Here is a $100 Router Recommendation for the "Average Joe"

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Just a quick update/follow up to a router I replaced over a year ago with a newer one.
I had a TPLink Archer C7, it was a great router but, well, I was just in the mood for something newer, it was running flawlessly for what must have been 5 years, serving all 25 or so wifi devices in our home. This was a more of a preemptive replacement before it failed type of thing and I as always looked for value in products and RANGE was always king on our 3000 sq ft home. I could CARE LESS if its the latest WIFI. Wifi 5(AC) is fine with me in our home.

Anyway a year ago I stumbled on a maker that makes just one external router. Lenovo/Motorola, great reviews on range and with my 200 MBPS connection I really didnt need to give it much thought. Safe to say it performs perfect. Motorola AC2600 Model MR2600 I would recommend to anyone around $100.
Get full range around my home and my 4outside wifi cameras and 1 doorbell camera.
The reason I say for the "average Joe" is there are a lot of "techies" in here that may not like the basic UI (user interface).

SO bottom line, is if you want a reliable router, with great range that will meet or beat the most expensive of routers. This is the one at only $100.
Basic settings, great range, reliable.

For fun, I did recently hook up a TPLink Archer A20 because I got if for a bargain price of less than $110 for a router that like the Motorola is getting older on the market retails around $160, terrific 3 band router, six antennas... ya da ya da... REALLY ROBUST construction too.
I used it for over a month and just returned it to Amazon Jan 31st, the last day of allowed returns for the holidays.
I thought it might have been neat to have a 3rd band reserved for the most important to me stuff, like out 4k TV set up ect.

Well, it didnt matter and range was no better than the excellent Motorola I already have. SO I was torn whether to keep it until I discovered an unverifiable issue with it. On the internet at times, it seemed to "stall" wife noticed it too, yet, like the other router I was still getting 235 Mbps from my 200 Mbps service with great ping times and extremely low jitter. I was wondering if maybe some type of conflict with the Spectrum Modem or not but it didnt matter the Motorola gave us no issues what so ever for over a year that we have had it, returned the TP link and hooked the Motorola back up.

All is good. If looking for a solid router, with great range, Motorola AC 2600 Model MR2600.
 
Lots of good "middle of the road" routers, and indeed, most can do without all the bells and whistles. $100 is a great price. I'm assuming you have good placement of the router in your home for it to cover all 3000 sq. ft with a usable signal.

I have a Linksys WRT3200ACM that cost a pretty penny a few years ago. Spending extra on newer technology (like Wifi 6) can be the difference between a router that lasts 5-7+ years and one that lasts 2-3. Just my personal experience, and nothing wrong with either approach.

But like you said, AC is fine for most people's needs. My router has about the poorest placement imaginable, top floor in one corner, and I get at least 250 mbps (about 30MB/s transfer speeds) to my computers/devices on the main floor. Anything on the top floor can reach 500mbps. I needed an extender to get a signal to the very opposite corner of the house (basement on one room/side), and I get about 30mbps there which is adequate. No complaints, and although greater speeds would be nice, I really have no need or desire to spend money upgrading beyond the AC router I have now.
 
Looks like the last firmware update for that Motorola router was back in October of 2020. May or may not be an issue, but I'd like to see more frequent security updates from router manufacturers.
 
I probably have good enough understand on networking but not a techie. I used to use my WRT160N for 10 years before I was forced to upgrade. 1 of them couldn't handle the upload traffic in WebEx / Zoom and the other died because of some power issue (keeps rebooting every 5 mins). Got a cheap $40 AC1750 router from TPLink on Amazon and it is good enough for my 150mbps connection. Can I go with AX for $100? Sure, but then I will lose the USB port so to me it is better to have a USB port I can use for drive sharing, then I can stream movies to my Oculus with the PC off. So far I'm happy, but if I'm spending $100 I'd just future prove with an AX router these days. I would also focus on getting something with a USB port and spend my money on something with at least 3 antenna instead of 2 (definitely no "travel router" with only 1 antenna) for better beam forming.

I'm still a believer that if range is a concern, having 2 moderately priced good routers repeating off each other, or 1 router with 1 repeater, or 1 router + powerline ethernet + access point, as a mesh, would be the better choice. You cannot fight physics.
 
Lots of good "middle of the road" routers, and indeed, most can do without all the bells and whistles. $100 is a great price. I'm assuming you have good placement of the router in your home for it to cover all 3000 sq. ft with a usable signal.
....
ohhhh... yes!
Part of my past job was trouble shooting security systems and wireless devices and if you can imagine, that meant A LOT of fixing up the mess inside homes and some businesses to increase range.

Our router is as perfect as I can get it as far as location, located exactly in the middle of the home on the main floor. The home has and open layout and that is a help as well getting up to the second floor far room office, altogether there are 4brs on the second floor and reaches well into our master on the main level.
Its in a main floor center closet, great location because all our network, tv, alarm and phone connections come together in a panel recessed into the wall. I also have snap on ferret noise filters on all power lines, cable lines, phone and data lines in that closest.
I have the router itself at the top of the closet on a rack.
Perfect location, center of home, main floor. What isn't the greatest is this center closet is under a high staircase and some large support beams behind the drywall. So we have wooden stairs it has to go through and some beams behind the drywall but how I placed it seems to have overcome any issues because its in the furtherest room of the house, which is our personal home office on the second floor I still get 235 Mbps on our 200 Mbps service on my Mac desktop. I also get this speed in the rather far from the router main floor bedroom.
At the time I purchased this router, don't remember where I read it, but it was promoted for its range, I doubt anything else exceeds it, after all power is regulated by the FCC. The 4 antennas are rather large, much larger then the 6 antennas that are on the TpLink Archer a20.

Anyway, works well. It may be hard for some to believe it at this price point but its true. Lenovo/Motorola got it right for what it seems like is their only "external" router. As I said, not for the people who like to go into settings for advanced stuff I would suppose but more than enough for the average homeowner to set up a network with options.
 
"... I placed it seems to have overcome any issues because its in the furtherest room of the house, which is our personal home office on the second floor I still get 235 Mbps on our 200 Mbps service on my Mac desktop."

Should say = ...I placed it seems to have overcome any issues because in the furtherest room of the house, which is our personal home office on the second floor I still get 235 Mbps on our 200 Mbps service on my Mac desktop.
 
Looks like the last firmware update for that Motorola router was back in October of 2020. May or may not be an issue, but I'd like to see more frequent security updates from router manufacturers.
Yeah, may or may not, goes for anything in life. Never been a concern for me, when there are firmware updates for things I do update.

Meantime the TP Link I returned Archer A20 latest firmware update was older then the Motorola and TpLink is known for their routers. Their firmware update was in Dec 2019 almost a full year behind the Motorola. I bought the Motorola around the time of the update, still less than 1.5 years ago been rock solid and I firmly believe the range cant be beat by anything at least in my 3000 sq ft home and the way I have it set up.
I get my full 200 MBPS +/- 15% anyplace in my home, pretty impressive for $100.
 
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I have a $40 tmobile asus router, flashed to DDWRT. Been using it for five years, does everything I need it to.

Custom DNS pointed to a pihole vm.

USB Print Server

Multiple VLAN SSID

I can update the firmware on it whenever, as there are constantly new updates.

I just wish the range was a little better its not perfect to stream to my TV in the mancave but it works.
 
Anyway, works well. It may be hard for some to believe it at this price point but its true. Lenovo/Motorola got it right for what it seems like is their only "external" router. As I said, not for the people who like to go into settings for advanced stuff I would suppose but more than enough for the average homeowner to set up a network with options.

I think Motorola modems and routers are the “old” Zoom Telephonics line. Those were pretty decent modems - they didn’t have the TI/Intel Puma issues. Motorola Solutions is the “legacy” of Moto, they licensed to Lenovo the name for cell phones. Arris(now Commscope) has the former Motorola Cable Products(former General Instrument) business - including cable boxes and the Surfboard modem line.
 
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