Netgear wants to push the limits of the standard home router with its new lineup of 4x4 antenna array Nighthawk routers. The AX8 and AX12 join the Nighthawk family with support for 5GHz Wi-Fi, Gigabit Ethernet ports and more. The two high-end routers are part of the 6th generation Wi-Fi technology and offer more power than what most current networking hardware can offer.
Wi-Fi 6 does not improve upon existing speeds by a great deal, but it shines elsewhere with better handling of multiple connections. With smart home devices like Amazon’s Alexa, Google Home, and Apple HomePod speakers becoming more popular than ever, the average consumer has access to multiple internet capable devices in homes.
The futuristic-looking routers by Netgear look futuristic but do not lose out on functionality. The manufacturer has promised that the new design allowed them to keep the antennas remain upright always and are hidden inside the “wings” on the products for maximum performance.
The Netgear AX8 is the more affordable option with a $399 price tag. It comes with 4 x 4 antenna arrays, five gigabit Ethernet ports, and support for 6GHz of wireless throughput. The AX12 offers the same features with even higher stability and performance. There is no word on the AX12’s pricing currently as the manufacturer is still undecided on the product’s price tag.
Netgear was supposed to launch the products earlier this year but held off due to internal reasons until today. The manufacturer revealed that the AX8 will go on sale later this month while the AX12 will be released later in “late Q1 / early Q2” of 2019. We can expect other manufacturers to release 6th generation Wi-Fi routers in the coming months as well to compete in the segment.
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