NETGEAR Announces Nighthawk Pro Gaming XR1000 WiFi 6 Router

[btarunr]

NETGEAR, Inc., the leading provider of networking products that empower your gaming experience, has announced the much anticipated availability of the new Nighthawk Pro Gaming XR1000 WiFi 6 AX5400 router. The XR1000 couples next-gen WiFi 6 hardware with advanced DumaOS 3.0, the latest innovation in managing your network settings for optimized gameplay. DumaOS 3.0 software is purpose built for gamers to enjoy superior gameplay and smoother video streaming. This state-of-the-art software combined with the most advanced networking hardware ensures stabilization of ping and reduction of lag spikes with reliable connectivity over both wired and wireless networks.

The Nighthawk Pro Gaming XR1000 is the first WiFi 6 gaming router powered by DumaOS 3.0 gaming software. With the latest WiFi 6 technology, XR1000 is designed specifically to improve performance and reduce network latency when it comes to the gaming environment but will also enhance the overall home networking experience for every connected device. To further boost the gaming experience and give gamers the best gaming connection possible, the DumaOS 3.0 software includes new top features, such as: customizable Geo-Fencing, Ping Heatmap, Application QoS with Bandwidth Allocation, Connection Benchmark, and Traffic Controller. This new Nighthawk Pro Gaming router stands alone with its advanced list of features, which provide optimized control over the network connection while gaming or streaming, ensuring that gameplay can continue uninterrupted.



New Features powered by DumaOS 3.0:

• Bandwidth Allocation (QoS)—Prioritizes gaming devices and allocates bandwidth per device or application.
• Geo Fencing—Customizes and filters which game servers you play on for an elevated gaming experience. No longer simply a spherical aperture with wasted area, this newly updated feature provides the capability to draw customized shapes with up to 47 angles.
• Ping Heatmap—Pings your favorite game servers to display your connection quality to each server on a World Map.
• Connection Benchmark—Tests your connection's speed, ping, & performance under peak congestion.
• Traffic Controller—Blocks traffic by device or application on a schedule.

Understanding the distinct challenges gamers face with their networks, NETGEAR first introduced the Nighthawk Pro Gaming line of routers in 2018 featuring DumaOS as an advanced dashboard for both analytics and control over how the network performs and impacts the gaming experience.

"NETGEAR is pleased to introduce the latest addition to the Nighthawk Pro Gaming Franchise developed to enhance the online gaming experience and provide improved network performance for an entire household of connected devices," said David Henry, senior vice president of Connected Home Products for NETGEAR. "Nighthawk has long been trusted as a performance line of routers that can be depended on for online gaming. Now with the DumaOS 3.0 software and the ultimate WiFi 6 hardware solution, the network will be equipped to handle the load of multiple streaming screens and gaming platforms without compromising on bandwidth or ping rates."

As demand for online entertainment via streaming and gaming has increased, the new Nighthawk Pro Gaming XR1000 WiFi 6 AX5400 router addresses a growing market need for robust WiFi connectivity that is expected to continue to expand according to current industry research.

"Video games are one of the primary ways friends and family are staying connected through a difficult time," said Mat Piscatella, U.S. video games industry analyst, The NPD Group. "The growth in both the number of players across all gaming segments, as well as time spent gaming or watching gaming-related content, reflects the variety and depth of gaming experiences available regardless of device preferences, gaming interests or budget1."

As more gamers move online, often leveraging multiple connected platforms at once while gaming, the main challenges that threaten interruption of these online gaming experiences today are latency, congested networks, and internet connection speeds. The Nighthawk Pro Gaming XR1000 WiFi 6 router is designed with the capacity to improve the WiFi performance by up to 40% and reduce the ping rates up to 93% under a congested network, which fundamentally resolves the primary pain points for gamers and provides the best gaming experience possible.

WiFi 6 is the next generation of WiFi technology. Focused on increased capacity, WiFi 6 can manage a household full of connected devices. The technology is now included in many new devices including the flagship phone releases of top manufacturers and has also been confirmed to be included in the latest gaming platforms, such as the new Sony PlayStation 5.

Joining the highly acclaimed award-winning Nighthawk Pro Gaming line up, the new XR1000 is the best gaming solution for all your home network needs. With households impacted by working, learning and entertaining from home, networks have become strained with the demands of numerous screens streaming simultaneously. The congested network environment is not well suited for online gaming where the slightest of delays or interruptions could mean the end of a session. WiFi 6 (802.11ax) is designed to address the new challenges of modern households with their abundance of connected devices that are vying for network bandwidth. With faster, more reliable connections and a 4X increase in capacity, the dual-band WiFi 6 AX5400 allows for more devices to connect and stream simultaneously, without impacting speed or reliability. The Five (5) 10/100/1000 Mbps Gigabit Ethernet ports (1 WAN and 4 LAN) and powerful 1.50 GHz Triple-Core processor support more devices for better VR gaming, 4K streaming and more while boosting both wireless, wired, and USB performance.

With heightened online activity, the importance of protecting your network and privacy comes to the forefront. Now available on the Nighthawk Pro gaming XR1000 router, NETGEAR Armor cybersecurity is the most advanced cyber threat protection for your home network and connected devices. Activation includes a free 30-day trial, after the trial period, a yearly subscription of $69.99 USD is required to continue the service. NETGEAR Armor customers can upgrade their VPN from the free 200 MB of encrypted data traffic per day per device to unlimited encrypted data traffic for an additional yearly subscription of $39.99 USD.

Pricing and Availability
The Nighthawk Pro Gaming XR1000 WiFi 6 AX5400 router is now available for $349.99 USD from NETGEAR.com and other online retailers.

View at TechPowerUp Main Site

 

[TheLostSwede]

So much text, so little information.
I guess "gamers" don't care about specs...
Based on what's in the press release, this is already outdated, as it looks like it's using Broadcom's triple core Cortex-A7 SoC.

BCM6750

The BCM6750 is 2x2 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 Tri-Core ARM SoC

www.broadcom.com

Also, not a single port over 1Gbps in a $350 router is just a joke.

 

[sepheronx]

So much text, so little information.
I guess "gamers" don't care about specs...
Based on what's in the press release, this is already outdated, as it looks like it's using Broadcom's triple core Cortex-A7 SoC.

BCM6750

The BCM6750 is 2x2 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 Tri-Core ARM SoC

www.broadcom.com

Also, not a single port over 1Gbps in a $350 router is just a joke.

What would you recommend to me for a router? I don't want to be spending stupid amounts but I want with decent wifi and more control over my Telus branded router.

 

[TheLostSwede]

What would you recommend to me for a router? I don't want to be spending stupid amounts but I want with decent wifi and more control over my Telus branded router.

Price range? Any specific features you want?
I have an "old" Netgear Nighthawk X4S/R7800 that has been rock solid for years. It's still receiving software updates from Netgear and it has great third party firmware support from Voxel.
Never owned a more stable router. Not had to reboot it once due to it crapping out for no reason. The only time it gets restarted is if there's a firmware update.
Doesn't seem to be available in Canada any more, but it's quite cheap on Amazon in the US https://www.amazon.com/Netgear-R7800-100NAS-Nighthawk-Ethernet-Compatible/dp/B0192911RA/

 

[Caring1]

They can spell it DumaOS but i'm still going to read it as Dumass.

 

[sepheronx]

Price range? Any specific features you want?
I have an "old" Netgear Nighthawk X4S/R7800 that has been rock solid for years. It's still receiving software updates from Netgear and it has great third party firmware support from Voxel.
Never owned a more stable router. Not had to reboot it once due to it crapping out for no reason. The only time it gets restarted is if there's a firmware update.
Doesn't seem to be available in Canada any more, but it's quite cheap on Amazon in the US https://www.amazon.com/Netgear-R7800-100NAS-Nighthawk-Ethernet-Compatible/dp/B0192911RA/

well, i want a QoS that doesnt suck like my router. Plus I need something that will be having to reach a distance to my garage as well (I will be getting a second one for the garage to act as a bridge).

Plus the one telus gave us is starting to show many issues like constant wifi drop and if I dont artificially limit the DL speeds of lets say epic game store, the whole network goes to heck.

 

[TheLostSwede]

well, i want a QoS that doesnt suck like my router. Plus I need something that will be having to reach a distance to my garage as well (I will be getting a second one for the garage to act as a bridge).

Plus the one telus gave us is starting to show many issues like constant wifi drop and if I dont artificially limit the DL speeds of lets say epic game store, the whole network goes to heck.

Mine is about four years old now, not had a single issue with it, range is the same as when I got it, which is very good. I have a lot of weird limitations due to living in a three storey concrete, metal and rebar house, but weirdly enough I get a signal in the parking garage under the house, but not on the third floor in the house.
Still, look for something using QCA ARM based processors if you can't get the R7800, they tend to be a bit more pricey, but I have never had a router that has been as stable as this one.

 

[sepheronx]

Mine is about four years old now, not had a single issue with it, range is the same as when I got it, which is very good. I have a lot of weird limitations due to living in a three storey concrete, metal and rebar house, but weirdly enough I get a signal in the parking garage under the house, but not on the third floor in the house.
Still, look for something using QCA ARM based processors if you can't get the R7800, they tend to be a bit more pricey, but I have never had a router that has been as stable as this one.

thanks for the advice. I will see if I can find your router on the used market. I am gonna give Telus a call and tell them I just want a modem and to forget the terrible router.

 

[TheLostSwede]

thanks for the advice. I will see if I can find your router on the used market. I am gonna give Telus a call and tell them I just want a modem and to forget the terrible router.

Another option would be anything from Asus that Merlin supports.

About | Asuswrt-Merlin

www.asuswrt-merlin.net

Getting one of those, means that you're getting software support, which the manufacturers don't always give.
Those are all Broadcom based and in general have weaker SoCs than the QCA ARM based routers.
That said, something like the RT-AC68x should do the job, got one for my step mum, even though it's technically overkill for her usage.

Asus RT-AC68U Wireless AC1900 Dual-Band Gigabit Router : Amazon.ca: Electronics

Asus RT-AC68U Wireless AC1900 Dual-Band Gigabit Router : Amazon.ca: Electronics

www.amazon.ca

 

[AnarchoPrimitiv]

Should just call it the "1337 h4x0r edition"

I'm going to have to pick up a new wifi router soon, but I'd really like something with a 10GBase-T or SFP+ is acceptable even though I loathe the expense of DAC cables, port to connect to my switch (Netgear XS728T) so I can still have good speeds to the server. I prefer wired when possible, but guests and family are all about connecting a their wireless devices when they come over (though with covid that's not so much lately)... The real trick will be if I can get a router with 10GBase-T without spending $400.... Seeing this one at $350 without even a 2.5/5Gbe port makes me worried. I'd even be willing to accept a USB 3.1 GEN 2 10 Gbps port and connect a 5GBase-T adapter to it, but so far I have seen a USB port like that on a single router

 

[TheLostSwede]

Should just call it the "1337 h4x0r edition"

I'm going to have to pick up a new wifi router soon, but I'd really like something with a 10GBase-T or SFP+ is acceptable even though I loathe the expense of DAC cables, port to connect to my switch (Netgear XS728T) so I can still have good speeds to the server. I prefer wired when possible, but guests and family are all about connecting a their wireless devices when they come over (though with covid that's not so much lately)... The real trick will be if I can get a router with 10GBase-T without spending $400.... Seeing this one at $350 without even a 2.5/5Gbe port makes me worried. I'd even be willing to accept a USB 3.1 GEN 2 10 Gbps port and connect a 5GBase-T adapter to it, but so far I have seen a USB port like that on a single router

Why do you need 10Gbps between the router and switch? I presume you don't have an internet connection that exceeds 1Gbps? No offence, but the US largely have terrible internet speeds, although I'm aware some places have faster than Gigabit Internet access.
You could get this for $250 with a 10Gbps SFP+ port https://www.amazon.com/NETGEAR-Nighthawk-Quad-Stream-Quad-core-Compatible/dp/B01M12RE4A/
Also supported by Voxel and his/her firmware has a lot of performance fixes for the wired side of the routers that are supported.

 

[Squuiid]

As @TheLostSwede said, the Netgear R7800 is probably the best router they've ever made as far is stability is concerned. I have synchronous 1Gigabit internet from Hyperoptic and I get about 630Mbps from the R7800 when using Wi-Fi. Admittedly I only use it as an access point and use pfSense for routing.
This thing is fairly old now but still does incredibly well and, unlike any other Netgear I've ever owned, is rock solid stable. You just don't ever have to reboot it and it maintains throughput.

Should just call it the "1337 h4x0r edition"

I'm going to have to pick up a new wifi router soon, but I'd really like something with a 10GBase-T or SFP+ is acceptable even though I loathe the expense of DAC cables, port to connect to my switch (Netgear XS728T) so I can still have good speeds to the server. I prefer wired when possible, but guests and family are all about connecting a their wireless devices when they come over (though with covid that's not so much lately)... The real trick will be if I can get a router with 10GBase-T without spending $400.... Seeing this one at $350 without even a 2.5/5Gbe port makes me worried. I'd even be willing to accept a USB 3.1 GEN 2 10 Gbps port and connect a 5GBase-T adapter to it, but so far I have seen a USB port like that on a single router

You do know that your Netgear XS728T won't negotiate 2.5/5GbE I hope

 

[TheLostSwede]

As @TheLostSwede said, the Netgear R7800 is probably the best router they've ever made as far is stability is concerned. I have synchronous 1Gigabit internet from Hyperoptic and I get about 630Mbps from the R7800 when using Wi-Fi. Admittedly I only use it as an access point and use pfSense for routing.
This thing is fairly old now but still does incredibly well and, unlike any other Netgear I've ever owned, is rock solid stable. You just don't ever have to reboot it and it maintains throughput.

I envy you, I lived across the street from a HyperOptic enabled area last time I lived in London. Our building only had BT fibre and it was meh. 200/30 for some obscene price and I couldn't justify their 300/50 service as it was close to £100 plus the line rental...