Apologies if this isn't the best community for this question, I wasn't sure where else to put it.
I am looking to replace my WiFi router. It will only have a few devices on the wireless side, with the majority of my network data going between wired devices. Any gaming or latency-sensitive stuff will be on a wired device as well. The range doesn't have to be all that much, the total square-footage it needs to cover is pretty small, and there is nothing wifi-blocking to deal with (no metal/brick internal walls, etc). The only part that might be somewhat picky is: I either want good customization/configuration options or the ability to install a custom router OS (last I checked, openwrt is still popular?). Also, there are a couple older devices that I want to be able to connect still that only support up to 802.11n. I am very price sensitive.
From my looking so far, I've found
- TP-Link Archer A7, which supports openwrt, but I don't think supports WiFi 6
- TP-Link Archer AX10/AX1500, which does support WiFi 6, but I can't find info about openwrt support
- TP-Link AC1200 A6 V3, which is dirt cheap but I can't find info on openwrt support, and I can't tell what WiFi version it supports
I don't think I've used a TP-Link router before so any opinions there would be welcome (apologies if I butchered the naming scheme on the routers, it seems they all have several A___ numbers associated with them); they are at the top of my list currently due to their price and having the features I need.
For customer router, you can't go wrong with Asus. It has thriving community firmware (AsusWRT-Merlin), which really open up the device without sacrificing usability and the original routers' features. Asus also help with the project and the open source maintainers have full access to the routers original source code. IIRC flashing Merlin doesn't void the router warranty.
The drawback is Asus routers are more expensive than TP-Link. But after owning several TP-Link routers (mainly because they're cheap), I don't recommend them and I think you should spend a bit more money to get an Asus router instead.
If you're interested, buy an Asus router supported by AsusWRT-Merlin (specifically the AX models of you want wifi 6): https://asuswrt-merlin.net/
Thanks for the suggestion. I wasn't aware of AsusWRT-Merlin, which would (in theory) open up ASUS routers. Having said that, and looking at the list on their website and checking prices, it is definitely out of the question. They range from "way too expensive" to "astronomically and absurdly expensive" (some are pushing $600USD).
If your getting a TP-Link router for the purpose of installing openwrt, be extra careful with selecting the router to buy and note their hardware revision. TP-Link has a habit of naming different routers with similar name, so if you're not careful you might ended up buying an incompatible router.
Thanks, I'll keep that in mind!