Asus ac5300 vs ac3100 – Which one has the best performance?
If you love gaming then you know about speed and with dozens of devices in your home, you’ll be competing for the router’s bandwidth not only with everyone else but also with other smart devices too. The Asus ac5300 and ac3100 are fast performing routers with plenty of gaming features.
My router has been working properly for 1 year now and out of nowhere, it started having random disconnections. I troubleshot everything even called the customer service for help, but nothing changed. After a week of this annoying routine, I decided to get an upgrade. Am a fan of Asus routers so I picked the ac5300 and ac3100 that had the specs I needed. This table helped me pick the best router for my home network.
Table of Contents
What are the differences between Asus ac5300 and ac3100?
Asus router models |
Ac5300 |
Ac3100 (Winner) |
Bandwidth speeds |
2.4 GHz- 1000 mbps
5 GHz- 2167 mbps 5 GHz- 2167 mbps |
2.4 GHz- 1000 mbps
5 GHz- 2167 mbps
|
Router type |
Tri-band |
Dual-band |
Ethernet ports |
4 |
8 |
USB ports |
USB 2.0 and 3.0 ports |
USB 2.0 and 3.0 ports |
Processor |
1.4 GHz dual-core processor |
1.4 GHz dual-core processor with Broadcom’s NitroQAM technology |
Asus ac5300 vs ac3100 – How do they differ?
Design
The Asus ac5300 is a huge bulky router that needs a lot of desk space. It has a matte black casing with beveled edges and red trims and 8 adjustable and removable external antennas. This router looks like a spider placed upside down. At the front edge are small LED status lights with a USB 2.0 port, and on/off buttons for LEDs, wifi, and WPS on the left side. At the back are 4 LAN ports, a USB 3.0 port, a WAN port, and a power button. On the other hand, the ac3100 is a nice-looking router with angular sides, a beveled top, and matte black casing. At the front are LED status indicators and 4 removable external antennas on the side and back. At the back are 8 gigabit LAN ports, a USB 2.0 port, a WAN port, a power jack, and buttons for power, reset, and WPS. There’s a USB 3.0 port at the front.
The ac3100 is a better-looking router that will not look out of place in your living room.
Speed and performance
The ac3100 is a dual-band router that operates on a 1.4 GHz dual-core processor with Broadcom’s NitroQAM technology to deliver a combined theoretical throughput of up to 3167 Mbps with 1000 Mbps on the 2.4 GHz band and 2167 Mbps on the 5 GHz band. However, the ac5300 is a tri-band router powered by a 1.4 GHz dual-core processor that can deliver speeds of up to 1000 Mbps on the 2.4 GHz band and 2167 Mbps on each of the two 5 GHz bands. However, the actual speeds will depend on a few factors like the position of the router, obstacles like walls and floors in your home, and interference from other network devices.
The ac5300 is a better performer with excellent throughput speeds that are excellent for a large home.
Advanced technologies
The ac5300 and ac3100 routers use different advanced technologies to deliver fast speeds on both radio frequencies. They both support MU-MIMO data streaming which allows your router to serve up to 4 connected devices at the same time. The ac5300 also supports beamforming that will send signals directly to connected devices and smart connect that will automatically choose the best bandwidth for optimal speeds.
The ac5300 uses more advanced technologies that ensure your connected devices receive fast and uninterrupted speeds throughout.
Asus ac5300 vs ac3100 – A comparison review
Asus ac5300
- Tri band (Dual 5 GHz, single 2; 4 GHz) with the latest 802; 11AC 4x4 technology for maximum throughput...
- Mu memo technology enables multiple compatible clients to connect at each client’s respective maximum...
The Asus ac5300 is a tri-band router that can deliver fast speeds on both the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands and comes with lots of features, game enhanced options, and management settings. It’s not a very good-looking device, but its speeds will make you fall in love with it. It supports MU-MIMO technology for simultaneous streaming, beamforming that will send signals directly to your devices, and smart connect that will choose the best band to use automatically. This router is packed with basic and advanced management settings that you can easily configure and control from your user interface on your PC or laptop. You’ll find all the settings you need from the guest network, AiProtection, traffic analyzer, adaptive QoS for monitoring your bandwidth, USB management, and AiCloud 2.0 gives you access to your hard storage devices. If you’re a gamer the game boost is a great feature that gives gaming applications traffic network priority and access to WFast. When it comes to performance, the ac53 is quite impressive. It scored 101 Mbps on the 2.4 GHz band at close range and 80 Mbps at 30 feet. On the 5 GHz band at close range, it delivered 525 Mbps and 320 Mbps at 30 feet. It offers excellent wifi coverage and decent data transfer speeds even in large homes.
Pros
- Strong wifi coverage
- Fast speeds
- Fast data transmission
- Lots of useful features
Cons
- It’s expensive
- The design is not eye-pleasing
Asus ac3100
- Ultra-fast 802.11ac Wi-Fi router with a combined dual-band data rate of 3167 Mbps for low latency online...
- Broadcom NitroQAM technology boosts 5 GHz data rates up to 2167 Mbps and 2.4 GHz up to 1000 Mbps
The ac3100 is a dual-band router packed with ports and features and can deliver excellent performance. This router not only looks like a gaming device, but it also has gaming-specific features that will make it stand out. As an ac3100 router, it uses a Broadcom chipset (NitroQAM) that allows for higher bandwidth than your regular AC as long as you use a compatible adapter. The ac3100 supports MU-MIMO which allows it to send data simultaneously and beamforming that will direct signals to connected devices. It comes with a wealth of management features that you can access from the user-friendly web interface and the mobile app where you can configure all the general and advanced settings you’ll find in a gaming router for easy control. Installing the ac3100 is a breeze from the web interface or the mobile app. The ac3100 has quite impressive performance on both radio frequencies. On the 2.4 GHz band at close range, it scored 97.9 Mbps and 74.3 Mbps at 30 feet. On the 5 GHz band at close range, it delivered 537 Mbps and 302 Mbps at 30 feet. It displayed a good range even at long distance.
Pros
- Excellent range coverage
- Very easy to setup
- Fast and stable speeds
- Loaded with lots of features
Cons
- It’s expensive
- Slow file transfer speeds
Conclusion
Both the Asus ac5300 and ac3100 routers are excellent gaming routers that can deliver fast speeds with excellent coverage and lots of game-enhanced features.
So which one is better Asus ac5300 or ac3100?
The Asus ac3100 is a better router because it’s a powerful router with fast throughput performance and an excellent choice if you want to connect multiple wired devices like gaming consoles and other external devices.
FAQ
Are Asus routers reliable?
Asus routers have an easy to use system that is highly capable ad reliable which will make it a great future-proof mesh router that is as good as a high-end upgrade.
Does QoS slow down the internet?
Yes, it does. It can cut your speed by half because the downstream QoS is activated on your router.
