Zyxel unveils Armor G5 (NBG7815) AX6000 12-Stream Multi-Gigabit Wi-Fi 6 Router

You do have a Wi-Fi 6 router, don't you? No? Oh my. You may want to consider upgrading soon. These routers are not only faster because of the superior 802.11ax protocol, but thanks to WPA3, they are often more secure too. There are many great models on the market, starting as low as 80 bucks. There's no excuse for not upgrading, folks.

Today, Zyxel announces its latest router, and holy moly, it is a beauty. Called "Armor G5," this Wi-Fi 6 router has an insane 13 internal antennas. It has four gigabit LAN ports, as is typical, but it has some additional multi-gig magic too. You see, it also has a 10G LAN port and a 2.5G WAN port. The Armor G5 even has a USB-A port on the rear. All of this is housed in a beautifully sleek body.

"Designed to provide the high-performance network infrastructure to support video-intensive and IoT-heavy networks, Armor G5 combines a powerful 64-bit 2.2 GHz quad-core processor with Wi-Fi 6 802.11AX technology to deliver wireless speeds up to 6000Mbps (1200Mbps for 2.4 GHz and 4800Mbps for 5GHz). Unlike other AX6000 routers that only support eight Wi-Fi streams, Armor G5 supports 12 Wi-Fi streams, enabling it to deliver more bandwidth and less congestion while sending and receiving more data from multiple connected devices," says Zyxel Networks.

Shawn Rogers, Market Development Manager at Zyxel explains, "Demands on the home network have changed drastically as the stay-at-home and social distancing requirements of the COVID-19 pandemic have driven the transition of the daily, routine workload from the office and classrooms to the home. The new Armor G5 incorporates ultra-fast Wi-Fi 6 technology and multi-gig wired connections to provide the expanded bandwidth, throughput speeds, and network performance to maximize the productivity of both students and work-from-home professionals."

Zyxel Networks shares the specifications below.

Wireless Speed

• AX6000 (1200+4800 Mbps)

Standard Compliance

• IEEE 802.11 b/g/n/ax 2.4 GHz
• IEEE 802.11 b/n/ac/ax 5 GHz
• 2.4GHz AX: 4x4 (Tx/Rx) 1024 QAM 20/40 MHz, up to 1.2 Gbps
• 5GHz AX: 8x8 (Tx/Rx) 1024 QAM 20/40/80/160 MHz, up to 4.8 Gbps
• Compatible with 802.11a/b/g/n/ac WiFi standards

Transmission Speed

• Transmit: 1200Mbps for 2.4 GHz, 4800Mbps for 5 GHz
• Receive: 1200Mbps for 2.4 GHz, 4800Mbps for 5 GHz

CPU

• 64 bit quad-core 2.2 GHz

Memory

• 4GB Flash/ 1GB RAM

Ethernet Interface

• WAN: One 100M/1000M/2.5Gbps Ethernet RJ-45 port with auto MDI/MDIX support
• LAN: One 100M/1000M/2.5G/5G/10Gbps Ethernet RJ-45 port with auto MDI/MDIX support
• LAN: Four 10M/100M/1000Mbps Ethernet RJ-45 ports with auto MDI/MDIX Support

Antenna

• 13 Internal Antennas

Power Rating

• Power: 19V/2.1A
• Power consumption: 39W max.

USB Features

• SMB
• CIFS
• FTP
• Printer Server

Physical Specs (per unit)

• Item dimensions (WxDxH): 248 x 182 x 66 mm (9.8 x 7.2 x 2.6 inch)
• Item weight: 1kg (2.2 lb.)
• Packing dimensions (WxDxH): 375 x 235 x 75 mm (14.8 x 9.3 x 3.0 inch)
• Packing weight: 1.8kg (4.0 lb.)

Security

• IPSec Pass-Through
• PPTP Pass-Through
• L2TP Pass-Through
• VPN Support (OpenVPN)
• VPN Client Support
• WPA3-PSK
• WPS Support
• Guest Network
• Automatic Firmware Update

The Zyxel Armor G5 (NBG7815) won't begin shipping until November, but you can pre-order starting today. It can be had here for only $349, which is quite reasonably priced given the impressive specifications.