Gaming router tested in 2023
You can find one in almost every household these days Router find, which you can use to dial into the Internet easily and conveniently. In most cases, a classic standard router is also completely sufficient - but demanding gamers in particular prefer to look for a special gaming router instead, which can convince with much better performance. But what exactly is a gaming router - and what advantages does it offer its owner? In our guide article below, we take a closer look at the increasingly popular routers and also tell you which criteria you should definitely consider when looking for the perfect device.
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ASUS TUF Gaming AX3000 V2 Dual Band Wi-Fi... |
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Asus RT-AX82U Gaming Router (Ai Mesh WLAN System,... |
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TP-Link Archer AX55 Wi-Fi 6 WLAN router, 2402... |
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NETGEAR Nighthawk Gaming Router WiFi 6 (AX5400... |
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Zyxel WiFi 6 router with AX1800 (NBG7510) dual-band... |
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| 6 |
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ASUS ROG Rapture GT6 AX10000 1-Pack Tri Band... |
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| 7 |
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GL.iNet GL-MT6000(Flint 2) WiFi 6 Router |... |
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| 8 |
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MSI Radix AX6600 WiFi 6 Tri-Band Gaming Router -... |
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| 9 |
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3000 Mbit/s WiFi 6 WLAN router, WAVLINK AX3000... |
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| 10 |
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Tenda AC6 Dual Band WiFi Router (867Mbit/s... |
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| 11 |
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ASUS Router WiFi 6 AiMesh RT-AX82U V2 AX5400 |
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| 12 |
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Linksys Hydra 6 Dual-Band WiFi 6 Mesh Router... |
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| 13 |
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TP-Link Archer AX53 Wi-Fi 6 WLAN router (2402... |
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| 14 |
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Tenda RX1 Pro Wi-Fi 6 WLAN router (AX1500 dual band... |
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| 15 |
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Speedport Pro Plus Gaming Edition |
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Gaming router – what is that anyway?
A gaming router, as its name suggests, is a special router that is specifically aimed at demanding gamers. Many video game lovers are familiar with the problem: you are playing an exciting online game, but the internet connection is interrupted again and the game stutters or completely crashes. This is not only quite annoying, but in the worst case it can even cost you the victory you thought was certain - which of course drives the player up in the palm of his hand, especially in online duels against friends or opponents from the World Wide Web.
Compared to a classic router, a special gaming router is designed to ensure that such events do not occur and the player can play his game without problems. They generate a significantly faster and also more stable Internet connection, which, conversely, can also be used to correct the very important ping times downwards. Conventional routers usually act as media servers and are able to manage the data rates in home networks - the most important setting options and a design that is usually relatively simple come along. Gaming routers, on the other hand, are the Ferrari among the routers available, setting impressive standards in terms of performance, equipment and functionality. It not only supports a significantly faster maximum speed when surfing, but is also able to effectively minimize interference sources caused by other signals in the WLAN network.
The Internet connection is much more stable when using a gaming router than is the case with a classic router, so that the player can concentrate perfectly on his game. But although gaming routers are primarily aimed at video game fans, they are also highly recommended in households with several people or connected devices: For example, if several computers, Smartphones, tablets or televisions connected via WLAN or LAN, this can quickly reach its limits due to the high data traffic. However, a gaming router is designed for such use, which makes it ideal for families with a comparatively high bandwidth usage.
The pros and cons of a gaming router
Even at first glance at a gaming router, it becomes clear that its design differs greatly from a classic router: it usually comes in a slightly futuristic style Housing therefore, which is equipped with several receiving antennas. These not only look cool, they also help to significantly strengthen the router's WiFi signal - this means that the WiFi signal can be received much more effectively, so that you don't have to buy an additional WiFi repeater to amplify it can.
The gaming router is also convincing when it comes to the maximum transmission speed: While a classic router usually achieves a maximum of 500 MBit/s, a gaming router easily achieves speeds of 1.000 MBit/s and more.
Probably the most important advantage of a gaming router, however, lies in the fact that the device is able to significantly reduce latency to external servers. Special geo-filters automatically localize the location of the device in order to shorten the distance to the respective gaming servers around the world. The router automatically searches for the server that is particularly close, which in turn reduces the ping value.
However, gaming routers also have two small disadvantages. On the one hand, there is the rather high price, which is often more than 200 euros - classic routers, on the other hand, are often only half as expensive. In addition, a gaming router is actually only really interesting for a relatively small group of buyers. This is mainly due to the fact that only very few households in Germany can achieve a bandwidth of more than 500 Mbit/s, where the router could clearly demonstrate its advantages. In addition, the standard router used does not necessarily have to be to blame for minor dropouts in the Internet connection: Often these are simply due to the poor broadband expansion in many places within Germany, which even an expensive gaming router cannot change.
These criteria must be considered when buying a gaming router
The Selection of gaming routers in specialist shops and in various online shops is so large that, as a layman, it is unfortunately difficult to keep track of things. We have therefore put together the most important criteria for you that you should definitely consider when looking for a suitable gaming router.
the ports
The ports are particularly important for the performance of a gaming router, because they make a significant contribution to a fast transfer rate. In contrast to conventional standard routers, a gaming router usually not only has the classic gigabit ports, but also the extremely fast 2,5 gigabit ports, which ensure the best possible ping - that's why that with the router the LAN is given priority over the WLAN.
The built-in antennas
If the Internet connection is not to be established via the classic LAN connection, but rather via WLAN, it is of course also important that the gaming router is equipped with several antennas. As a rule, three built-in antennas are already completely sufficient to be able to establish an excellent connection with a wide variety of connected devices. In special cases, however, it can also be worthwhile to purchase a gaming router that is equipped with five or six antennas.
Geo Filter
As mentioned above, a built-in geo-filter can also help get faster ping while gaming. Said filter ensures that the server closest to the player is used automatically. If no geo-filter is integrated, it can happen that the game manufacturer assigns the gamer a server that he feels is right. This can then also be a server from the USA, although the player is actually located in Europe - this would result in a higher ping, which would spoil the gaming experience.
Beamforming
So-called beamforming plays a role above all when the Internet connection is established via WLAN and thus via an antenna. With classic standard routers, the problem often arises that the bandwidth is massively reduced as soon as several end devices access the router via the same frequency. Gaming routers with beamforming feature, on the other hand, reliably destroy these sources of interference and thus effectively ensure that a perfect WLAN connection is established between the router and the connected computer.
QoS
When buying a gaming projector, you should also pay attention to whether it is equipped with the so-called QoS feature. The abbreviation stands for Quality of Service and allows the user to temporarily throttle other devices dialed into the network. For example, you can assign the highest bandwidth to a connected computer, while the other devices, such as smartphones, access a lower bandwidth.
Integrated VPN
Many gaming routers come with a built-in VPN. This virtual private network enables the user to access websites that are country-blocked, for example, which is the case with many streaming sites or foreign TV stations. Based on the IP address, the website visited is led to believe that the visitor is a resident of the respective country, although in reality he is in Europe, for example. Incidentally, the VPN also obscures your own IP address so that you leave no traces when surfing the net. Although you can book VPN services separately at any time from various providers over the Internet, a VPN integrated into the router has proven to be particularly user-friendly.
Design
Last but not least, for many buyers of a gaming router, its design also plays a decisive role. With its built-in antennas, such a device already looks pretty futuristic, but many manufacturers also rely on other optical aspects such as an elegant or modern housing or built-in LED lighting.
And finally ...
A special gaming router can be worthwhile both for demanding gamers and for households with several connected end devices. However, such a device only makes sense if there is a fast Internet connection of at least 100 Mbit/s in the home and the end device used can also process such a fast connection.
