The first midrange selection, Netgear’s R7000, is borderline budget hardware with a typical street price of $180 but an official listed sticker around $250. The entry-level Nighthawk sports dual cores, a swift USB 3.0 implementation for connected devices and sweetens the deal with some of the best range and stability in the dual-band class.
The upscale, wedge-shaped enclosure looks sharp without offending more conservative office decor, and provides three external antenna with beamforming to help focus Wi-Fi signals. Wireless range is above average, with better throughput at distance than either of the budget picks, along with an excellent reliability record now that the initial firmware frustrations have been worked out.
The R7000 is also well supported by the open source community, with DD-WRT firmware available if Netgear’s standard issue BIOS leaves you flat. Drawbacks are few. While the hardware is newer than ASUS’s geriatric RT-AC66U, it’s still an aging, dual-band design, but that’s not a problem if you find one of the frequent sales that put this router well below $200. Above that price, some of the more feature-filled mid-range routers are better bets.