Enavigo

My contract with Verizon Fios was about to expire. I love Fios for having symmetric traffic and remarkable reliability (3 momentary outages in 14 years). Upon upgrading to their 200Mbps tier, I was told I can return their decent Actiontec router and save the $10/month rental fee. Seeing that you can easily recoup the cost of a new router I set out to get one.

I was surprised how exhausting finding the right router was and after trying out four devices (all highly recommended on Amazon), I finally found one that works.

The requirements were:

1. Modern WiFi: AC format faster than 1300Mbps. I did not need a mesh router as I have an old but otherwise fantastic Apple AirPort Extreme router that is on a wired connection covering the other half of my house.
2. Parental controls: With two teens in the house, I need to be able to shut Internet access down to individual devices and specific times, reactivating access the following morning.
3. DHCP Server: Standard on virtually all routers, I want to have static assignments to some machines in my house. I also want to specify my IP range.
4. Security patches: While the AirPort would have been just fine, Apple ceased issuing security updates after 8 years. The new router will need to be supported.
5. Works with Cisco AnyConnect VPN: Did not think this would a be challenge but apparently some routers cannot wing it with what is literally one of the most popular (if not THE) business VPNs. So yeah, I need that to make a living.
6. User interface: Apps are great. A web user interface normally offers more capabilities and control. If it’s usable – that’s a bonus.

Note that all my impressions were using the latest available firmware for each router. I connect directly to Verizon Fios via an Ethernet line to my Fios box in my garage.

The first router was a NETGEAR NightHawk R6700. Clocking in at AC1750, it seemed to be fast, from a reputable American company and naturally had great reviews. Setup was easy using NetGear’s modern app which handles many of the basics. What is evident the moment you log in to the router’s web interface is that the app puts a thick layer of lipstick on an aged pig.

Originally sold in 2016, the R6700 web interface looks straight out of 1999. Any changes to settings required a reboot (that lasts 30-50 seconds). In addition, NETGEAR does not have *built in* parental controls. They farm that task out, albeit with solid integration, to the Circle app. Circle is just great and clear but what you get from NETGEAR is a limited license to Circle “version 1”. The app lets you control device access manually. If you want to schedule internet access to individual devices, you need to pay. $50/year. For something you can do with your humble Verizon router. Which is not cool. So that would not work. To add to that, network throughput (on wired Ethernet) with 10 devices connected was disappointingly slow.

The benefit of having an old router is that the DD-WRT open source firmware on it to replace the outdated and limited firmware NETGEAR sells the device with. While not faint of heart, I really don’t feel like futzing around or doing the work NETGEAR was frankly too lazy to do in installing modern firmware.

Amazon Prime delivers the replacement a couple of days later: An ASUS RT-ACRH17. While not the main-mainstream router (it apparently uses an ‘exotic’ Qualcomm chipset) it looks good on Amazon reviews. Hooked up, the user interface looks a bit like something out of the Matrix. Not fresh but not as stale as the NETGEAR’s. Fine. It also has proper parental controls.

By the time I’m up and running (installed in the afternoon) and I get back to work, I try to connect to my office VPN. And umm… something is off. Nothing works. I disconnect the VPN and we’re back in business. I try another VPN endpoint, connect, and then – no Internet. Or office network. I naturally Google and see that there is an ocean of results to ‘ASUS Cisco AnyConnect’. Whatever. Impossible. I decide to reset the device to factory settings. Go through the setup again; connect to the VPN again and then something truly odd: The router just dies. I mean, not just the WiFi but the Ethernet ports are just dead. Amazon’s getting another router back…

Fed up, I decide to splurge a bit and went for the very highly rated Google Nest WiFi. This one is made by the one technology leader of the free world that is not Apple. Maybe this is the spiritual heir to the brilliance of the aging AirPort Extreme. And when I get it there is more than faint resemblance. It is so small and simple and yet very powerful (AC2400!). It’s also so small and simple it only has one wired LAN Ethernet port. So I also had to get another switch [Gigabit Ethernet all around, wires upgraded as part of this effort].

The Nest WiFi is different in many ways. You control via Google Home App. And the Google WiFi App. No really. Neither app controls everything. The UI is mostly clear. Getting up and running is quick and we’re happy. The VPN also works. Great, despite the fact that to control ANY function in the router your have to also accept Google’s user data collection which DOES share data with Google’s servers. About the router in your house. Uhhh, umm, I want to control the darn thing so I agree. Fine (not fine).

Then something happens and in the middle of a work meeting the entire house loses the Internet connection. Which is fair. Third time in 14 years Verizon is allowed to hiccup. But that exposes something very uncool:

• To control your router you need to use the apps
• To use the apps you need to have an Internet connection
• Without an Internet connection there is no way to connect to the router
  • There is a soothing yet informative blinking light (soft, rhythmic) telling you something is wrong

I repeat: No Internet = No Router.

To diagnose what’s wrong – umm – yeah, no.

I contact Google support (after Verizon restores the connection without my doing anything) just to be sure that I’m not crazy. They respond super quick. They even call me the next day to offer more help. But the bottom line is that there is no web interface and that yes, you need to be connected to Internet to do anything (via the apps) with the router. I trust Google but that this is just illogical. And not done by just any other router. Think different alright, but not this way. Another return thanks to Amazon Prime.

Fed up, I spread beyond the Amazon review world (which is becoming very questionable) and determine that the TP-Link Archer C2300 is a decent bet. A trip to Target this time, and I pick it up on sale (it’s getting old). I open the box. Something is clattering inside of the router’s body (like a loose piece of plastic). So be it. I plug it to the Verizon outlet and it just works. And VPN just works. And the network speed is really fast.

So while the lights on the router itself are just the opposite ones of the ones that according to manual need to be on, it just works. The web UI is quick and clear and sensible. There are parental controls just work. And it does not ask for any subscription fees or looks like 1999. While it is a bummer that this is not an American-made/controlled router (it’s VERY Chinese) – it just works. So it’s my keeper and my recommendation. Not thinking different. Working.