What we all thought routers would look like
In what is likely one of the stranger innovations at CES this year, TP-Link is showing off the prototype for its new Archer AXE200 Omni router. There are plenty of new routers taking advantage of 6E connectivity debuting at this year’s CES, but the engineering of this particular router is sure to raise some eyebrows.
The AXE200 features four antennas that automatically fold out and rotate to seek out the best possible signal, wherever it happens to be. While the necessity of this particular feature is debatable, it’s pretty wild to see a router come to life and instinctively articulate its arms like some kind of alien homing beacon.
While the effectiveness of this particular feature isn’t certain, the technical specs are definitely impressive. As you might expect from a 6E router, the AXE200 features improved tri-band speed, with a 6Ghz band joining the existing 5Ghz and 2.4Ghz bands. Additionally, the Wi-Fi 6E compatibility allows the router to exploit additional bandwidth and reduce latency overall. The AXE200 is still in the prototype stages, so there isn’t any information regarding the price point or a release window.
For anyone in the market for something a little more conventional, TP-Link is also premiering its Archer AXE300 quad-band router, which doesn’t feature autonomous antennas but shares the same extraterrestrial design. The AXE300 takes full advantage of WiFi 6E with duplicate 5GHz bands in addition to the 6Ghz and 2.4Ghz bands. The price for this particular unit is to be determined but is scheduled to become available in Q2 of 2022.