There is so much hype surrounding gaming routers these days and they are often marketed as the ultimate solution for online gaming but are they really worth the hype? Although router manufacturers use terms like low latency, prioritization of gaming traffic, and high-speed connectivity, are they truly worth the investment? Let’s find out as we discuss some points that explain why gaming routers are worth all the hype and can live up to their reputation.
Optimized for Low Latency
For online gamers, low latency is one of the most important things because it can be the difference between victory and defeat. Lag and high latency in online gaming can ruin a gaming experience, especially in competitive scenarios. The benefit of a gaming router is that these routers are optimized for low latency and provide smoother gameplay compared to their counterparts.
People who play online games know that low latency can help with immediate responses, which are crucial in online gaming and these routers certainly prioritize reducing latency to provide a smooth gaming experience. Although an ordinary person who doesn’t play online games won’t feel the difference, an online gamer certainly would.
Quality of Service (QoS) Feature
The QoS or Quality of Service feature of gaming routers is particularly useful, as it can help you prioritize gaming traffic over other types of traffic on the network. In case you are not a gamer, you can still use this feature to prioritize any type of traffic over other network activities. The benefit of this feature is that when others in your household are streaming, downloading, video-calling, or doing any other activity, then QoS ensures that your gaming traffic gets priority and you can get a stable gaming experience, even during the times of peak internet usage.
Advanced and Superior Hardware
When it comes to hardware, then gaming routers are usually equipped with advanced and superior hardware compared to standard routers, which also explains the price difference between the two. Gaming routers are equipped with faster processors, more RAM, and better antennas to provide an extended range and superior performance. The advanced hardware in gaming routers helps to ensure better connectivity for online gaming and other online activities.
Many modern gaming routers are also gigabit-capable, meaning they can support internet plans delivering speeds up to 1000 Mbps. If you’re on a high-speed fiber or fast internet plan like a 750 or 1000 plan, a gigabit router ensures your connection isn’t limited by outdated hardware. This is especially important for competitive gaming, large game downloads and streaming gameplay in high resolution.
Dedicated Gaming Features
Since these are gaming routers, they are equipped with dedicated gaming features as well that can give you more control over your online gaming sessions. These include both hardware and software features like geo-filtering to connect you to the closest gaming servers, gaming dashboards for monitoring network performance, and game mode to prioritize gaming traffic on the network automatically. You can learn more about these features from the help page of your router.
Advanced Security Features
Gaming routers are usually equipped with enhanced and advanced security features compared to standard home routers. These come with advanced features like built-in VPNs, built-in firewalls, regular security updates, and malware & DDoS protection. This can help protect your network from potential security threats and allow you to surf the internet with freedom without any worry.
If you have a TP-Link gaming router such as the Archer C5400X, you can visit the TP-Link router portal to check out the advanced security features yourself. You can do the same for gaming routers from other router manufacturers as well.
Gaming routers aren’t just for gamers only; they offer several benefits for non-gaming users as well, which justifies their price. With features like wider coverage, support for faster WiFi Standards, QoS, advanced security features, and better network optimization, they provide a superior network performance compared to standard routers. They can handle multiple devices simultaneously with ease, which makes them ideal for households with multiple devices and with heavy internet usage as well.
