Knowledgeable's Score
Professionals
- Trendy & compact
- Good efficiency and vary
- Numerous options
Cons
- Not the best to handle
- Backhaul goes down typically
- Solely two wired networking ports on every node
Our Verdict
Asus’ new mini-mesh is clearly higher at crucial issues than its predecessor. It may be a problem to get essentially the most out of the router with its many options and inconsistent interface, however when you get the dangle of it, it’s value it.
Value When Reviewed
$130 (1-pack), $220 (3-pack)
Finest Costs As we speak: Zenwifi AX Mini XD5
The primary benefit of Wi-Fi 6 over Wi-Fi 5 is vary. Put merely, a Wi-Fi 6 router can keep excessive velocity communication with a variety 40 to 50 per cent greater than a Wi-Fi 5 router. And this makes Wi-Fi 6 mesh packages notably fascinating. You could possibly get by in a bigger house with a two-pack as a substitute of three or extra nodes. Much less problem to arrange, and cheaper.
Nonetheless, Asus didn’t appear to get this. With the ZenWIFI AX Mini XD4 that I examined in early 2022, you bought all the opposite Wi-Fi 6 advantages: quick high velocity, elevated safety in a trendy and feature-rich small router, however solely about 15 metres of vary per node whereas sustaining acceptable speeds.
Asus has fastened this within the follow-up: the ZenWIFI AX Mini XD5.
Now, I can put a second node two rooms away from the principle unit and nonetheless get steady wi-fi backhaul speeds of over 200Mbps, permitting you to obtain, browse and stream in excessive definition with none issues. The highest velocity of a laptop computer with 2×2 Wi-Fi 6 in ultimate circumstances, about three metres from the router in the identical room, continues to be round 800Mbps over 5GHz.
Mattias Inghe
Extra bandwidth, however no quicker
When configuring the system, you'll be able to select between having a single SSID for two.4 and 5GHz, or cut up them up and select which to connect with from every system your self. Since 2.4GHz bandwidth is restricted to simply over half a gigabit, it is perhaps a good suggestion to maintain them separate, join your sensible house devices to the slower frequency, after which join computer systems and telephones to 5GHz, the place you have got extra bandwidth to work with.
Not an enormous quantity extra: it is a dual-band AX3000 system the place there’s 2,400Mbps of bandwidth for gadgets and the mesh system itself to share. This is a rise from the ZenWIFI AX Mini XD4 which solely had 1,200Mbps on 5GHz. So if the outdated mannequin was appropriate for one or two individuals in a two-room condominium, the ZenWIFI AX Mini XD5 will be thought of appropriate for 2 to 3 individuals in three to 5 rooms. Possibly even a balcony or patio, if you happen to place the second node in the very best place. Asus claims 3500 sq. toes of protection for the XD5 two-pack, and 5000 sq. toes for the three-pack.
Throughout a week-long check the place I ran two XD5 gadgets as my primary house Wi-Fi, issues went nicely general. On a few events the backhaul between the nodes was interrupted and the system needed to reconnect, which occurred mechanically, however took about two minutes. A bit annoying, however not an enormous downside. When this occurred, I used to be in a position to connect with the principle router (additional away) and will proceed browsing, albeit at a decrease velocity.
Testing with a Wi-Fi 6E-equipped laptop computer, I measured a velocity of 820Mbps at a distance of 3m from the principle node: roughly what you’d count on from a dual-band Wi-Fi 6 system round this value. And the vary is round 20m / 60ft (with two inside partitions between the laptop computer and node) to take care of a minimal of 200Mbps.
Mattias Inghe
Identical form, new color
A two-pack of the XD5 prices £213 from Amazon, and a three-pack is £315. Within the US, they’re a lot better worth, with Amazon selling the three-pack for $219.99. You may’t simply discover the two-pack on the market.
It is usually bought as a single unit, in case you need to add additional protection afterward. Nonetheless, think about what you have to, since you’ll save quite a bit by shopping for the best quantity from the beginning, slightly than getting particular person extras and increasing afterwards.
The XD5 models retain the compact design of the XD4: cubes with rounded sides, with all exterior dimensions below 100mm / 4in, two gigabit community ports beneath, considered one of which can be utilized for a WAN connection (usually to attach the principle unit to your present router), and a discreet LED on the backside of the entrance. The XD5 is out there in white in addition to the black of the XD4. Additionally, there are actually brackets on the underside that make it straightforward to mount them on a wall, one thing not potential with the XD4.
Functionally, the XD5 presents the identical wealthy characteristic set because the XD4. Meaning you have got each a VPN server and VPN shopper, detailed QoS management, parental management with scheduling and content material filtering for the youngsters, versatile visitor community functionality, and built-in lifetime virus monitoring from Development Micro. These are the form of options that different distributors cost additional for, however not Asus.
Mattias Inghe
Establishing and administering the whole lot could be a problem. You are able to do quite a bit through the Asus app, with extra detailed community and Wi-Fi settings than many rivals, however for full management you typically have to log into the a lot messier net interface. Nevertheless it’s value exploring and familiarising your self with, so you may get essentially the most out of the system.
Specs
Product title: Asus Zenwifi AX Mini XD5 2-pack
Wi-fi protocols: Wi-Fi 6
Frequency band: 2.4 GHz + 5 GHz
Efficiency: 574 + 2400 Mbit/s
Connections per system: 1 gigabit WAN/LAN, 1 gigabit LAN
Wi-fi safety: WPA/WPA2, WPA3, WPS
Pace, 3m*: 820 Mbit/s
Vary per unit**: 20 metres
File server/write server: No/No
Different: Visitor community, parental management, qos, antivirus, vpn server and shopper, assist for Alexa and IFTTT
Consumer interface: Internet, app
Distant administration: By way of app
Dimensions. antennas: 9 x 9 x 8 cm
* Measured on the principle unit of the system in direction of the laptop computer with 2×2 Wi-Fi 6E
** Longest distance, together with two inside partitions, the place a brand new mesh node is required to take care of the browsing velocity of not less than 200 Mbit/s.