Hi all,I’m at a loss and need some advice.Current situation: we’re a busy 4 bed 2 storey house, there’s 5 of us, kids all streaming YouTube, we’ve got Google devices in every room, Amazon fire sticks, Xbox, a teenager gamer, phones, 4k smart tv streaming from the usual platforms.We’re also home workers and need high performance for vpn access and reliable teams calls.We’re using our ISP router at the moment, a BT Smart Hub 2 (UK) which is Wi-Fi 5 but does a fairly decent job and we get good coverage across the whole house but I sense at times it’s struggling when things are at their peak.We have a 1gbps FTTP connection and feel this is also being under utilises by the stock isp router.What I’m after is maximum coverage and performance across our situation. The RAX200 seems like an obvious choice although I’m not sure we’d be pushing the rax120 either, but I’m worried that it’s ranger is advertised as being much less (2000 sqft) vs the rax120’s 3500 sqft.If this is true it feels like the rax120 would have a big edge on performance across the whole house. Also a lot of what I’m reading online suggests the rax120 is a better choice from a raw performance.So before I sink all this money can anyone offer their thoughts on this?

RAX120. It's a Qualcomm device with hardware acceleration (RAX200 has software one). In case the RAX120 get too hot, place a fan or laptop cooler underneat it.. Though it has a built-in fan, that doesn't always kick in.

RAX120 or Rax200 | NETGEAR Communities

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microchip8
Master
Sep 17, 2022
RAX120. It's a Qualcomm device with hardware acceleration (RAX200 has software one). In case the RAX120 get too hot, place a fan or laptop cooler underneat it.. Though it has a built-in fan, that doesn't always kick in.
michaelkenward
Guru
Sep 17, 2022
shrews wrote:

We’re using our ISP router at the moment, a BT Smart Hub 2 (UK) which is Wi-Fi 5 but does a fairly decent job and we get good coverage across the whole house but I sense at times it’s struggling when things are at their peak.

I wouldn't trust anything from BT to deliver performance. It likes to provide "smart" devices that don't tax dumb users. "Idiot proof" has its drawbacks.

The last time I looked, BT modem/routers cannot operate in modem only (bridge) mode. They insist on being modem and router.

Solved: Smart Hub 2 as a modem - BT Community

If that is still the case, then you can't simply slap the RAX200 into your network.

Two routers on your network can cause headaches. For example, you can end up with local address problems. Among other things, the other router can misdirect addresses that the Netgear router usually handles, such as routerlogin.net or the usual IP address for a router, 192.168.1.1.

This explains some of the other drawbacks.

What is Double NAT? | Answer | NETGEAR Support

Putting the RAX200 into wireless access point (AP) mode avoids that problem. But then you hit this.

Disabled Features on the Router when set to AP Mode | Answer | NETGEAR Support

Not a lot of point in buying something that you don't use to its full extent.

What I’m after is maximum coverage and performance across our situation. The RAX200 seems like an obvious choice although I’m not sure we’d be pushing the rax120 either, but I’m worried that it’s ranger is advertised as being much less (2000 sqft) vs the rax120’s 3500 sqft.

To be honest, that does not look like a massive area for the wifi. After all, the BT box manages to cover it. I wouldn't got hung up on area. Your house is tiny by many (thinks American) standards.

If you are looking for wifi that can cover a good area, then an Orbi Mesh system with satellites might be worth looking at.

Maybe the BT router just isn't up to the task all round.

First I would try to pin down why the BT kit doesn't meet your needs.
- shrews
  Guide
  Sep 17, 2022
  Being FTTP the modem is the ONT box meaning any router with a WAN port is more or less plug and play, so I’m not expecting any problems.
  
  Being a gigabit line, 35+ wireless devices, homeworkers etc etc I’ve no doubt we’re starting to push this Wi-Fi 5 router close to its limits, and to maximise the benefit of our line for everyone and everything in the house I just want the best solution for us.
  
  I’ve taken the plunge and ordered a rax120, I’m a bit nervous seeing all the posts re overheating and will not hesitate to send it back if I start getting problems but fingers crossed these posts aren’t reflective of the majority of rax120 owners… we’ll see!
  - michaelkenward
    Guru
    Sep 18, 2022
    
    shrews wrote:
    Being FTTP the modem is the ONT box meaning any router with a WAN port is more or less plug and play, so I’m not expecting any problems.
    
    That should be the case, but BT has ways of frustrating users by installing customised equipment that breaks common sense. For example, it implements IPv6 in ways that various routers don't support.
    
    It probably all dates back to the days when the Post Office, BT's nationalised predecessor, liked to design its own telephone exchanges which no one else bought, leading to the demise of the UK's telecoms industry.
    
    A good place to get a handle on these things is the BT community forum.
    
    Search - BT Community – RAX120
    
    There is at least one comment there about IPv6.

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RAX120 or Rax200