the external antennas on this would provide any benefit with regards to range and connectivity?
Doubt it.
Depends on their dB rating.
the one problem i have with buying the older equipment is the lack of firmware updates.
security vulnerabilities are a you problem.