Today we have another battle between two excellent routers from Netgear, the R6400 vs R7000.
Ok, so they've been out for some time now. Years in fact! But we noticed we hadn't actually written out a comparison of the two.
In this article we’ll take a look at the features that the two routers have in common, as well as the things that set them apart.
Hopefully, this will be a big help in your search for the perfect router!
Netgear R6400
This router was released back in 2015. Despite the fact that it was released a couple of years ago it still has some good features including Dual Band radios, Wireless AC, and Beamforming.
The R6400 has always been popular for those looking for an AC router, on a budget.
Netgear Nighthawk R7000
The Netgear R7000 is another router that has now been out for a couple of years. When it was first released it was Netgear’s flagship product.
While it may no longer hold that title, it does still have some excellent features to help you get the most from gaming, streaming, and more.
R6400 vs R7000: Shared Features
Wireless AC And Dual Band
Both these routers use the AC wireless standard and broadcast on both the 2.4GHz and the 5GHz channel. This will help allow multiple devices on your network to stream HD video and play games simultaneously.
The fact that they are Dual Band not only means that you can choose between either the 2.4GHz (2.4GHz uses the older Wireless N standard - don't worry, it's backwards compatible with AC!) and the faster 5GHz band, but also means that you will be able to avoid network congestion by putting some of your devices on the 5GHz band so the other wireless devices don’t "get in the way".
Beamforming+ (Better Coverage)
Both these routers use Beamforming to improve the connection between your device and the router by focusing the wi-fi bandwidth in the direction of your device.
This can increase the coverage distance on your network and even help reduce wireless dead spots throughout your home. This is great for those with a larger than average home who may not want to go through the hassle of setting up an access point.
Fast USB Connection
Both these devices have two USB ports, one of which is USB 3.0 and one of which is USB 2.0. USB 3.0 is great if you want to add a central storage device to your network to share files such as movies or photos.
Of course, you can still do this with USB 2.0, it just won’t be quite as fast. Because of this, it could be worth saving the USB 2.0 port for a device like a printer that your whole network can use.
QoS
Both these routers have great Quality of Service settings. What this means is that you can set certain types of traffic (eg: gaming, streaming) to be prioritized on your network over other, less speed latency sensitive types of traffic (eg: file downloads).
You could also use QoS to prioritize certain devices on your network instead of certain types of traffic. A great feature to use if you have a lot of devices on your network.
Note that the R7000 uses Dynamic QoS, which is a one-click setup that automatically prioritizes application types optimally, while also intelligently deciding which apps require the bandwidth the most.
The R6400 uses "Advanced" QoS, which requires some manual setup and doesn't quite dig as deep as the "Dynamic" version.
Video: Netgear Dynamic QoS Explained
Superfast Wired Speeds
Both these routers have Gigabit Ethernet ports for when you need the extra stability of a wired connection. This can be especially useful for devices that you use to play games on as wired connections often have less latency.
DD-WRT Capable
If you are feeling adventurous, and want to squeeze out every last drop from your router, upgrading to a 3rd party firmware is always an option. By moving to other firmware, you have the power to make adjustments to your router, that the shipped stock firmware perhaps does not allow.
Both these routers can be switched to DD-WRT or Tomato firmware (only the R7000 can go to OpenWRT).
Standout Nighthawk Design
The first similarity between the two routers is that textbook design that has come to define Netgear premium routers over the last few years. Part stealth bomber, part scorpion, it's a look that stands out in all the best ways. If you are looking for a router that looks good, then neither of these are likely to disappoint.
What Are The Differences Between The R6400 And The R7000?
Despite the high number of similarities there are still some differences between the two routers. Let’s take a look at them!
AC1900 vs AC1750
Ok, so while both routers use Wireless AC, not all types of AC were born equal. The Netgear R7000 uses Wireless AC1900. What this means is that it will give you an extra 150Mbps of bandwidth on your network when compared to AC1750.
It does this by giving you 1.3Gbps on the 5GHz band and another 600 Mbps on the 2.4GHz band. The AC1750 will only give you 450 Mbps on the 2.4GHz band.
While this may not seem like much of a difference, and to be honest, for many people it won’t be, if you expect to have a lot of devices on your network you may be glad of the extra 150Mbps!
Processor Speed
Another difference between the two devices is the processor speed and, once again, the R7000 just beats the R6400. This is because while the R6400 has a pretty decent Dual Core 800MHz processor, the R7000 has a chunkier Dual Core 1GHz processor.
Like with the difference in bandwidth, while many users will not really get the benefit of that extra processing power, for some that expect to give their network some heavy use, it could make a real difference. If you have more devices and you are quite aggressive with your setup of QoS, the extra powerful CPU starts to show its true worth.
Final Verdict: R6400 versus R7000
To conclude, both of these are excellent routers. They will both serve households that expect to have a high number of devices use bandwidth intensive activities.
However, for those looking for that slight bit of extra speed, the R7000 is likely to be the way to go due to its extra processing power and the extra 150 Mbps of bandwidth that it offers.
Because it has "Dynamic QoS", you may also want to consider the R7000 if you have many devices around the home, and game or stream a lot. Otherwise, the R6400 will be just fine...
So, that's all you really need to know about these wifi routers. If you want to read out full dedicated to either of these routers, just read them here: