TP-Link Archer C50 AC1200 Dual Band Wireless Cable Router, Wi-Fi Speed Up to 867 Mbps/5 GHz + 300 Mbps/2.4 GHz, Supports Parental Control, Guest Wi-Fi, VPN (Black)

This router (Archer C80) probably represents the last generation of Wifi-5 only devices, and as such is likely to be among the best we'll see of this kind. This device's pricing (~4.5K at the time of writing) puts it in the entry level, but make no mistake, this wireless router should work perfectly fine for most people. It's got a 3x3 MU-MIMO radio, with beam-forming, and every other wireless feature that is associated with Wave2 Wifi 5 routers. While it has excellent hardware features, note that it's quite light on advanced software features - so if you're looking for some specific feature, read the documentation before purchasing. As a basic wireless router, this device is almost perfect. I used this device to replace an aging TP-Link Archer C50 (v1), which only had a 100Mbit WAN port, and which couldn't handle more than 80Mbps over Wifi under the best of circumstances. I had two important considerations when purchasing this device: 1. To remove any kind of bottleneck on the 5Ghz frequency band. 2. To improve the usability of Wifi in a distant room (~10m, separated by 3 walls and furniture). ## Close-to-mid range performance After replacing the C50 with this device, my PC which is about 3m from the router, and seperated by 1 wall gets a flawless 150Mbps that my ISP offers (April 2021 Update: My ISP now offers 300 Mbps, and that works fine as well). External reviews indicate that this device should handle at least 600Mbps on 5Ghz. I have zero complaints about 5Ghz performance. 2.4Ghz is usually a "backup" band for these days, since all recent devices support 5Ghz 802.11ac at minimum. On my Poco F1, at ~3m line of sight, I get about 120 Mbps on 2.4Ghz, which I think is perfectly fine, considering the limitations of this frequency band. I'm always using 5Ghz nowadays anyway, which is now limited only by ISP's plan speed. ## Long-range performance In the more distant room (~10m, blocked by 3 walls and furniture), I have an old Dell laptop only has a 2.4Ghz radio. This couldn't even get a reliable Wifi signal with the older C50 router. While picking this device, I'd paid close attention to the wireless sensitivity specifications that TP-Link helpfully provides on its website, and noted that this device, while entry-level, sports some of the best numbers in its entire range, sometimes beating their highest end devices. I had high expectations from this router, and it did not let me down. After switching to the Archer C80, the old Dell laptop was able to get a solid connection with around 15 to 20 Mbps on the 2.4 Ghz band. However, since that speed wasn't good enough, I purchased a TP-Link T9UH adapter (AC1900) to see if that would improve things, and indeed it did. With the upgraded Wifi receiver, even the distant room got a reliable ~140 Mbps on the 5Ghz band. In this room, even my Poco F1 is unable to stay connected to the 5Ghz signal, so it probably also has to do with the excellent performance of the T9UH adapter, which is also a modern 3x3 MU-MIMO device that supports beamforming; the router and the adapter have matching specs. ## Conclusion At this price point, I don't think there is any alternative to this device. The closest modern TP-Link alternative is the Archer AX10, a first-generation Wifi-6 (802.11ax) device that I didn't have a use for. I don't own a single Wifi-6 device and it'll be a few years yet before Wifi-6 devices become commonplace. Also, Wifi-5 (5Ghz, 802.11ac) is clearly good enough for a couple of years; I doubt that Gigabit internet connections will become standard in the short-term and a ~500 Mbps connection from the ISP should be fine for ~99.99% of people for the next couple of years - a speed which the C80 should be able to handle perfectly fine.

Decided on buying this Router from TP-Link after days of research, reading reviews and talking to many people regarding different models. Was on a 20 Mbps connection with a Netgear N300 router since 2016 which used to suffice for moderate usage till now. However, with increase in the number of devices like Smart TV, 2 iPads and a laptop etc, it necessitated an upgrade. Also, considering the current work-from-home scenario which is bound to continue for the foreseeable future as well, the internet usage was being stretched to it's limit and the trusted Netgear router simply couldn't match up to the increased bandwidth demand. To capitalise on the current situation, our current ISP came out with interesting Fibre broadband plans and we opted for a 75 mbps connection. That in turn needed a new router to utilize it's optimum potential. Finally zeroed in on the TP-Link Archer C80 after reading some horror stories of other available routers. Was also tempted to buy the AX1500 considering there's barely any price difference, but then came across a few reviews which stated that Wifi 6 is not entirely successfully implemented and might prove to be an hindrance to use with our current range of devices. Order delivered by Amazon within a day. Full marks for the seamless delivery as always. Prime has truly been a boon. Installed the Router today. Installation via Tether App was seamless. ISP guy helped with the PPPOE sign-in process and released the MAC ID which was bound to our old Router. The whole process was done in 10 mins and we were online. The dual bands are truly a boon. Have divided the devices at home equally between 2.4G and 5G as per usage. As the router is close to the TV unit, have connected it to 5G and also alternatively connected via the Ethernet cable (just in case). Speed tests: Started off by streaming 4k content simultaneously on 2 devices connected to 5G. Played seamlessly even with other devices like mobiles etc being connected. Have attached a few pictures for reference. - Sitting near the Router, 5G Download speed is 77 mbps and Upload is 75.4 mbps. - 5G speed tested in the bedroom with a wall in between: Download 72.4 mbps and Upload 74.9 mbps. - 2.4G speed in the same room as the Router is: Download 68.3 mbps and Upload 79.2 mbps. (This is quite surprising as a few reviews mentioned 50-55 mbps will be the threshold for 2.4G. Used to get a maximum of 45 mbps download on my old N300). - Speed Test via the Ethernet cable provided in thr box connected to the TV: Download 78 mbps and Upload 75 mbps. Couldn't have asked for more really. This seems to be totally ideal. Build quality of the device is decent and the antennas seem well enough to do the job, however would have preferred that they were placed like other TP-Link models like the Archer A6, so it would have been easier to move them in preferred directions. The LED lights are a little weirdly placed and not bright enough. Maybe I'm used to the prominent lights on my old Router. These are a blink-and-miss sort and you have to bend a little to check in case there's an issue. One big element missing in this device is a USB port which is absolutely essential in today's age and expected to be included for this price range. Wonder what's the reason behind giving it a miss. I have sealed the extra LAN ports with tape to protect from dust or moisture. It's a good practice. The outer design of the router is quite sophisticated and stylish, however I'm a little worried of dust accumulating in the intricate design on the top portion. Functionally though, this seems to be a real good offering from TP-Link. Hope this device lives up to expectations in coming days. All-in-all, seems to be a worthy investment for the next few years, considering an internet plan upgrade, if any. Hope I touched upon major points which might help other interested consumers in making a choice. This product is RECOMMENDED! :)

Using it since 7 plus years, Great modem for the budget & limiter range. I'll recommend.

It does work perfectly fine.

Very good router. I used it as range extender. Really satisfying with the result. Speed is almost the same as in main JIO fiber router. Range of the signal is also good.

Actually very good but 5g signal isn't as strong as I expected. Led turn off at night is a cherry on top

Although the product claims Wireless 300 Mbps (2.4 GHz), 867 Mbps (5 GHz), the speed does not go over 90 Mbps. We have 200 Mbps connection. I have worked with the internet service provider (ACT) for a week, after lots of gymnastics with the C50 router we could not get it to work. The service provider (ACT) tried with their router Archer C5 on the same wire and we got 220 Mbps. Seems like the product is mislabeled or defective. I called Tech support of tp-link, only to find out that the product supports only 100 Mbps. It took me 10 days to figure out the problem, and now the Amazon return window is gone by a day. Would be good if you could replace Archer C50 with one that would give me up to 300 Mbps.

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