Netgear R6700AX Router Review

Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

The Netgear R6700AX is one of the most talked-about routers right now. Read further to find out about its features, pros, and cons in detail. 

Design and Structure Quality

The Netgear RAX40 is counted amongst the largest WiFi 6 routers that are available in the market as of now. Netgear R6700AX 00 is pretty similar to this version. However, this new router has something different from the RAX40. The entry-level models of this router are even more compact.

When it comes to the size comparison between Netgear R6700AX (RAX10) and RAX40, the result is pretty shocking and interesting. RAX40 is almost double the size of its previous family member. In simple words, Netgear R6700AX is made much smaller than previous models. Its measurement is 9.27 x 7.26 x 2.25 inches.

Its case is of plastic material and is covered with a glossy back finish. Its exterior shows a pattern of little triangles. On its top, 5 large LEDs are fixed. The first one for showing the power status. The solid green light means the router is switched on. Whereas, blinking amber shows the firmware is upgrading or reset process has begun.

In addition, there is a single WiFi LED. It shows the status of both networks (2.4GHz and 5GHz). Next to it is the Ethernet LED. The solid green on it indicates that a connection is made at 1Gbps. However, while solid amber indicates the connection is made at 10/100Mbps.

You may have heard that the Power button is not available in previous Netgear routers such as RAX20. Nor a Wi-Fi indicator or a LED On/Off switch. It is the same case with this new router model. However, things get even weirder with this one. Why? The Netgear R6700AX does not have any USB port too. Not even one. Therefore, one cannot use any external storage device with it.

Internal Hardware

The process of tearing down the Netgear R6700AX (RAX10) is quite painless compared to its companions. Also, because special kinds of screws is used, it becomes very simple and easy to open up this device. If you want to open it to see what is inside, it is easily doable.

All the screws in this router are positioned on the bottom. Hence, you have to remove the visible screw first and then the two hidden screws. These hidden screws are under the feet pads and are located near the device’s front of the device. Detaching the other parts and completing opening it up is also easy.

Warning: If you open up any electronic device it can withdraw your warranty facilities. So, it may be better to not open up this router without any reason.

When it comes to establishing the Wi-Fi connection, the Netgear R6700AX uses the Broadcom BCM6755 802.11b/g/n/ax 2×2:2 chip. It provides the 2.4GHz band. In addition, it uses the Broadcom BCM6755 802.11a/n/ac/ax 2×2:2 chip. This one is for the 5GHz band.

There are few other important components: the five GST5009M LF 2029M 1000BASE-T magnetics modules and the 4435GM 03210E P-Channel 30-V MOSFET. These elements are the reasons why many users like it. At the same time, many customers do not care about these things.

Performance and Features

Netgear RAX10 according to routerctrl.com is one of the few WiFi 6 certified routers available in the market currently. As expected, this Netgear router is a part of the drafting stage. However, it still provides a great number of features, even if it is an entry-level version.

If we look at improvements, one of them is seen as the most important improvement of the last Wi-Fi generation. It is the OFDMA (orthogonal frequency division multiple access). It is not enabled by default. However, it can be used for both the 5GHz and the 2.4GHz radios (both dl and ul).

This feature was built to provide the means for handling better transmission of small frames. This is done by splitting the bandwidth of the channel into smaller resource units, that is, RUs.  Then, they are allocated for communication with various clients at the same time.

The size of the RUs may differ as it depends on the type of traffic. It seems that Netgear RAX10 supports MU-MIMO which is excellent. However, you do require compatible clients to use its abilities to the best.

The Final Take

Netgear R6700AX is one of the entry-level models by the company. It is also seen as a creation of the drafting stage by many. However, it has many great features which make it stand in the market among its competitors.

Some of its features are the same as the previous model as expected. But many new features are added which seem enough to attract a large number of users. The final call, whether to invest in Netgear R6700AX or not, depends on your requirements. You can read the pros and cons mentioned above to decide for yourself.