Please help me make a good choice for my AC networking needs

markrb12

Distinguished
Aug 30, 2006
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I am looking into upgrading my wi-fi network to AC. I don't want to spend more than $150 and the lower the better. My current N300 setup will not work for the changes I want to make as there is no PCIe card that seems reliable with Win10.
I currently run an ethernet cable across my floor and I want to get rid of it.

I am the only one that will be using the network. It will have one PC on AC and one phone using N and the phone will only be used to upload 5MB of data a day.

The PC will be used to view video files off a server that are, at most, Blu-ray 1080P and to stream from the internet. USB3 would be great, but is not a deal killer.

I am leaning towards an AC1750 setup over an AC1900 or 2600 as I believe the last two are over kill, but I am willing to listen to reasons why I may be wrong.

Please help me decide the right device for me and those that may have similar needs.

Thanks,
Mark
 
Solution
For streaming, wired will always work better than wireless. You might think about some wired alternatives like powerline networking.

If you believe that only an AC adapter is reliable with Win10, then get one. You don't HAVE to change routers, your N300 would still work.

AC1900 is probably the sweet-spot right now on the price/performance curves. An R7000 or an RT-AC68U would be good choices.

kanewolf

Titan
Moderator
For streaming, wired will always work better than wireless. You might think about some wired alternatives like powerline networking.

If you believe that only an AC adapter is reliable with Win10, then get one. You don't HAVE to change routers, your N300 would still work.

AC1900 is probably the sweet-spot right now on the price/performance curves. An R7000 or an RT-AC68U would be good choices.
 
Solution