There's no need to pay a fortune for a decent entry-level Wi-Fi 7 router, as TP-Link's recently announced Archer BE3600 is now priced at a bargain $99, making it a promising and affordable option for both consumers and SMBs.
The Archer BE3600 operates on dual-band frequencies, delivering speeds of up to 2,882Mbps on the 5GHz band and 688Mbps on the 2.4GHz band. It is equipped with four external antennas with Beamforming technology, which increases signal strength and coverage. It offers Multi-RUs, 4K-QAM and Multi-Link Operation (MLO) for simultaneous data reception on different frequencies and channels.
Archer BE3600 supports VPN clients and servers and can run both VPN and regular Internet connections at the same time. It also supports EasyMesh, allowing users to seamlessly expand their network with other EasyMesh routers and range extenders.
6GHz band not supported
The router features two multi-gigabit ports, each capable of transmitting at 2.5Gbps, plus three 1Gbps LAN ports and a USB 3.0 port that supports a variety of file systems including NTFS, exFAT, HFS+, and FAT32. These ports provide decent data transfer capabilities within the network, even if your Internet speed doesn’t match up to ultra-high-speed broadband requirements.
Archer BE3600 supports multiple encryption standards, including WPA, WPA2, WPA3, and WPA/WPA2-Enterprise. In addition, TP-Link’s HomeShield security suite offers a host of protection features, including malicious site blocking, intrusion prevention, and real-time IoT protection. The router can be easily set up and managed via the TP-Link Tether smartphone app.
Considering the price, it’s no surprise that TP Link’s offering lacks features found on higher-end models like the Asus RT-BE88U. In particular, it doesn’t support the 6GHz band, a feature that’s becoming more common on high-end routers but is limited by regional regulatory differences.
