TP-Link TD-W9970 300 Mbps Wireless N USB VDSL/ADSL Modem Router, 4G Router Option with USB 2.0 Port, Up To 100 Mbps VDSL And 300 Mbps WiFi Speeds, Maximised Range, 4xFast Ports, Tether App, Easy Setup

Writing this review after a couple of weeks of usage.Overall, I never had any issues with this. The range is very good and performance is great.The app to manage is great and very easy to use. Its lacking few advanced features, but I wasn't expecting to have those controls on consumer model.Overall I am satisfied with this product for home use and it doesn't look bad in the lounge.

I've had a TP link VDSL router for over 5 years now and it gave up the ghost recently. After some incredibly helpful webchat support from TP Link it was decided it was not savable.This new model comes in at a good price with some really solid modern network features.Setup:Setup was a breeze. The quickstart guide is simple and using the TP Tether app helps speed it all up. It also lets you monitor and manage the Router remotely which is a bonus as my most regular phone call from my other half when I'm at work starts "the internet is broke". It isn't usually!Wifi:5GhZ and 2.4Ghz speed were a significant boost on my previous model, giving much better range also. I have a range extender in our old 1930's house to get to the loft extension but have no need for it anymore. With our fibre connection capped to 40Mbps I can comfortably get 30-38Mbps on 5Ghz anywhere in the house, including on the top floor.The Router user interface is also smartened up compared to my 5 year old model. It's slick and easy to understand, breaking out key functions.USB Storage:This is where it falls over a little. This router uses a protocol for transferring data on a shared network called SMB V1. Microsoft abandoned native support for this in Windows 10 in favour of SMB V2. It's a simple google search to enable it again, but you will need to do this before files sharing is nice and simple. After doing this the 64G USB thumb drive plugged into the side was right there in the windows explorer.Another nice feature is the button on the router that enables lights out. The Router is already better in that all lights are soft glow and static (as opposed to flashing). Pressing the button means the router has no visible lights on it. great if you want to put it in a room with people sleeping.Apart from that, it was boringly simple to setup and get going, and now we have super slick and much quicker access to our fibre. The Wifi channel hopping seems a little cleverer too, avoiding the neighbours wifi with ease.The router features a 2.4 and 5GHz guest network if you need it. I use ours for the kids so you can easily set a time window for access. You can also set access time for certain devices so that kids can't access the internet after a certain time.A few minor niggles. It only comes with a 1m phone line connection BT45 socket cable, and a 1m RJ45 LAN cable. 2m should be the bare minimum if you actually want to sit the router somewhere sensible.So far so good, and really happy with my choice. If I get another 5 years out of this one I'll be happy. The bonus is that TP link provide a 3 year warranty so if taking a gamble on a new device, this makes it an easier choice.

This is a modem and mesh router in one. It is fairly easy to set up via the TP Link Deco app, which you download to your phone - easier than trying to do this the old fashioned way by a pc logged into the modem via an ethernet cable. The interface tries to make it easier for a non technical user, so it is not as modifiable as traditional modem/routers - eg it is not possible to change wifi channels manually to avoid interference - the reasoning is that mesh systems have more considerations than a simple router based network . When setting up with more than one Deco device - ensure each has a unique name. Be careful not to accidently change which deco device is the main (controlling) device. Unsurprisingly the speed of the network increases massively if you connect deco devices via wires rather than wirelessly - and you can chain devices I believe.So far, I have found two limitations.The first is a firewall as this appears to be part of a subscription service - the Security + service from TP link. Firewalls have been an integral part of modem software for many years so if security is a major consideration for you, pay the subscription or get something like a Drayek modem and user the Deco devices as wireless routers.The second is the interaction between some Samsung phones and the Deco mesh - In particular the A53 model. I think this relates to the 5ghz and 2.4ghz networks having the same name and the phone hardware or software can't cope with this. There is a workaround, which is to enable the guest network on 2.4ghz only and reduce security on it to a minimum. This gives a reasonably long range - but slower - network that the phone will connect to with no issue.