How I conquered Wi-Fi Dead Zones at Home with the Help of a TP-Link Archer Air R5 Mesh Router

The TP-Link Archer Air R5 is an AX3000 Wi-Fi 6 router that offers incredible speeds, low latency, strong signal, and mesh system capabilities.

I had been struggling with Wi-Fi dead zones in my house, and devices were constantly disconnecting when I walked around.

When TP-Link sent us its Archer Air R5 router to review, it was the perfect opportunity to see if this router could fix my connectivity challenges.

Easy setup

The setup process was simple thanks to the quick installation guide that was included in the packaging.

After following a few simple steps, my hardware was set up and ready to go – all I needed to do now was set up my Wi-Fi network and mount the router.

Setting up the network was equally easy thanks to TP-Link’s Tether app – available on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store.

After downloading the app, I created a TP-Link account and logged in. At this point, the app automatically located my Archer Air R5 router.

The Tether app then guided me through the network set-up process.

Mounting my Archer Air R5 router was simple, too, thanks to two strips of 3M adhesive tape that were attached to the back of the device.

With the router’s 8mm thin design, you can use this tape to fit your router into even the smallest spaces in your home or office.

The router also includes a mounting bracket with screws and plastic wall plugs (and a small spirit level) if you prefer to screw your router into a wall.

Benefits

With my router set up, I moved around the various rooms of my house while using the MyBroadband Speed Test app on my smartphone to test my new network.

I have a 300Mbps line and with the Archer Air R5 router, I was able to get consistent speeds throughout my house that approached my maximum line capabilities.

This was thanks to the TP-Link Archer Air R5’s four powerful FEM smart antennas that use beamforming technology and intelligent algorithms to concentrate all Wi-Fi signal towards connected devices.

It is important to note that the Archer Air R5 is capable of significantly faster speeds than I achieved, as my speeds were limited by my fibre package.

TP-Link’s Archer Air R5 supports dual-band AX3000 Wi-Fi 6 that offers up to 3Gbps speeds between its two channels – 2.4Gbps on the 5GHz channel and 574Mbps on the 2.4GHz channel.

Easy management

As impressive as the Archer Air R5’s speeds is its management of endpoints and connected devices.

Using the Tether app, you can see which routers and devices are active on your network – along with the ability to:

• Monitor the upload and download speeds of each device
• Block clients
• Scan for security risks
• Diagnose network issues
• Optimise the network
• Set routers to reboot at certain intervals
• Manage mesh networks
• Create a guest network for visitors

Parental controls are supported through the Tether app, too, and can be activated on certain devices and profiles.

Creating a mesh network

Another great feature of this router is that it can be used to form a mesh network.

This is facilitated through TP-Link’s EasyMesh technology. All you need to do is buy another Archer Air R5 router and use the auto-sync feature to add it to your network.

You won’t need many of these routers to form a large mesh network, either, as TP-Link states that three of these units can cover 600 square metres – over three times the size of the average South African home.

Conclusion

From its excellent performance to its easy setup and management, I was thoroughly impressed with the TP-Link Archer Air R5 router.

This sleek router is a great buy for anyone who wants fast connectivity in their home or small business, as well as those who are building a mesh network.

Click here to learn more about the TP-Link Archer Air R5 router.