ASUS fanbois have been all worked up about the RT-AC88U, judging from SNBForums discussions. But neither our chamber nor real life tests provide reason for such excitement, at least on the basis of wireless performance. What Forum posters seem most excited about is that the router just works .

I bought this to replace a six month old Netgear R7500. I was so fed up with that. It kept loosing settings and needed a reboot. It was running the latest FW too. Anyway, I saw a review of this and have many other ASUS products all of which perform very well. This router is the mutts.

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.

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

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

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. However, each client must contain a MU-MIMO-compatible network adapter in order to take advantage of the technology. The router is equipped with numerous Gigabit LAN ports and multiple USB ports. The RT-AC88U($209.78 at Amazon) offers a wealth of management options in a thoughtfully designed user interface and delivers blazing throughput on both the 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands. It's our top pick for high-end routers. Design and Features The RT-AC88U is a nice-looking router. It measures 3.3 by 11.8 by 7.4 inches (HWD) and uses a matte-black housing, with a beveled top and angular sides. The front of the router is home to LED indicators for power, wireless activity for both bands, Internet (WAN) connectivity, Wi-Fi Protecte...

The Asus RT-AC88U is a pricey dual-band router that is packed with features. It supports MU-MIMO technology and delivered solid 5GHz throughput in our tests.

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

ASUS has a number of routers doing the rounds currently that are aimed at the gamer, with the ‘dead spider' (or AC5300) being the iconic one in terms of design. While the RT-AC88U that we got our hands on does not have the looks of the aforementioned router, it is itself no ugly duckling, and does...

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.

Hard not to like this wireless router. Fast, easy to use and loaded with features.

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.