- Very competitively priced
- Companion app for guided setup and tweaks
- Consistently low latency
- Watered-down WiFi 7 features
- Slow local file transfer speeds
- Full functionality costs extra
WiFi 7 is well and truly here. While you can fork out $1,000+ for a high-end gaming router or mesh WiFi system, mercifully, the WiFi 7 manufacturers haven't forgotten about more modestly priced networking gear. The Asus RT-BE58U is the current reigning champ of cheap WiFi 7 routers that we've tested, but that $309 RRP starts to look pricey next to the $240 Telstra Smart Modem 4 and the $259 Netgear Nighthawk RS100. Cheaper isn't always better, though, and that was certainly proven true when I finished reviewing the RS100.
If you're in the market for an NBN plan today, here are the most popular picks from our database.
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#1
|
Dodo
FTTP, HFC
Editor's Pick
nbn500 Unlimited Plan
$62.99/mth
Min. cost $62.99
|
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#2
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Tangerine Telecom
FTTP, HFC
Speedy Max NBN 500/50
$59.90/mth
Min. cost $59.90
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#3
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SpinTel
All Fixed Line nbn®
Home Starter 25/10
$41/mth
Min. cost $41
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#4
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amaysim
FTTP, HFC
NBN500
$50/mth
Min. cost $50
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#5
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Belong
FTTP, HFC
NBN Fast – Unlimited
$59/mth
Min. cost $59
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#6
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Superloop
FTTP, HFC
Family Max nbn500/50
$74/mth
Min. cost $74
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#7
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Flip
All Fixed Line nbn®
Editor's Pick
Unlimited Premium nbn25
$48/mth
Min. cost $48
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#8
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Exetel
FTTP, HFC
One Plan 500/50
$80/mth
Min. cost $80
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#9
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TPG
FTTP, HFC
nbn Home Fast Unlimited Plan
$74.99/mth
Min. cost $74.99
Link not supplied
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#10
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Kogan Internet
FTTP, HFC
Gold Plus Unlimited
$69.90/mth
Min. cost $69.90
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Home networking equipment is tested in a first-floor apartment with thick WiFi-interfering walls using an FTTC NBN 100/20 connection. The networking device is deliberately placed at one end of the apartment (instead of a central location) to test wireless range and penetration. Basic speed tests are performed at multiple locations inside and outside the apartment, first with a Synology RT6600ax router and then with the networking device being reviewed for comparative results. Everyday, internet tests are also performed with relevant results mentioned for streaming, web browsing, online gaming, video and voice calls, as well as downloading large files and transferring them across devices on the local network.
What we like about the Netgear Nighthawk RS100
Outside of the Telstra Smart Modem 4, which is at its best only if you're a Telstra NBN customer, the Netgear Nighthawk RS100 is the cheapest WiFi 7 networking device I've reviewed. And at $259 RRP, there are only two cheaper options on the market today: the TP-Link Archer BE230 and the TP-Link Deco BE25.
As a router, the RS100 is compatible with the most common NBN technologies, including FTTP and HFC. Both of those technologies can access every NBN plan, including NBN 2000, and the RS100 is ready to support every available residential NBN plan thanks to a 2.5Gbps internet port. Getting online is a breeze if you use the Nighthawk companion app, which is best downloaded before you disconnect your old networking gear.
While the Nighthawk app estimated 20 minutes of setup time, it took 15 minutes to get online, and around five minutes of that was dedicated to a forced firmware update. What I appreciated more were the Nighthawk prompts to update my WiFi network name and password. I use a go-to WiFi SSID and password, which means all of my previously connected devices automatically work with the new network. What's even better is the Nighthawk installer prompted me to save these details on my test device, which is handy if you want to stick with the default WiFi name and password or update to something completely new.
It doesn't feature a comprehensive suite of settings, but the Nighthawk app is also a handy way to access basic tweaks and for ongoing monitoring. Unlike other networking gear I've tested, the Nighthawk app does a great job of naming connected devices, even labelling them with handy icons for at-a-glance identification. More practically, there are straightforward tools for testing the internet speed directly to the router, as well as a handy WiFi Analytics tool for measuring wireless signal strength. For any other tweaks, there are also the basic and advanced settings in the browser-based web portal.
Outside of the odd two-second hiccup before loading a video for older devices on the slower 2.4GHz WiFi band, I had no performance or reliability issues with the RS100 during my typical everyday tests. Whether you're web browsing, using social media, streaming to multiple devices, downloading/uploading files, or making use of smart appliances, the RS100 shouldn't have any issues.
I was particularly impressed with the consistently low latency during my speed tests. More practically, I regularly had the lowest latency during Battlefield 6 multiplayer matches, which was sometimes as low as 4ms, while most other players were at least in double digits. For VoIP and video calls, that low latency makes the experience feel ever-so-slightly snappier. A week before testing, I was on a podcast streaming voice and video with the Telstra Smart Modem 4. It was still a very usable experience, albeit one where crosstalk was more likely because of the higher latency. Switching over to the RS100 made for a smoother experience during a follow-up podcast appearance a week later.
Routers, modem-routers and mesh WiFi systems are compatible with most NBN connections, including FTTP, HFC, FTTC, Fixed Wireless and Sky Muster satellite. All of these NBN technologies use respective network termination devices (NTDs), which is a fancy term for “connection box” or “modem”. If you live in an FTTB or FTTN home, you’ll need a modem-router to get online. You can still connect a router or mesh WiFi system to a modem-router, but the modem-router first needs to be in bridge mode so it can then connect to a router or mesh WiFi system.
What we dislike about the Netgear Nighthawk RS100
Given the cheap RRP, there's always going to be some concessions with a budget router like the Netgear Nighthawk RS100. And those concessions start with bare-basic ports, which means no USB port for media sharing or mobile backup. Sure, you get four Ethernet ports for local devices, but they're all restricted to gigabit speeds, which makes WiFi the only choice if you want local or internet speeds beyond 1Gbps. For the internet port, I'm glad Netgear included a flat Ethernet cable, because the innate pull of typical Ethernet cables meant the lightweight, vertical-only router felt at risk of falling over when I connected a couple of round LAN cables.
At up to 3.6Gbps WiFi 7 speeds, that's more than enough to cover NBN 2000, but it doesn't make for the speediest local file transfers if you, like me, have multiple devices you want to transfer multi-gigabyte games between. More concerning is that you'll need to be within the coverage of the 5GHz WiFi band for a hope of hitting those speeds. And that 5GHz coverage will vary depending on the age of your device.
Given the 5–10% adoption rate of WiFi 7 devices around the world, I did most of my initial RS100 speed testing with my older Google Pixel 7 Pro handset. While a few years old, it is a WiFi 6E device, meaning it's compatible with the 6GHz WiFi band. But the RS100 doesn't offer 6GHz. In fairness, that's not uncommon for budget WiFi 7 networking gear. What's concerning, though, is the RS100 typically was quick to shift my Pixel 7 Pro (and other non-WiFi 7 devices) to the farther-reaching (but slower) 2.4GHz wireless band. Inside my apartment, the best-case 2.4GHz WiFi download speeds took a 54% hit, from 90.2Mbps to 41.5Mbps. That's okay for NBN 50 plans and below, but not for NBN 100 and beyond.
While older WiFi devices were relegated to the 2.4GHz band, testing with my Google Pixel 10 Pro XL meant 5GHz coverage in every room of my apartment, including the typically problematic study, which is multiple thick walls away from where I test routers. For context, the biggest download speed drop for the Pixel 10 Pro XL inside my apartment was only 2.38%, which is nothing. Still, outside the apartment, my typical testing spots were relegated to the 2.4GHz band, and all of those took a massive speed hit.
This would likely be less of an issue for newer WiFi 7 devices if the RS100 also had multi-link operation (MLO): a feature that lets WiFi 7 devices connect to multiple available wireless bands on a WiFi 7 network. Its omission is strange, particularly given its presence in the entry-level, dual-band Telstra Smart Modem 4 and the Arcadyan HWG2025 WiFi 7 modem-routers. According to a Netgear spokesperson, MLO is "coming in the future". The other solution for better 5GHz coverage would be adding an extender, but the RS100 doesn't support mesh expansion.
But my biggest gripe with the RS100 is something that's started seeping into other networking gear: pay extra for full functionality. Like Amazon with its eero products, Netgear wants you to pay a monthly subscription for the best experience. When you first use the app, you'll be put into a 30-day trial of Netgear Armor. You may get first-year pricing if you buy in time, but that's still $56 per year for Netgear Armor Security ($139.99 normally) or $76.66 per year ($229.99 normally) for Netgear Armor Plus.
The regular cost of Netgear Armor Plus is almost the price of the RS100. Practically, all it adds on top of the AI-powered security protection is a router-level ad-blocker and a VPN. There are cheaper ways to do both and, if the trial is any indication, the security aspect has mixed results. I was bombarded with notifications whenever a new device came online. More concerning was the heavy-handed approach Netgear Armor took to blocking sites, including some generic URLs in the log that it claimed had malware or phishing. The catch there is only I was notified of those sites being blocked, not the person who was actually trying to access them, meaning they were frustrated by the "internet being unreliable".
Speaking of invisible connectivity issues, a Netgear spokesperson confirmed the RS100 has QoS enabled by default. Because of this, I was hoping it'd just work, but full-speed downloads not only hamper full-resolution streaming, they also led to disruptive latency spikes for online gaming during my tests. That's somewhat manageable if you're diligently throttling download speeds where you can, but it's more concerning when Windows 11 is seemingly incapable of applying bandwidth settings for downloads from the Microsoft Store, operating system updates, and the Xbox app on PC.
I have a soft spot for Quality of Service (QoS). That's because, at its best, QoS automatically recognises priority internet tasks and allocates finite download/upload speed to latency- and bandwidth-sensitive tasks. If you like to play games online or stream videos in undisturbed full resolution, QoS kicks in when someone starts trying to download a file at full speed. Their total download speed will be capped relative to the bandwidth required for full-resolution streaming and undisturbed online gaming.
Netgear Nighthawk RS100 – Final Thoughts
The Netgear Nighthawk RS100 is a competitively priced WiFi 7 router which, despite its budget price, still has a 2.5Gbps internet port. Practically speaking, you can use it with any NBN plan in Australia, including the fastest NBN 2000 plans. The catch, though, is it's not overly speedy for local file transfers, and it's seemingly missing at least one great WiFi 7 feature in MLO. Couple that with the push to pay for an ongoing subscription service, and the RS100 gives some strong reasons to look elsewhere. Still, if you want a cheap WiFi 7 router that intuitively tackles most internet tasks while boasting excellent latency, the RS100 is worth a look.
We consider several factors when reviewing networking equipment, including:
- Type: Router, modem-router or mesh WiFi system. Supported NBN technologies and plan speeds.
- Design: Size, weight and standing options. Internal or external antennae. Available ports, WiFi version, and single, dual or triband wireless.
- Setup: Plug-and-play configurations vs laborious setup. Companion apps and guided setups are a plus.
- Performance: Ethernet and WiFi speed tests for downloads, uploads and latency. Real-time latency test for online gaming, VoIP and/or video calls. Plus, everyday use like downloading, uploading, browsing and streaming.
- Versatility: Band steering (single SSID), quality of service and other features. Ease of configuration, plus mesh expansion.
These are the most popular NBN 50 plans with WhistleOut users this week:
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#1
|
Dodo
All Fixed Line nbn®
Editor's Pick
nbn50 Unlimited Plan
$57.99/mth
Min. cost $57.99
|
|
#2
|
amaysim
All Fixed Line nbn®
NBN50
$75/mth
Min. cost $75
|
|
#3
|
Belong
All Fixed Line nbn®
NBN Standard Plus – Unlimited
$55/mth
Min. cost $55
|
|
#4
|
Tangerine Telecom
All Fixed Line nbn®
Value Plus NBN 50/20
$64.90/mth
Min. cost $64.90
|
|
#5
|
Superloop
All Fixed Line nbn®
Extra-value nbn50/20
$69/mth
Min. cost $69
|
|
#6
|
TPG
All Fixed Line nbn®
nbn50 Unlimited Plan
$69.99/mth
Min. cost $69.99
Link not supplied
|
|
#7
|
iiNet
All Fixed Line nbn®
nbn50 Liimitless
$69.99/mth
+ $10 Upfront
Min. cost $79.99
Link not supplied
|
|
#8
|
Kogan Internet
All Fixed Line nbn®
Silver Unlimited
$69.90/mth
Min. cost $69.90
|
|
#9
|
Flip
All Fixed Line nbn®
Unlimited Family nbn50
$68/mth
Min. cost $68
|
|
#10
|
Vodafone
All Fixed Line nbn®
Essential+ nbn®
$94/mth
Min. cost $94
Link not supplied
|
Nathan Lawrence
Freelance Contributor
Find a better internet plan
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