R7800 or RAX40?

[Poseidon]

Currently have the Netgear R7800 and it’s working great on stock firmware. Probably the best AC router I’ve owned to date.

My wife and I recently purchased the iPhone 11 Pro and we want to take advantage of its WiFi 6 capabilities.

I was looking at the Netgear RAX40 router but wasn’t sure if it’s even worth getting an AX router at this point or if it would even out-perform my blazing fast R7800.

What’s odd is that most retail places have both the R7800 and the RAX40 priced similarly and I’ve even seen the R7800 priced higher than the RAX40.

Expert opinions needed please: keep the R7800 or upgrade to the RAX40 for the WiFi 6 on the iPhone 11 Pro?

Thanks.

 

[L&LD]

You are in the best position to actually know this answer by buying and testing it.

It may or may not be better. YMMV.

Any opinions expressed otherwise cannot predict what will happen in your network/WiFi environment.

 

[MjWoneR]

You are in the best position to actually know this answer by buying and testing it.

It may or may not be better. YMMV.

Any opinions expressed otherwise cannot predict what will happen in your network/WiFi environment.

A comparison would be highly appreciated. I am also trying to find something to replace an old router, and have been considering the R7800 and the RAX40 for the wifi 6 compatibility with the iphone 11 pro.

 

[L&LD]

@MjWoneR, if you haven't bought either yet, I would lean towards the newer model.

But, Asus (and specifically RMerlin supported) models would be even better, I think.

 

[Poseidon]

Apparently the RAX40 uses Intel chip-set so that's a no-go. Decided to purchase the Linksys MX5 Velop (single unit) instead. Amazon had it for $299 (retails for $399 everywhere else). Great reviews, top-notch specs and also future-proof.

Also a plus having internal antennas and not looking like your typical robot/spaceship AX routers that Asus and Netgear are putting out nowadays.

Couldn't find any info on what chipset it uses - Broadcom or Qualcomm?

 

[ColinTaylor]

Couldn't find any info on what chipset it uses - Broadcom or Qualcomm?

It looks like the MX10 is a 2-pack version of the MX5. So that would mean it's Qualcomm according to this.

 

[Poseidon]

It looks like the MX10 is a 2-pack version of the MX5. So that would mean it's Qualcomm according to this.

Thanks for this. How does Qualcomm stack up against Broadcom when it comes to Wifi 6? Which one is regarded as better?

 

[MjWoneR]

Apparently the RAX40 uses Intel chip-set so that's a no-go. Decided to purchase the Linksys MX5 Velop (single unit) instead. Amazon had it for $299 (retails for $399 everywhere else). Great reviews, top-notch specs and also future-proof.

Also a plus having internal antennas and not looking like your typical robot/spaceship AX routers that Asus and Netgear are putting out nowadays.

Couldn't find any info on what chipset it uses - Broadcom or Qualcomm?

If you have the time, post a brief opinion and comparison to the R7800 when you get it.

 

[thiggins]

The only thing WiFi6 is going to give you right now with an iPhone11 is higher 2.4 GHz link throughput. It's possible you might also see a bit of a boost in 5 GHz throughput. But that hasn't been my experience in testing. Bringing mesh into the mix just complicates things.

Note the iPhone11 does not support 160 MHz bandwidth. Neither the RAX40 nor MX10 have yet enabled OFDMA on either band or either direction (uplink or downlink).

 

[Poseidon]

I’ll be returning the R7800 so the Linksys MX5 will only cost me $110.

Not too bad for a newer and better router IMO.

 

[coxhaus]

I’ll be returning the R7800 so the Linksys MX5 will only cost me $110.

Not too bad for a newer and better router IMO.

"Currently have the Netgear R7800 and it’s working great on stock firmware. Probably the best AC router I’ve owned to date."
How can you know this if you are returning the R7800. If you are returning it you can't have owned it long enough to make this statement.

 

[Poseidon]

I’ve owned it for 2 months. Amazon is making an exception and is allowing me to return it past the 30 day mark. I will treat the MX5 and if it’s not to my liking, I will return it - or keep it and return the R7800

 

[MjWoneR]

Note the iPhone11 does not support 160 MHz bandwidth. Neither the RAX40 nor MX10 have yet enabled OFDMA on either band or either direction (uplink or downlink).

Could you elaborate a bit on that?
The iPhone 11 has WiFi 6 but does not support WiFi 6 at 160MHz. So what MHz must the WiFi router support to be compatible with the iPhone 11?

Also is the OFDMA feature relative the above?
The AmpliFi Alien supports OFDMA, what would that mean for the iPhone 11?

Sorry for the question bomb, and my ignorance!

 

[thiggins]

The iPhone 11 has WiFi 6 but does not support WiFi 6 at 160MHz. So what MHz must the WiFi router support to be compatible with the iPhone 11?

Anything up to 80 MHz bandwidth.

Also is the OFDMA feature relative the above?

No. OFDMA and 160 MHz support are independent.

The AmpliFi Alien supports OFDMA, what would that mean for the iPhone 11?

Saying a product supports OFDMA and having it actually be enabled are two different things. All WiFi6 products being sold today list OFDMA in their specs, with no disclaimers. But only two consumer routers (ASUS RT-AX88U, NETGEAR RAX120) actually have it enabled, but not fully.

What OFDMA support is supposed to provide for any WiFi6 device is higher total throughput when multiple (usually 4 or more) WiFi6 devices are operating simultaneously. Also lower latency. But whether typical users will actually see the difference in real-world use is yet to be seen.

 

[MjWoneR]

Anything up to 80 MHz bandwidth.
No. OFDMA and 160 MHz support are independent.
Saying a product supports OFDMA and having it actually be enabled are two different things. All WiFi6 products being sold today list OFDMA in their specs, with no disclaimers. But only two consumer routers (ASUS RT-AX88U, NETGEAR RAX120) actually have it enabled, but not fully.

What OFDMA support is supposed to provide for any WiFi6 device is higher total throughput when multiple (usually 4 or more) WiFi6 devices are operating simultaneously. Also lower latency. But whether typical users will actually see the difference in real-world use is yet to be seen.

Thank you so much for taking the time to answer all that. Appreciated!
Finding the best choice for a router in 2019 is definitely not an easy task.

 

[ng4ever]

You are in the best position to actually know this answer by buying and testing it.

It may or may not be better. YMMV.

Any opinions expressed otherwise cannot predict what will happen in your network/WiFi environment.

That what I did with 6 new routers! Finally found the perfect one!

 

[Val D.]

Expert opinions needed please: keep the R7800 or upgrade to the RAX40 for the WiFi 6 on the iPhone 11 Pro?

You don't need "expert" opinions. Just ask yourself a question what exactly this iPhone will use 500Mbps Internet speed for, for example? Do you really need to waste money on a new router just to run a Speed Test on this iPhone? Because you won't see any difference on it's tiny screen in anything else. Actually, the second difference you may see on it's screen is $200 charge on your credit card.

 

[LeKeiser]

That what I did with 6 new routers! Finally found the perfect one!

and you choose which router??

 

[Poseidon]

You don't need "expert" opinions. Just ask yourself a question what exactly this iPhone will use 500Mbps Internet speed for, for example? Do you really need to waste money on a new router just to run a Speed Test on this iPhone? Because you won't see any difference on it's tiny screen in anything else. Actually, the second difference you may see on it's screen is $200 charge on your credit card.

Agreed. I decided to stick with the R7800 because, like you said, there’s no reason to upgrade.

I was looking for a reason to upgrade to the latest and the greatest when in fact I realized that I already had the best consumer router available and an upgrade would just be wasted money. If it ain’t broke, then there’s no need to fix it right?

 

[LeKeiser]

Agreed. I decided to stick with the R7800 because, like you said, there’s no reason to upgrade.

I was looking for a reason to upgrade to the latest and the greatest when in fact I realized that I already had the best consumer router available and an upgrade would just be wasted money. If it ain’t broke, then there’s no need to fix it right?

Amen to that

I've owned a few routers too, and the 7800 has been the most stable and the most efficient router. Using Voxel of course. So good that I'm still thinking of getting another one as a backup, in case something happens to it.