ASUSRT-BE92U BE9700 Tri-Band WiFi 7 Router, Supports New 320MHz Bandwidth & 4096-QAM, MLO, AI WAN Detection, AiMesh Support, Subscription-Free Network Security & Comprehensive VPN Features

The Asus RT-BE92U is a solid, high-performance router. I upgraded to the latest firmware (Version 3.0.0.6.102_37563, dated 2025/06/27), and I haven’t experienced any issues since. It looks like this firmware has resolved the intermittent reboot issue that some users were experiencing in earlier versions.Setup was quick and easy, and the web interface is user-friendly for both beginners and advanced users. Wi-Fi coverage is excellent, speeds are consistently fast, and the connection has been rock solid even with multiple devices streaming and gaming simultaneously.I subscribed to a 2Gbps internet service, and this router squeezes every last drop of speed out of it — both wired and wireless performance are top-notch. One pleasant surprise is that it runs noticeably cooler than the TP-Link router I used for the past four years — even under heavy load.Highly recommended if you’re looking for a reliable, future-proof Wi-Fi 7 router.

I thought I had reviewed this router some time ago, but apparently I forgot to do it. I bought one in December 2017 and one in March, 2018. Both are being used and are set up in my two-story, 3100 sq-ft house, in router+AP mode to provide high strength 5 GHz coverage for the entire house. I'm not using AiMesh mode and haven't tried it. These have been great routers for my needs. Fast, inexpensive, reliable.I started with just one RT-AC86U that replaced my RT-AC3100 that had replaced my RT-AC68U, and I found that, overall, RT-AC86U provided better range and speed for both the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands than either of those two routers for multiple types of devices (Mac laptop, Android phone, iPad). I did a fairly extensive set of tests that can be found on the SNB forums. I was able to connect in the far bedrooms on the 2.4 GHz band with just a single router and had no problem doing typical internet surfing, but while the connection strength and speed was better than the two previous routers, it still wasn't what I wanted.After doing a fair bit of reading, I realized that no single router would provide the 5 GHz coverage that I wanted in the far bedrooms, so I bought a second RT-AC86U, and set it up in AP mode at a location suitable to provide good signal strength in the far bedrooms. Running in main+AP mode requires a dedicated ethernet connection between the two routers. Running this cable is easy for some, but not others. AiMesh is an option for those who don't have the option of running an ethernet cable. For the main AC86U, I have both the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz radios enabled, and the satellite AC86U has only the 5 GHz radio enabled. I did this because the 2.4 GHz band on the main AC86U does sufficiently cover the entire house.This dual router setup has been 100% reliable since the day I set it up. My router settings are fairly simple. No attached storage because I have a dedicated NAS. I have several ports on my "server" computer forwarded. The VPN server on the router is enabled, and I use it routinely without issue. Most of the other bells and whistles are disabled. I'm not using traffic monitoring, nor am I using AiProtection. No gamers on my network. I have a typical range of devices connecting - several computers, several phones, security cameras, NAS, printer. All work without issue. WiFi speeds with a strong signal are as good as can be expected. My MacBookPro with 3x3 5 GHz consistently has a 1300 mbps link speed in the vicinity of either router, and transfers to/from my server computer from this laptop go at 70 MB/s. LAN speeds over ethernet are quite fast. If I set up jumbo frames, I can saturate the 1GB/s ethernet between my server computer and NAS in both read and write mode. Its a bit slower with a standard MTU.I will say that obtaining good hand-off between the two AC86Us as people move from location to location in the house took a bit of tuning. I had to enable the Roaming Assistant option on the main AC86U to kick devices off it when the 5 GHz signal strength falls below -66 dBm. Something like this has to be done because most devices don't readily disconnect from one access point until signal strength is in the pits, even when there is another high strength access point in the vicinity.To summarize again, this is a great, inexpensive, high performance router in my experience.04/05/2020 UPDATEI'm puzzled by the nearly 20% 1-star reviews because I now have four of these in service, two at my house and two at my cabin (large property), and all of them work perfectly. Either I've been really lucky with all four, or there is something about the settings and/or other equipment for some people that is causing issues.07/21/2021 UPDATEMy four RT-AC86Us continue to work flawlessly. Performance and functionality of the devices continue to improve as ASUS and Merlin continue to improve the firmware for this router and other ASUS routers. At the current price of $150, this is an outstanding router to have even considering that AX (WIFI 6) routers are now available. IMHO, WIFI 6 is a bit of a gimmick. 98% of people will not benefit from WIFI 6 even if your laptop/phone/tablet are WIFI 6. There just aren't many needs for that kind of speed, and the reality is that the half-duplex nature of all wifi along with the additional error checking result in a data transmission latency that reduces the value of a very high speed wifi protocol.

I purchased the ASUS Wi-Fi 7 router to use as an independent router behind my AT&T-provided gateway for both 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz networks. Setup was incredibly smooth, and the build quality is excellent. Compared to my previous mid-range and top-tier TP-Link routers, the ASUS feels more refined, stable, and better made.Unfortunately, in my setup — with the ASUS behind the AT&T router — I experienced some interruptions during Zoom calls. I’m not certain if the cause was my ISP, the double-router configuration, or something else.If you can use it as your main router without the limitations of a provider’s gateway, I think this ASUS would be a great choice for both performance and quality.

ASUS AC2900 RT-AC86U RouterThe ASUS AC2900 RT-AC86U out if the box experience was not the best. I initially tried to set-up the router as a LAN only, but could not get into the GUI interface. Connecting a LAN cable directly from the PC’s LAN port to the router did get me to the GUI screen, but I could not seem to sign-in the routers connections names and passwords and the GUI name and password. OK, it seems to maybe need the modem connected to do its thing, so I waited till the next day for the modem.The 1,2,3 set-up failed to receive the SIM card settings for the Netgear LB1120 modem like is was supposed to, according to the instructions. And, I STILL could not get into the GUI, no modem connection and no router. I tested the Netgear LB1120 modem by plugging it directly into the PC’s LAN port and immediately I was on the Internet. The modem and line cable is fine.I could only assign a cellular name and password, but the screen to assign a GUI name and password would not allow entry into the data fields, there was no getting past this point. I struggled with this for several HOURS trying various things. I gave up and called ASUS support. I've NEVER called support on any product, ever. This one had me stumped.ASUS support goes through a methodical process as though the product works and it is “you” that is broken and that’s probably true most of the time, too. I was hoping for that. When we got to the GUI activation, again, I can’t get access to the data fields to assign a GUI name and password. The tech said, “that’s very strange”. Yep, that’s WHY I called you! We reset the router and rebooted numerous times. He suggested another browser, so we tried Firefox. Same results. I was put on hold for twenty minutes and he returned and suggested ANOTHER browser. Google Chrome was thrown out but I don’t have that loaded and he suggested Internet Explorer. He was getting frustrated as the issue wasn’t “me” and now we had to THINK. He said to wait, put me on hold, and just disappeared. Thirty minutes went by and I called back.The next tech did the same exact routine only to get stuck in the same place. I suggested browsers and he said that’s got nothing to do with it. The manual states Internet Explorer, FireFox, Safari, Google Chrome as valid browsers. Edge isn’t listed so I use FireFox hoping it was that simple.I mentioned the previous tech suggested yet a third browser so he said, “sure, why not” (figuring he would prove it wasn’t the browser?). Well, the fossil that Internet Explorer WORKED! I immediately updated the firmware while on the line to make sure that that worked from the unzipped file I had on the desktop…no problems. We are FINALLY running.If it was the firmware doing it, I’ll never know, as it is a catch-22, you can’t update the firmware BEFORE you get into the GUI. A newer stock browser may not have the issue with later firmware? I don’t know. Now that it is initialized properly, FireFox DOES WORK to sign in the my account using the GUI name and password.It WAS the browser, but why? This is a new piece of hardware, on a new AMD 2600X PC with a new X470 motherboard and a fully updated W10 install with all the current updates. How is it that an old browser is the only one that worked (Maybe Google Chrome may work)? Who would put-up with all this before returning this router and getting the Netgear equivalent?Using the browser as a GUI may be an issue as ASUS has no control over the browser, obviously, and updates to the browser seems to have crippled their use in my case. But “my case” is everyone’s case as PC’s auto update. And, the initial uze of FireFox failed, but after the GUI was initialized with IE, FireFox now works to sign in.How to rate this product? I can’t rate it too well as people would have returned the product for another one, and got stuck again, or simply would have gone to another brand. That’s too bad as it is a great router once it is set-up. I read the ONE star ratings FIRST so maybe people will find this resolution if I use one star. Just maybe someone will find out how to get around the issue I had if their browser “updates” fall in the same spot mine are. Who would think to try several browsers? ASUS didn’t even really suspect them as at fault. You can ding me for one star, but I tried to get the issue KNOWN so you can work around it easier than I did. If you can’t fill in the BOXED fields, it isn’t you!HOW DOES IT WORK – This is a wonderful router once past the browser / GUI interface glitch. I selected this model as it uses a faster CPU, and figured it would future proof better, although the next standard routers are out there for serious money…and nothing uses that the new wireless standard yet. The current speeds are plenty fast for a home network.I get super coverage and stable performance on either channel. I use the 2.4 Ghz channel as it is likely the most stable and goes through more walls. I don’t have speed issues to the 5 Ghz channel is there if needed. I am no where near stressing it, as I have two hardwired connections and four wireless connections. It sits upright so FAR LESS desktop space is used. The Netgear LB1120 LTE modem is used in the WAN port and works like a charm on all connected devices to reach the Internet at LTE speeds. I use the LB1120 on T-mobile SIM card just fine for those that might want to know. OK, it looks like an ant or something but that’s OK. It sits unobtrusively on my desktop doing its thing.The GUI, once working (whew) is chock full of stuff. Stuff I won’t worry about till I need to. Like a road map, only a few of the lines are used and looking at all of them is confusing. But, I did read through the online .PDF manual and this router is very adaptable to different needs. The manual sent with the router is just set-up only, you need to go online to get a real manual. There is no CD or useful manual with the router. That isn’t the best as much as this router can do.