Synology introduced a premium class router – model RT6600ax.

This router is not the company’s first router. Back in 2018, Synology released its MR2200ac Wi-Fi 5 Mesh router. Now, four years later, the world saw the RT6600ax. It is clear from the name that the router can provide a total data transfer speed over a wireless connection of up to 6.6 Gbps.

The router’s productivity and its software

As I said, the router can work at 6.6 Gbps, but this is only possible if the client supports tri-band Wi-Fi. Such indicators are thanks to the 4×4 Wi-Fi 6 formula. The device’s six external antennas help maintain a stable connection. The RT6600ax uses 80 and 160 MHz channels in the newly licensed 5.9 GHz spectrum to achieve higher bandwidth.

The enclosure features 2.5 GbE WAN and LAN ports that users can use to set up a Multi-gig connection for maximum performance when using NAS.

With the release of the RT6600ax, the company also updated Synology Router Manager (SRM) to v1.3, the latest version of the operating system on routers. With an easy-to-use user interface, SRM shows users what’s happening on the network and helps protect connected devices from potential threats.

Users will be able to create up to five separate networks. You can map each network to three wireless SSIDs, providing a higher degree of control for the user and the security control panel. If you have IoT equipment that rarely receives updates, you can configure a separate network for these devices or add separate firewall rules. That will increase the level of security of your network.

Synology RT6600AX makes it easy to split smart home traffic with up to 5 separate Wi-Fi networks.

The router also has advanced parental controls for rule-based network access.

Another cool feature is a full-fledged app store for the router. Synology has made some extensions to the functionality of the router optional. You can use the app store to download the ones you need. That is much better than most routers because they have slower updates. In addition, it allows Synology to update individual applications when security holes are discovered or to add even newer features.

Features of the Synology RT6600ax router

It is the world’s first router that supports the 5.9 GHz band. Wi-Fi 6e operates in the 6 GHz band, which significantly increases speed, but dramatically reduces the distance to clients. A frequency of 5.9 GHz and a channel width of 160 MHz allows maintaining balance between the transmission speed and the distance from the router to the consumer. But the list of devices that can work at 5.9 GHz is small now.

Smart Connect combines different frequencies into one SSID, but Smart Connect doesn’t support the 5.9 GHz frequency range.

The RT6600AX operates on three different Wi-Fi bands: one 2.4GHz and two separate 5GHz, one of the 5GHz radios being the one that can transmit on 5.9GHz. Most users should use the Smart Connect feature, which links the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands into one SSID and automatically switches between the frequencies. Even if your equipment does not use the 5.9 GHz band, Smart Connect will allow you to reach connection speeds of up to 4804 Mbps.

Main Hardware Specifications of Synology RT6600ax Router

• Comes with updated Synology Router Manager 1.3
• Quad-core processor Qualcomm 1.8 GHz
• 1 GB DDR3 Memory
• Tri-band Wi-Fi 6 with support for 6600 Mbps Bandwidth potential:
  • 2.4 GHz: up to 600 Mbps
  • 5 GHz-1: up to 4800 Mbps
  • 5 GHz-2: up to 1200 Mbps
• Six adjustable antennas (4×4 MIMO)
• Support of 5.9 GHz / 160 MHz channels
• 4 IGbE (Gigabit Eithernet) ports (1x WAN 3x LAN)
• 1 LAN/WAN 2,5 GbE port
• Mesh support with future devices via 5GHz Backhaul
• USB 3.2 Gen 1 port

Conclusion

The Synology RT6600ax is a very, VERY good router. As Wi-Fi 6 continues to grow in popularity and more 802.11ax-enabled client equipment appears, this device could be a great buy. That said, while the hardware of the RT6600ax is a leap from the previous RT2600ac, the software here is a little less ambitious. Considering that SRM 1.2 would probably be updated to 1.3 on already outdated devices, the Synology RT6600ax looks less attractive. After all, if it’s your first time using a Synology router, you can’t blame the software. Add to that the increased bandwidth potential of 5.9 GHz and greater support for 160 MHz, and you have an incredibly promising product.

However, if you already own an RT2600ac, you may find that the recent improvements in virtual networks and SSID generation are not it to justify the purchase. The RT6600ax is the most powerful router Synology has ever made, and it comes with great software to boot.