Huawei WiFi AX3 Router Unboxing, Review: Affordable Gateway to WiFi 6

Huawei WiFi AX3 Router Unboxing, Review: Affordable Gateway to WiFi 6

Review Verdict: If you want to jump into the WiFi 6 train, the Huawei WiFi AX3 router is a solid affordable option that you should consider. Huawei’s proprietary WiFi 6 Plus tech does a good job in providing stable bandwidth and low latencies, and the AI Life app gives a comprehensive overview of your WiFi status. It’s also one of the most affordable WiFi 6 routers out there currently.

At under Php 4k, compromises like the absence of a USB port and fixed antennas are negligible to this value-for-money router since you can use it for mesh network expansion.

Pros

-Strong and stable WiFi 6 signal

-Can be used for mesh network expansion

-Helpful UI with the AI Life app

Cons

-No USB port for expansion

-Limited adjustments for the antennas

Huawei is expanding their presence here in the Philippines by tackling the smart home market, and its WiFi AX3 router is one of its initial offerings. Making the sub-Php 4k router interesting is that it is a WiFi 6 router that comes with Huawei’s proprietary WiFi 6 Plus tech that aims to deliver better coverage and a more stable signal.

Is the AX3 a must-have for your work-from-home needs? Let’s dive into our unboxing and full review of the Huawei WiFi AX3 router:

Unboxing and packaging contents

You get a clean white packaging for the WiFi AX3 that’s reminiscent of those used on MatePads. Inside the box, you have an Ethernet cable, power adapter, quick start guide, and the WiFi AX3 router itself.

Design

The Huawei WiFi AX3 gets a sleek design with wedged edges that contain vents for head dissipation. You have an LED light in front to indicate the router’s status, along with an HiLink button on top for seamless pairing with supported Huawei routers–if you plan to build a mesh network. The right edge part of the WiFi AX3 houses an NFC chip, letting you connect your NFC-sporting device to the internet by simply tapping on it.

You get four large antennas that are fixed on the router, with one of them bearing the WiFi 6 Plus logo. Being fixed antennas, you can only adjust them up to 90 degrees.

The back panel contains three Ethernet ports—one for connecting to your modem and three for connecting to your other Ethernet-equipped devices—a power adaptor port, reset switch, and power button. There’s no USB port on the WiFi AX3, so expansion is pretty limited on this router.

Set-up and Interface

While the quick start guide tells you to input the IP address indicated on your web browser to set it up, the easier route is downloading the AI Life app and set up the router there instead.

Once you set it up on the app, you get an overview of your WiFi status, along with connected devices and a slew of options to ensure that you are getting the optimal signal across your home.

Aside from functioning as a main router like my current setup at home, the WiFi AX3 can be configured as a repeater/extender or as part of a mesh system when paired with another WiFi AX3 router, with Huawei’s WiFi Mesh system, or with any Huawei router that has the HiLink button.

Performance and WiFi range

Powering the WiFi AX3 is a quad-core Gigahome processor running at 1.4Ghz, which is far better than the dual-core processor used in similarly-priced WiFi routers. Aside from being able to deliver a seamless connection to more devices (up to 128 devices specifically), the WiFi AX3 ’s Gigahome processor runs cooler than the competition. Comparing it to my old WiFi 5 router from another brand, the WiFi AX3 was less warm even when connected to multiple devices at home—with at least 2 devices using the bulk of the download and upload streams.

With the Gigahome processor, the WiFi AX3 is capable of delivering theoretical speeds of up to 3000 Mbps (574 Mbps on 2.4 GHz and 2402 Mbps on 5 GHz). The WiFi AX3 ’s connection stability and efficiency ensures that your household gets the most out of your fiber internet subscription with minimal data loss.

As the branding implies, the WiFi AX3 uses WiFi 6, along with Huawei’s in-house WiFi 6 Plus solution. With WiFi 6-enabled Huawei devices, WiFi 6 Plus utilizes the 160mhz bandwidth—along with Chipset Synergy—to deliver the fastest possible speeds. With WiFi 6 Plus, supported Huawei phones can get a stronger and more stable signal with the WiFi AX3 .

Compared to my old WiFi 5 router, I noticed a better overall WiFi range with the WiFi AX3 , along with a more stable connection even when multiple devices are connected to it. With my old setup, I had to install a WiFi extender to expand the WiFi coverage to my work room–which is several meters away from the router and has to go through several walls. With the WiFi AX3, I can still connect to the internet from my work room while minimizing my dependence on a WiFi Extender.

Another big improvement I noticed upon setting up the WiFi AX3 is the overall connection stability at full loads, which include lower latencies. This is very evident when playing games, where a slight delay can mean either winning or losing a crucial match.

With all these improvements, Huawei also improved the security of the WiFi AX3 with HomeSec–an independent security zone that is integrated into the Gigahome chip and is designed from the microkernel level to ensure that your WiFI connection is safe from harmful internet elements like malware.

Huawei WiFi AX3 Review Wrap up and Conclusions

Our review of the Huawei WiFi AX3 shows that the brand’s affordable WiFi router offering is a good WiFi upgrade for homes. It is one of the more affordable WiFi 6 routers out there, and its Gigahome processor and WiFi 6 Plus tech does a great job in providing a stable connection even at heavy loads while having a better range compared to WiFi 5 routers.

The WiFi AX3’s expandability is limited since it does not have a USB port and comes with limited antenna adjustments, but its support for mesh networks brings in good futureproofing in the event that you opt to expand your internet coverage at home further.

Huawei WiFi AX3 Review Philippines Price

The Huawei WiFi AX3 Router is priced at Php 3,999 and is available via Huawei Store and Huawei’s official LazMall store and Shopee stores. Those pre-ordering will get a Huawei Band 4 with their purchase

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