Asus makes a variety of routers and mesh networking techniques designed for house customers. However, it additionally owns the separate RoG model – Republic Of Avid gamers – that makes a specialty of high-performance gaming PCs and graphics playing cards, in addition to a variety of routers that target high-end efficiency for actually devoted players. The Rapture GT-AX1100 is Asus’ top-of-the-range router for players, though it’s additionally aimed toward individuals who must run servers or have a home stuffed with the most recent sensible devices.
Unsurprisingly, the Rapture’s high-end efficiency and tri-band networking include a high-end worth, at £380/$450/AU$700. However, that’s not out of line with comparable tri-band routers that assist the brand new Wi-Fi 6 commonplace (aka 802.11ax). One has a look at the Asus Rapture GT-AX1100 tells you that it means enterprise. Even earlier than you connect the eight separate antennae, the cumbersome sq. router with its sharp, angular edges seems to be like one thing out of Battlestar Galactica. It measures 250mm broad and deep, and with all these antennae poking up into the air, it stands 180mm excessive, so this can be a router that can want loads of room to get set-up correctly.
It packs some severe networking energy, although boasting tri-band Wi-Fi 6 with a prime velocity of 11000Mbps (11Gbps). The tri-band router additionally units up to three separate networks, with two networks on the 5GHz bands, and one on 2.4GHz, with the choice of assigning a kind of bands as a devoted gaming community that takes precedence over the opposite bands for optimum efficiency. The router additionally helps Asus’ AiMesh expertise for mesh networking, so you’ve got the choice of utilizing it with different Asus routers to create an extra intensive community in the event you ever transfer to a bigger house or workplace.
The Rapture doesn’t embrace a modem, so there’s a devoted Gigabit Ethernet port for connecting it to your present broadband router or modem, together with 4 extra Gigabit Ethernet ports to supply wired connections for gadgets resembling video games consoles or a smart-TV. And, for actually hard-core players, there’s additionally a ‘Multi-Gig’ Ethernet port that helps speeds of as much as 2.5 Gigabits for super-fast Web entry or establishing your individual gaming LAN at the house. The Rapture additionally consists of two USB 3.zero ports, which can let you share a printer or USB storage system in your own home community.
Getting began with the Rapture isn’t for the faint-hearted. The router’s Fast Begin information doesn’t point out an iOS or Android app that may show you how to to set the router up correctly – it merely tells you to make use of both an Ethernet or Wi-Fi connection to connect with the router to be able to configure the community by the router’s net browser interface.
That is perhaps effective for hard-core players who’re used to configuring routers using a browser interface. However, it’s in no way user-friendly for the remainder of us. Thankfully, as soon as we’d used the net browser interface to set the router up, we did discover that we have been capable of view the router and many of the fundamental community settings utilizing the usual Asus Router app that’s offered for Asus’ extra typical home routers. That allowed us to make use of options such because the visitor community and parental controls for making a schedule to restrict on-line time for youthful kids.
Nonetheless, attending to grips with superior options such because the ‘Avid gamers Personal Community,’ which is designed to cut back lag when taking part in on-line video games, does nonetheless require you to delve into the dense and poorly defined net browser interface. Issues aren’t helped a lot by Asus’ guide both – which is over 100 pages lengthy and buried within the assist part of Asus’ site, and which makes the frequent mistake of merely itemizing options without actually explaining how they work. However, in the event you can address the set-up course, the Rapture actually delivers the products with its high-speed wifi.
Gadgets in the identical room because the Rapture have been truly capable of nudge our regular 100Mbps broadband connection as much as a full 110Mbps on each 2.4GHz and 5.0GHz bands, with Steam downloads additionally rock-steady at 12.5MB/s. Shifting additional away to our again workplace did Show a slight drop in efficiency, however, nonetheless produced robust outcomes with 73Mbps on the two.4GHz band and a powerful 100Mbps on 5.0GHz. Steam downloads held up strongly, too, sticking at 12.5MB/s on 5.0GHz and solely dropping barely to 10.5MB/s with the two.4GHz band. And, with options such because the ‘Recreation Radar’ within the browser interface, which lets you monitor the efficiency of on-line servers on your favorite video games, you actually can fine-tune your gaming set-up to provide the very best efficiency.
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It’s a disgrace that Asus doesn’t present extra assist with the preliminary set-up course – in any case; not all players are networking gurus – however, in the event, you want prime efficiency on-line gaming, then the Asus Rapture GT-AX11000 is difficult to beat. In addition to offering top-of-the-range speeds and assistance for the brand new Wi-Fi 6, the Rapture router additionally consists of a variety of options that might be particularly aimed toward gaming, resembling the flexibility to watch the efficiency of on-line servers on your favorite video games.
A Wi-Fi 6 router such because the Rapture continues to be backward-compatible with present gadgets that use 802.11ac wifi. Nonetheless, it would help if you actually banged up-to-date gadgets that use Wi-Fi 6 to get the 11Gbps velocity that you simply’re paying for. Home broadband providers do not often get above 100Mbps – particularly right here within the UK – so few individuals will really want a top-of-the-range router resembling this. Many inexpensive routers can do the trick for half the worth.
The Rapture could also be quick. However, it’s not notably user-friendly, with a posh net browser interface and 140-page guide that basically aren’t designed for learners. Asus’ extra typical routers have an easy app that can assist you in getting began. Informal gaming and Netflix streaming actually don’t want microsecond precision, so there’s no must lay our a fortune on a high-end router like this – particularly if most of your PCs and cellular gadgets are nonetheless utilizing the present 802.11ac model of Wi-Fi. The Rapture’s price ticket makes it some of the costly routers presently accessible. Even in the event you’re an eager game, and the RoG model nonetheless has a variety of inexpensive routers that are perfect for some on-line fragging motion.
