TP Link AC4000 Vs AC5400 – Which is most suitable router for you?

If you’re looking for high performance premium router, the TP Link Company has two of the best today: TP Link AC4000 and the TP-Link Archer C5400X. Take a look as we review and provide insight on their best features and functionalities.

There are many routers in the market today and selecting the best one from the wide poolmay be a difficult task. Even for heavy internet users, there is a wide selection to choose from all from different companies and prices. Among the top manufacturers of routers is the TP Link Company. The company is known to manufacture routers from all levels from entry level routers to high end premium super performance routes. In this article, we will look at two of their best super performance routers: TP Link AC4000 Archer A20 and the TP Link AC5400X. These routers are not entry level and are meant for people with heavy internet use and need a lot of bandwidth and high speeds. People that would benefit the most from these two routers include: gamers, 4K streamers and people with huge downloads. They are tailored to provide the highest speeds possible with as minimal loss of speed and bandwidth as possible.

If you’re looking for a home router for regular internet activities, they might not be the best choice for you since you will not be using them to their potential. The following are some of their key differences.

What are the differences between the TP Link AC4000 and AC5400X?

Model	TP Link AC4000 A20	TP Link AC5400 X (Winner)
MU-MIMO	Yes	Yes
Beamforming	Yes	Yes
Ports	6	11
Chipset	3 x 3 Qualcomm QCA9880	4 x 4 1.8GHz quad-coreprocessor
Speed (Long range)	750 Mbps – Download speed 1650 Mbps – Upload speed	1000 Mbps – Download speed 2167 Mbps – Upload speed
Antenna	6 external	8 external
Availability	Check price	Check price

TP Link AC4000 Archer A20 vs TP Link AC5400 X– How do they compare?

To select the best router for you, the following features comparisons have to be considered.

Design and Structure

There is no doubt that when you buy an expensive high performance router, they should be one that you love and impresses you. Both the TP Link AC4000 and 5400X are performance routers meaning they have amazing and futuristic designs. As with other high performance routers, these routers come with many antennas. The antennas are meant to boost the signal to far distances and ensure there is minimal loss of data over those distances. The TP Link AC4000 is the less powerful of the two and features six external antennas. Antennas are located on the sides with three on each edge. On top of this, the router generally has an amazing design. It is a black rectangular box with controls at the front and LED lights for status indication. The TP Link Archer AC5400 on the other hand features an almost similar design with a few slight differences. One of the main differences is the number of ports on the router. It should be noted first that the router is much more expensive than the A20 AC4000. Therefore, it comes with a slightly better design and more antennas. This router features a whopping eight external antennas that surround the whole device.

Wired connections

For physical connections, the routers come with external ports. The TP Link AC4000 features six ports for physical connections. The ports include: four gigabit Ethernet LAN ports, one USB 2.0 and one USB 3.0. There is also a power port and a reset button at the back. TP Link AC5400X on the hand router comes with an astounding 11 ports: 8 gigabit Ethernet LAN ports, 1 WAN port and 2 USB 3.0 ports. This is enough to connect almost all your devices if you need to. It takes the cake when it comes to wired connectivity as it can support many more devices.

Performance

Perhaps the most important consideration when choosing between these two would be the performance and range offered. The performance refers to the throughput and bandwidth speed when a speed test is conducted while since both the AC4000 and AC5400 are performance routers, they provide amazing speeds and range. The TP Link A20 AC4000 for instance features a total throughput speed of 4000 Mbps on paper. TP Link AC5400X on the other hand features excellent performance and there are very few routers that can compete with it. Like the AC4000, this router also comes with two 5 GHz radio bands to boost the speeds to its maximum. On paper, the router provides a speed of up to 1000 Mbps on the 2.4 GHz channel and 2167 Mbps on each of the 5 GHz radio bands. Theoretically, this means that the router can handle a flow of 5.3 Gbps in ideal conditions. AC5400X has higher maximum throughput speed and bandwidth over the AC4000.

Range

The range refers to the distance the router can distribute the signal. When tested in a real world environment, the TP Link AC4000 did well with speeds of up to 850 Mbps which is rather impressive. This was done 5 feet away from the router. The speed dropped to 721 Mbps over 15 feet.The AC5400X on the other hand provided a speed of up 946 Mbps at a distance of 5 feet.

Moving further away to 20 feet, the router’s speed was down to 859 Mbps which is outstanding. This is one of the best performance routers in the market today. The AC5400X will cover a larger area with while still providing high speeds and this makes it the better choice if you have a larger than average house.

Hardware

The TP Link AC4000 and AC5400X are performance routers with high throughput speeds and long range. To make this possible, both devices have been fitted with state of the art hardware and features that allow for such wonderful performance. The TP Link A20 AC4000 for instance comes with a triband 1.8 GHz 64 bit quad core processor CPU. These numbers only mean one thing: raw power. The routers also come with memory for quick operations and easy setup: 512 MB of RAM and 1 GB of eMMc flash memory for storing the router’s firmware and updates when they occur. But this is not all that’s needed for this super performance.

The TP LINK AC5400X on the other hand features an almost similar processor. It has an 802.11 triband 1.8 GHz quad core processor with three secondary processors inside it. This unique design is intended to help the router achieve the high bandwidth speeds it should. Furthermore, it comes with a memory of 1 GB of RAM and 128 MB of storage for the firmware, router settings and any updates. Other additionally features include:

Wireless Connectivity

Since almost all our devices support wireless connectivity, it is an important factor to always consider. There are unique features that routers come with to make the wireless connection works seamlessly. TP Link AC4000 supports MUMIMO technology, beamforming, SmartConnect, a range boost tech feature and QoS scheduling. Additionaly the AC5400X comes supports MUMIMO simultaneous data streaming, smartconnect, and beamforming for direct client transmission, QoS scheduling, antivirus protection and powerful parental controls among others.

With similar wireless features, both routers provide excellent wireless connection over multiple devices.

TP Link Archer A20 AC4000 vs TP Link AC5400X – A comparison review 

TP Link Archer A20 AC4000

One of the best gaming routers you can buy today is the Archer A20 AC4000. This router was released in early 2018 and became an instant hit mainly due to its performance and reliability. With high speeds of about 4000 Mbps, the router is guaranteed to provide a seamless and smooth gaming experience in whatever quality, even 4K. Because of this, the router is quite expensive and will cost you roughly 200 bucks. But for many gamers, this is worth it since the router provides high speeds throughout consistently through its use and is durable. The TP Link A20 AC4000 comes with a metal casing build for durability. And on top of that, the unit is impressively small for its performance with measurements of 7.9 x 7.9 x 1.5 inches with the antennas adding the height to about 4.8 inches. The only downside may be that the design does not allow mounting on walls and other stationary surfaces.Furthermore, the router comes with breathable build with serrated sides for cooling the high performance device.

When you spend this much money, the design out to be attractive and impressive and this router doesn’t let you down. The A20 Archer AC4000 is a solid and sturdy router with six antennas sticking out from the sides. The front is fitted with LED lights for status indication and a few controls. The back is fitted with six ports for multiple devices connection. When it comes to performance this router is impeccable. On the 2.4 GHz radio band, the router can do speeds of up to 750 Mbps and on the 5 GHz bands (there are two), 1625 Mbps on each. Of course, these speeds are only this high on paper. When tested in a real world environment, the router did well with speeds of up to 850 Mbps which is rather impressive.

Pros

• It is easy to install
• It feature very high throughput speeds
• The router supports Alexa for voice command controls
• It comes with very strong parental control feature
• It features an antivirus and antimalware inbuilt software

Cons

• The 5 GHz band does not work well in terms of range

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TP Link AC5400X

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One of the best routers you can find in the market today is the TP Link AC5400X. In fact, very few routers in the market can compare to the performance of this beast. Everything from its design scream of high and speedy performance.First, the router is quite huge and heavy weighing 3 pounds with dimensions of 11.2 x 11.2 x 7.6 inches. The body features a metal casing for durability. When it comes to the overall design of this router, it is quite impressive with eight external antennas planted around all the sides so that each side has three antennas. The antennas are red in color to give it a menacing, almost dangerous look. But it’s not just the design where this router excels. When it comes to physical connections, the router comes with an astounding 11 ports: 8 gigabit Ethernet LAN ports, 1 WAN port and 2 USB 3.0 ports. This is enough to connect almost all your devices if you need to.It has some of the best performance you will ever see in a router. First, it is fitted with a 1.8 GHz quad core processor that supports the two radio bands: 2.4 and 5 GHz. On the 2.4 band, the router provides a speed of up to 1000 Mbps and 2167 Mbps on each of the 5 GHz band. In a real world environment, the router was found to provide speeds of up to 962 Mbps.The only downside may be that the design does not allow mounting on walls and other stationary surfaces. The exterior of the AC5400X is also metallic for durability.

Pros

• It features some of the best performance of all gaming routers
• It comes with inbuilt antivirus and antimalware sotware for maximum protection
• It compatible with Alexa
• It comes with very strong parental control feature
• It features an amazing design any gamer would love

Cons

• It is too large and heavy

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Conclusion

The best router for you is highly dependent on what you’re looking for in a router. Since both are high performance gaming routers, the AC5400X would be a better choice for you. However, if you’re on a budget, the AC4000 will do just fine

Final Verdict – which is better of the two?

All factors considered, the TP Link AC5400 X is a much better router than the Archer AC4000 A20. This is because it provides higher speeds and longer range.

FAQs

1. Does the TP Link Archer A20 support beamforming?

Yes. This router supports beamforming for better coverage and to ensure minimal loss of speed over longer distances

2. Is the TP Link AC5400X Alexa enabled?

Yes. You can control various aspects of the router through voice control provided you have an Alexa smart hub.