Called as ‘ROG Rapture GT-AXE11000’, this is a high-end, tri-band gaming router, which means it also broadcasts a 2.4GHz network and 5GHz network for older devices. Asus claims that “The ROG Rapture GT-AXE11000 is the first of its kind in the world to transmit wireless signals on the untapped 6GHz Wi-Fi spectrum, allowing it to deliver the fastest and lowest-latency signals around.” For those unaware, Wi-Fi 6 is a brand-new, faster version of the newest generation of wireless tech, 802.11ax that was introduced in 2019. It is an evolution of the popular 802.11ac (Wi-Fi 5) standard that is currently used by today’s routers and client devices to connect to one another and to the Internet. Earlier this year, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted rules that make 1,200 megahertz of spectrum in the 6 GHz band (5.925–7.125 GHz) available for unlicensed use. This new technology, dubbed Wi-Fi 6E, adds support for the 6GHz spectrum that should provide better performance with compatible devices as the 6GHz spectrum is less congested. “Asus is an established leader in the networking market and was the first to launch a Wi-Fi 6 router. Now Asus is delivering the wider bandwidth and increased 160 MHz channels of Wi-Fi 6E with ROG Rapture GT-AXE11000, the world’s first Wi-Fi 6E router,” the company said in its press release announcing the product. “The Wi-Fi 6 protocol already allowed compatible devices and routers to deliver more equitable and lower-latency access to existing bandwidth on the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands. Wi-Fi 6E takes those same benefits and applies them to the much less crowded 6 GHz band, making much more room for compatible devices to connect and enjoy high performance.” With a tri-band design and 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6E connectivity, ROG Rapture GT-AXE11000 supports speeds of up to 11,000 Mbps and features WAN aggregation for WAN speeds of up to 2 gigabits per second. With 4×4 Wi-Fi 6 and a 2.5 gigabit-per-second LAN port, both wired and wireless networks can achieve speeds of more than 1 gigabit per second, bringing true multi-gigabit performance to life. The new router is powered by a quad-core 1.8 GHz 64-bit CPU with 1 gigabyte of RAM, so it can handle heavy traffic in Wi-Fi 6E networks. It also uses the latest 6 GHz power amplifier to improve both the signal coverage and quality. Wi-Fi 6E technology takes advantage of the newly available radio spectrum in the 6 GHz band, which has three-times more bandwidth than the 5 GHz band. It also adds seven extra 160 MHz channels to the current Wi-Fi 6 standard, provides lower latency, and will be dedicated to Wi-Fi 6E devices for maintaining high speeds that will not be affected by legacy devices. The biggest advantage of support for Wi-Fi 6E is that it allows devices use a large section of relatively untapped bandwidth in the 6 GHz band. With 1,200 MHz, it is more than twice as wide as the 5 GHz band, which allows for a larger number of wider channels that can pass traffic quicker and more efficiently. However, there is one drawback. To take advantage of all this newfound bandwidth, you will need a client device with a compatible Wi-Fi 6E radio to tap into the 6GHz airspace, as older adapters aren’t ready for this spectrum. Neither of them are expected to be available until the end of this year. While there is no word on pricing and availability, the ROG Rapture GT-AXE11000 is expected to be available in some markets in December 2020, says Asus.
