ASUS - ZenWiFi BT8

FYI , all of our current routers and mesh product all have extensive on router functionality including Open, Wireguard and much more. As such you could pick BT6, 8, 10, 16 our any of the routers. Also all of the units have our Gaming QoS option for prioritizing game packets and or specific systems, if you want a more streamlined experience our gaming models ( ROG, ROG STRIX, TUF GAMING ) also have dedicated Gaming Ports which are pre configured should you connect your device to that port. You can also do this manually through our firmware/app. Also note unless you need the coverage specific to a kit ( which can be done via AiMesh ) on the router side you have the benefit of no backhual use maximizing throughput if you are within the coverage area of a router.

Not familiar with DD-WRT but my ISP was slumping out Asus Zenwifi's BT8's for $180 so picked one of those up. Newly released OpenWRT on it now. You can't find that price probably (Telia @ Sweden) but pretty happy with it. Great wifi coverage in all rooms incl 5ghz (I have no wifi 7 device), 2,5g WAN +LAN (+2 1gb ports),I picked up a 2,5g flex mini to get everything on 2,5g.

Works well. I get nearly 1Gbps on my laptop via wifi. Seems like a stable connection. Not sure how far it works though as I only have a small living space. Also seems that OpenWRT will support it at some point in the (near) future so that is something I'm keeping my eye on. Perfectly happy with it.

Asus ZenWiFi BT8 Ai mesh system will do what you want. I doubt anything is specifically optimised for Homebridge which works on any LAN, wireless or wired.

In reality, the only device that is supported is the „ZenWiFi BT8“, „OpenWrt“ has pretty horrible support in terms of „Wi-Fi 6E“ and „Wi-Fi 7“, there is also the „Banana Pi“, but that is more like a hobby project, than a real router, more like a computer, which does work, but it's most likely not what you are looking for. There is also the „Linksys MX8500“, but it doesn't have the best support in terms of features, as „Qualcomm“ drivers. If only the „Flint 3“ was based on open-source drivers, then it would be a clear recommendation, but if you like stuck on an old „OpenWrt“ version, then the „Flint 3“ is a solid option. Having a „Wi-Fi 7“ router, rather than a „Wi-Fi 6E“ is a actually a good thing, everything gets updated in random patches, you don't go full on upgrade sprees, maybe you will drop your phone and buy a new, which will support „Wi-Fi 7“ and etc. There are very good changes in „Wi-Fi 7“, including range and speed.

With aimesh, getting them properly placed is key. If at all possible, they should all be connected to your single main router. I have 5 - 3 zen Wi-Fi bt8s and two old rt-ax92. I may add a third ax92, but I'm not sure yet.

I just upgraded my Asus system to zen WiFi bt8 and it's worked flawlessly ever since. Well, except for yesterday morning when the chickens knocked the main router down...

Asus is stable now that they’ve updated the firmware - https://dongknows.com/asus-zenwifi-bt8-review/

I have the Hitron CODA56 modem and the Asus ZenWiFi BT10 (and BT8) router. I think it’s a great combo, although I did have some weird issues with my router losing connection periodically at first. Wi-Fi 7 capable and lots of advanced networking options (for free, no subscription) if you want to go deeper, or you can keep it simple and just use the app.

I really like the ASUS ZenWiFi series. I have the BT10 and BT8 as a mesh pair, but might be overkill if you don’t need Wi-Fi 7 (or care about future-proofing). I find ASUS routers easy to set up but you can really dive deep into options if you feel the need to, and they don’t charge a subscription for access to the advanced options.

I saw your note about the Black Friday deal and that's great! I think the BT8 is just as good as the BT10 in most ways, plus the 10Gbit Ethernet ports on the BT10 are probably overkill for most people. But yes, I use the BT10 as my primary router, directly connected to my Xfinity modem, and the BT8 is a satellite node connected by wireless backhaul. I really haven't had any major issues using them in that way and they still connect seamlessly. I'm sure your set of BT8s will work just as smoothly.

Yes, you can create a wireless mesh with an additional router downstairs. However, the routers you mentioned are dual-band, so the backhaul connection between the routers will used the same channels as the internet connection, slowing it down somewhat. I had such set up, but was too slow for me and was not reliable enough, so I replaced it with a set of tri-band routers (ASUS BT8’s). Now I have full speed with great coverage and no need for optional monthly subscriptions. So, I would recommend a pair of tri-band mesh routers.

They would work, but slower and less reliable because they don’t have a dedicated wireless backhaul. That means that the routers do communicate wirelessly with each other, but use the same ‘channels’ as you use for the internet. I had such set up but replaced it with a pair of triband mesh routers. They have an extra ‘channel’ for them to better talk together. I chose ASUS BT8’s, but there are several brands and choices.

In your situation the answer is definitely yes. Anything is going to be an upgrade over one WiFi router and a EOP adapter with old wiring. I recently upgraded to an ASUS BE14000 WiFi7 mesh for cheap. I also upgraded my ISP to 2.5Gbps and upgraded my switch to 2.5/10Gbps for relatively cheap since I have more and more devices using WiFi7 and 2.5Gbps or faster. I was coming from a dead-end LinkSys Velop system that had served me well but has no upgrade path with a mix of WiFi6/6E nodes. After some initial issues with WAN dropping off, the ASUS mesh has been great. I reset and swapped a new node as primary, wired 2.5Gbps backhaul via unmanaged switch to each of the other 2 nodes. WiFi 7 try speeds in the same room are over gigabit speeds. Whole home WiFi coverage and speeds are better with half the nodes. IoT devices (especially dumber 2.4ghz devices like smart lights and power switches) are handled better with same SSID across all bands. I want to add a more robust primary mode at some point with more 2.5/5/10Gbps ports so I don’t have to rely on the unmanaged switch so much but that can wait. The BE14000 is also limited as it has only 4 total ports and just 1x2.5Gbps WAN port and rest gigabit which is more limiting than I would like especially if you have a lot of wired devices local to the mesh node.