The Asus RT-AC88U ($299.99) is a dual-band 802.11ac router with a massive feature set and an equally large price tag. It uses Multi-User Multiple Input, Multiple Output (MU-MIMO) technology to serve multiple Wi-Fi clients simultaneously without sacrificing bandwidth.

Loaded with ports and management features; Multi-User Multiple Input, Multiple Output (MU-MIMO) enabled; Speedy throughput performance in testing

Expensive; Middling file-transfer speeds on our tests

About half-year ago review of ASUS RT-AC3200 wireless router was published on our pages. About a model that came to our laboratory today it is known that it has a wireless formula AC3100 that means maximum theoretical wireless data transmission speed equal to 3.1 Gbps. What is it, a setback?

High data transmission speeds in both wireless ranges; Ability of port aggregation; High speeds of IPv6 traffic handling; Availability of QoS and AiProtection mechanisms; Support of MU-MIMO; High access speeds to data on external USB storage; Availability of high-performance VPN-server and client,...

Capabilities of port aggregation are strongly restricted; The web-interface is not completely translated

At the time of writing, the ASUS PCE-AC88 4×4 Wireless AC3100 PCIe Adapter can be yours for just $119.34 at NewEgg , ￡89.99 at Scan Computers , and €96.99 through Geizhals . A more than fair price for one of the most advanced WiFi cards available.

Great performance; Great looks with the large red heatsink; Remote antenna mounting with base; SFF compatible; Fair price

Antenna base cable is fixed; so you're limited to the included 1-meter distance

There's nothing much we can complain on the RT-AC88U except for the price itself and in fact, the RT-AC88U did a pretty good job in overall. No compromise in terms of the internet connection speed, excellent wireless signal strength as well as coverage, Significant improvement in latency during ping...

Easy to setup; Dual band support; Excellent wireless signal strength; Excellent features; Looks great; Able to support more devices connected via wireless connection; USB storage sharing that act like a NAS for quick and easy file sharing

Hefty price tag

For larger houses, sometimes the distance of a desktop PC to the router is too far for an Ethernet cable, or sometimes you just don't want to have unsightly cables around. That's when you use a Wi-Fi adapter like ASUS' latest PCE-AC88. There's a lot to like about the PCE-AC88, like the packaging.

Flexible placement; Great reception; Faster speeds

Needs an AC router to perform well

A second wave of 802.11ac wireless routers have begun to appear, and the new must-have feature is MU-MIMO, short for Multiple User, Multiple Input, Multiple Output. We already reviewed the first two MU-MIMO routers we could get our hands on from , and now Asus has entered the fray with a dual-band...

After running hundreds of speed tests and measuring Wi-Fi coverage over more than 20,000 square feet of yard, I'm confident we've put the RT-AC88U and RP-AC68U through their paces. We may have even pushed them to their limits in some areas.

The ASUS RT-AC88U is an AC3100 class router featuring a mouth-watering eight gigabit ports supporting link aggregation. One of the LAN ports can also be converted into a WAN port providing support for a dual-WAN configuration.

The ASUS RT-AC88U is a unique and great looking solution that fits between the AC2600 and AC5300 markets. While this router may be a bit early in terms of client support, it does offer eight Gbe ports along with future-proof wireless technology.

The Asus PCE-AC88 Dual-Band AC3100 Wireless PCI-E Adapter is the company's take on a premium wireless NIC for those who can't connect their desktops directly to their routers but still demand fast network speeds.