Linksys X6200

LOADS OF CONNECTIVITY OPTIONS.

THE ONCE MID-RANGE Linksys X6200 has dropped in price to very affordable levels, and can be found for under $100. The router is based around the AC750 Wi-Fi spec, which is a touch slower than some of the competition, but still plenty for most households. It’s also compatible with an existing ADSL connection, but can handle VDSL and has a WAN port for FTTP NBN connections. For wired connectivity, the X6200 features four Gigabit LAN ports, and also has a WPS button. A rear mounted USB 2.0 port lets you attach external storage to your network, or run a print server.

Unlike many routers, the X6200 uses a unique, mostly internal antenna system. This makes for a very sleek router that blends in, but doesn’t give quite the same range or adjustability of external antennas. That said, our test unit had no problems blanketing a normal size house in Wi-Fi, albeit with reduced throughput at the fringes.The Linksys interface and software are excellent, and include the option for guest network, and parental controls.