The best kind of wireless router is the one you don’t notice is there to begin with. No hiccups, no buffering and, most importantly, no outages.
With the 802.11ac spec we've gotten closer to that dream, thanks to features like directional beamforming and MU-MIMO. This Walmart-exclusive $99.99 Jetstream AC3000 router has all that good stuff in a spider-like design, and it's on sale for $135 over its list price right now.
Normally this particular router would set you back $235, but it’s $135 off its sticker price for Black Friday. Though we haven’t reviewed it ourselves, the Jetstream AC3000 is highly rated for its close-range throughput, thanks to its two 5GHz bands as well as a single 2.4GHz one.
Most non-gaming routers are strictly dual-band, meaning they’re limited to just one 5GHz and one 2.4GHz band. Adding a second 5GHz band increases performance for households that are chock-full of internet-connected devices, with speeds topping out at 3,000 Mbps.
The Jetstream AC3000 is powered by an 800MHz dual-core processor and 1GB of RAM. A Turbo button sits to the right of the router’s eight status indicator lights, which supposedly offers immediate performance optimizations. It supports MU-MIMO, or Multi-User Multiple Input Multiple Output data streaming. Put simply, this is in place to prevent network overload when numerous devices are simultaneously connected to the same router. The router claims it can cover homes of up to 4,000 square feet with its eight antennas.
For all things Black Friday, check out our guide to Black Friday gaming router deals and our main hub of the best Black Friday PC gaming deals.
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