What is the Best Gaming Router Under 100 Dollars?

What is the best gaming router under 100 dollars? There are so many available it can get overwhelming trying decide. All technical terminology aside you want a router that can optimize your connection while being able to provide a stable network. How about a router that can do both and cover a long range through your house? You end up with more questions than answers when researching.

To make things easier I am going to break it down in three different ranges. Today we are going to cover what is the best gaming router under 100 dollars. Most of the time a router’s true capabilities gets lost in all the advertising.

A 500 dollar router may have slightly more features for Wi-Fi but what really matters is latency. What is unfortunate is latency will not improve by that much with a simple upgrade of your router. Interested to find out more about latency? Check out my post right here.

First I explain what makes a router the best within this dollar range. Next we discuss the key specifications of the TP-Link AC1900 MU-MIMO Dual-Band Wi-Fi router. With both of those topics done with we can go over why this TP-Link Wi-Fi router model is the top choice.

What makes a router the best?

Versatility is the key component in making a router the best. While wireless network is a fun subject for me to talk about it is not for many so I will try my best to make it short and sound less boring than what it is.

Your router is a part of your point of presence or POP. A point of presence is a collection of modems and other equipment in a local area. In most cases just a modem, router and whatever ISP or Internet Service Provider you choose. Your POP behaves like a local gateway to your ISP’s network.

So what does all that nonsense mean and how is it relevant? Well this means that your router serves as an access point. This is relevant because an access point is a station that sends and receives data to and from a Wi-Fi network.

Each router has a wireless standard or type. Depending on the wireless type your Mbps and range of coverage will vary. Sometimes a router will support multiple types other times they will support only one single standard.

802.11b is a wireless type that allows transmission of data at up to 54 Mpbs for 300-500 feet from an access point. The 802.11n type permits up to 140 Mbps. There are all types of wireless standards the list goes on.

This is why I said versatility is crucial towards making the best router. The more wireless standards a router supports the better. In most places ISP options are limited. Having a versatile router can help make things go much more seamlessly.

TP-Link AC1900 Archer A9 Key Specifications.

tp-link-ac1900-mu-mimo-dual-band-wi-fi-routerThere are other key specifications that help determine a router’s versatility. The TP-Link AC1900 MU-MIMO Dual-Band Wi-Fi router helps to encapsulate this idea with its key specifications down below.

802.11ac Wave2 Wi-fi – 600 Mpbs on the 2.4 GHz band and 1300 Mpbs on the 5GHz band.

  • Dual-band Wi-Fi and Wave2Wi-Fi MU-MIMO combined are able to support a broad range of devices and traffic up to 1.9 Gbps. Gaming and streaming 4K are able to performed lag free.

MU-MIMO Technology – Three simultaneous data streams help your devices achieve optimal performance by making communication more efficient.

  • Features such as Airtime Fairness and QoS work together in the background optimizing your network traffic.

Boosted Wi-Fi Coverage – Beamforming technology delivers a highly efficient wireless connection.

  • The beamforming technology and three external high gain antennas allow for a wide and consistent coverage.

Beyond Security – The Archer A9 goes beyond traditional network security to provide features such as Parental Controls, Access Control and a VPN server.

  • Controlling your network security is made easy with all three features. The firewall is a mandatory feature and the guest network is a nice additional feature.

Intelligent Connection – Smart Connect directs clients to less congested bands and AirTime Fairness optimizes the time usage.

  • Smart Connect automatically optimizes your device’s connection by switching it to the fastest Wi-Fi band. AirTime Fairness prevents older devices from slowing down your Wi-Fi, ensuring a lag free network.

Alexa and IFTTT – Turn on guest Wi-Fi with Alexa voice control and use IFTTT to trigger actions whenever devices connect or disconnect from your network.

  • Take even more control of your network with voice control and IFTTT. What is nice is that this an optional feature.

Why This TP-Link Wi-Fi Router Model is the Best.

The versatility this router offers is a great value for the price. Versatility is important to have in a router so you can have an adaptable network. This is better to have when you have a wide range of devices connected to the network. Ideally this router would perform best within a small home.

Having an Alexa device connected to this router is completely optional and only required for using the voice control feature. The only downside is if you do not already own an Alexa device and you want to use the voice control feature you would need to purchase an Alexa Device. That bumps up the price to slightly over a 100 dollars.

Now I know the whole point of this was to be under 100 dollars but the features and transmitting power this router has is certainly worth adding a couple more bucks as opposed to a couple a hundred.

Setup and management can be easily achieved through TP-Link’s web interface or the tether app. The tether app allows you to manage your network settings on your mobile devices as well.

Simplicity and versatility are what make this Wi-Fi router stand out. Simple for users to set up and mange. Versatile enough that it can keep up with a broad range of network activity all happening at once.

Keep your router needs to the basics and you should have no trouble finding the right every home network is different. Every network should have a router that can accommodate your networks traffic reliably. That’s my answer hope it helps. Have any relevant questions or comments feel free to drop it below.

TP-Link AC1900 MU-MIMO Dual-Band Wi-Fi Router Rating
  • Features
  • Versatility
  • Simplicity
4

TP-Link AC1900 MU-MIMO Dual-Band Wi-Fi Router Rating

Product Review: TP-Link AC1900 MU-MIMO Dual-Band Wi-Fi Router

Product Description: This router can get the most out of your network utilizing all kinds of included features. From high speed dual-band to optimizing your device’s connection. You can play video games peacefully knowing your stability, coverage, and speed of your device’s connection stays reliable regardless of other traffic activity on the network like a device streaming in 4K. Practical reasons aside this wi-fi router has nice aesthetic design making it look as capable as it is.

Availability: Check a local retailer for latest availability.

8 thoughts on “What is the Best Gaming Router Under 100 Dollars?”

  1. Thanks for helping me make up my mind, there are so many wifi-routers on the market is makes it impossible to choose the right model. The TP-Link AC1900 MU-MIMO Wi-Fi router, really gives more bang for your buck. My main concern with a wifi-router is the stability and buffering and this model eliminates both those problems. To be able to play games without having to worry about network fluctuations. Thanks for the great review and for making my life much easier, you’ve just saved me an immense amount of time. 

    Reply
  2. For speed and a reliable connection, this router is really not half-bad. In fact, I’ll be a glass-half-full kind of guy and state that this router is really good, especially for the cost-effective price of $80.00. For me, it’s all about range, as I love using my WiFi connection while cutting grass in the spring and summer, so as long as the coverage remains, I’ll be good to go. 

    Reply
    • As long as the beamforming is functioning the wi-fi coverage will remain stable. The beamforming technology is designed to stream the wi-fi connection directly towards any connected device. The Airtime Fairness feature helps manage and optimize the connection of any device connected to the network making the wireless connection more reliable. Thanks for visting Todd!

      Reply
  3. Hi! Thank you for opening my eyes concerning routers. Up to this point I truly believed that we needed an expensive router in order to enhance our network. Now I understand how money can get spent on a router model that may not be needed. I’ll pay special attention on versatility from here on.

    I’m impressed on how affordable the TP-Link AC1900 MU-MIMO Dual-Band Wi-Fi router really is. I appreciate the review.

    Reply
    • Your welcome Henry! I am glad that I helped you get a better understanding of routers. The main problem with choosing routers is the limitations of the hardware, software and support. Some have security flaws, others suffer from low quality components, the list can go on. For the price and technical capabilities this router stood out as the best.

      Reply
  4. Hi Kevin

    After reading this review, I learned a lot about this product. I think that this is a very useful product for its price range. The router is an important product in the internet world and the gaming industry. I have experience with many types of routers in the market but after reading your review, I now understand what the best in the should be including.

    Thank you for writing this informative review.

    Reply
    • Your welcome! Having the best is not a must but it is nice to know what is the best. I am pleased to see that I have helped further your understanding of routers.

      Reply

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