NETGEAR Nighthawk Pro Gaming XR500 WiFi Router Review

Pricing, Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Pricing

At the time of writing, NETGEAR’s XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming WiFi router can be yours for £231.99 or $299.00 via Amazon.

Conclusion

The XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming WiFi router is a beautiful piece of network equipment. It looks great and comes packed with awesome features. With MU-MIMO and AC2600 specifications, the router will deliver as good a wireless performance as it will when wired. It also comes with media sharing and backup functions via the built-in USB ports. However, the true highlights are the operating system and the gaming features. Get an edge over the competition by reduced lag and local servers.

Connections and Switches

From a connection point of view, the XR500 is pretty standard. You get four LAN and one WAN Gigabit Ethernet ports as well as two USB 3.0 ports.

It comes with a physical WPS button for easy connection of wireless devices and one to turn the Wi-Fi off. There’s also a physical button to turn the LEDs off for a non-distracting setup.

The two wireless bands can be merged for a simple unified setup, or run individually. There’s also a guest network for each band, allowing you to offer guests internet access while you keep them out of your own network at the same time.

Impressive Performance

There can be no doubt that the XR500 delivers a great performance. With near gigabit performance on the 5gHz band, it’s one of the strongest routers I’ve ever tested. Not only that, it also punches the distance. Range is no issue for the XR500 and it easily covers my 80 square meter apartment from any corner.

User Interface

The user interface and operating system is a master piece. It has been designed from the ground up to be one of the best router systems, and it shows. It’s fast, responsive, and optimised for desktop as well as mobile connections. It is highly customisable and packed with features. A job well done!

Pros

• Great OS and Interface
• Impressive performance
• Great features for gamers
• Media sharing and PC backup functions via USB 3.0 ports
• Aggressive and good looking design

Cons

• none

“NETGEAR created a masterpiece with the XR500 Nighthawk Pro Gaming WiFi router! That fact shows in the performance, the design, and the operating system.”

We would like to thank Netgear for sending us this unit.