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Looking to invest in a router - all advice would be appreciated

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Budget ~£100 but definitely open to push up to a max of £200 is needed

Not familiar with current options but currently looking here for ideas: https://www.techradar.com/uk/news/n...router-9-top-wireless-routers-on-test-1090523

Currently we're using Virgin Medias Super Hub 3.0. It gets the job done but need something with wider coverage. We live in a detached house with thick walls. The Superhub is placed upstairs and we barely get a signal to half of the ground floor. To compensate i've been using a WIFI powerline adapters for over 10 years - cheapie options but it gets the job done (some occasional lag when gaming on the tele downstairs).

What would be the best solution for us? I have briefly looked into the Mesh network option but don't have any experience as to whether this would be right for us.

Other useful requirements:

- Preferably a device/setup supporting android phone app access to control/monitor home network.

- Not sure if it's possible, but an app with controls to limit/restrict access to certain devices at specific times (in short - limiting access for kids. They game like it's no tomorrow hence fixed time slots would be amazing)

Thanks in Adv
 
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Iirc you need a modem if you're buying any of them. Looking at the spec you need a "DOCSIS 3.0" modem. Maybe DOCSIS 3.1 or 4.0 if your connection is multi-Gigabit. If you didn't have WiFi issue in your home with the previous setup, I'd advise to stick with a single powerful router. Otherwise (or if you wanna expand the WiFi) mesh is an option that's too much of a can-of-worms.

- Most mesh WiFi routers are kinda product-as-a-service. Very few brands provide web interface (e.g. 192.168.0.1 or others) to tinker the settings and instead you need a phone app that also requires an account. Suffice to say you need internet before you set these mesh routers up. Either WiFi from previous router or cellular. For the app mostly.
- Phone apps are inevitably lacking in features. Mostly just some QoS and parental controls. But not important if you don't usually tinker around the router settings I guess.
- You need a wireless backhaul or wired backhaul router to get full speed. The first router that connects to the modem will blast WiFi at full bandwidth (or try to at least). While the second or third routers will get halved or less bandwidth. Ultimately mesh routers are just fancy range extenders.
But backhaul will fix that. Wireless backhaul uses a dedicated band (either 2.4 GHz or 5.0 GHz) to talk among the routers, freeing up your actual 2.4 or 5.0 GHz WiFi band from double duty (blasting internet AND talking to each other thus halving bandwidth). While wired backhaul is just that, wired. You connect a LOOOONG ethernet cable between/among the routers.

I'd recommend this guy's reviews. But any review is enough unless they just read off the specs list.
 

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Anything that's supported by:
or

Why? Because it means you'll get regular updates with security patches and what not for your router, even if the manufacturer drops support for them.

Both Asus and Netgear has apps that can do what you want.

What you might want to do is pull an Ethernet cable downstairs and place an access point there, it should be the best way to solve your problem.
Getting another router might not, as it all comes down to what your walls/floors are made out of and how far it is.
Yes, some routers have better antennas and stronger transmitters, but you need to get the signal back to the router from your devices too.
It might be worth getting an 802.11ax router for the improved 2.4GHz speeds, but if you're having issues now, you're most likely not going to gain much from the 5GHz band.

I'd recommend this guy's reviews. But any review is enough unless they just read off the specs list.
Sorry, but he's clueless. When is 40 feet / 12 meters long range? That would be what most people would expect to be within the normal operating range.

The only place for router reviews is
but sadly he has been out of the game for a while, but just started testing again.
 
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