ASUS EA-N66 & Amped SR20000G Wi-Fi Extender Review

Final Thoughts on our Extender Testing

There is no doubt that using a Wi-Fi extender for your network gives you greater coverage for your existing wireless network. The biggest question for me after using these devices over the past several weeks was which one would I recommend? That really depends on what your individual needs are.

On the one hand, the Amped Wireless SR20000G comes in a form-factor that is perfect for those who want to expand their home theater’s wireless capabilities. Since the Amped Wireless extender comes with 5 gigabit ports you can attached all of your favorite devices via an Ethernet cable with the SR20000G doing all the work to connect these devices to your network. Now you don’t have to worry about running a cable across your floor or moving your router so you can play Call of Duty with your best friend from school.

The ASUS EA-N66, on the other hand, showed blazing speeds and range in our suite of tests. The EA-N66’s best feature is that it contains 3-antennas that produced a wider range of coverage – by almost triple over the Amped and throughput speeds that matched many of our dual-band routers. If you want maximum help trying to connect your devices to a faint wireless signals then you would be served best by looking at the ASUS first.

We also saw that your choice of extenders might depend on the type of existing infrastructure that you have already. In other words, what equipment do you have that you are trying to extend? If your current router is older than a couple years containing one or two antennas then there is only a limited amount of speed that is there for your attached wireless devices. Don’t expect off the chart wireless performances when you only have a router that gives you a theoretical maximum of 150Mbps or 300Mbps. Take a close look at what equipment you are running before plunking down any money for an Extender or Repeater. You might need to upgrade your router to take full advantage of a Wi-Fi extender.

As more and more wireless devices hit the home market, we are going to see more and more of these types of products released. Many people will assume that they have to have an extender or repeater because certain pockets of their house or office don’t receive good Wi-Fi signals. Before going out and buying new equipment, you might need to just take a look at how “clean” or “dirty” your Wi-Fi environment is. You might find that by moving into an uncluttered broadcast range will increase your overall network speeds.

Of course if you’ve already tried finding the best channel to broadcast your wireless router over and need to get a repeater so that your wireless devices can function, then you should certainly consider the Amped Wireless SR20000G or the ASUS EA-N66.

Setup for both devices is simple and easy. The hardest part of operating these two devices is making up your mind to where you are going to plug it in. The Amped Wireless GUI seemed to be more robust and have a few more options making it a bit more versatile than the ASUS.

For raw speed and coverage though, there can be no doubt that ASUS EA-N66 is the extender to purchase. Even though it has a small form factor and a funky-disco-light look, the EA-N66 performs extremely well. Even though the N66 doesn’t have multiple Ethernet ports, with a price tag of $89.99 shipped from both Amazon and Newegg, you can afford to spend $23 to add on a 8-port gigabit switch to gain that functionality if it is needed.

Legit Bottom Line: Both the ASUS EA-N66 and Amped Wireless SR20000G are capable extenders and can be used in a number of different environments and situations. Both of these extenders are easy to use and can tremendously extend a network’s range. The ASUS scores ahead of the Amped Wireless strictly because of the difference in speed.