Netgear AC5300 Nighthawk X8 AC5300 Tri-Band WiFi Router (R8500)

The Nighthawk X8 AC5300 Smart WiFi Router is the next wave in WiFi. Tri-Band WiFi and Quad Stream performance boosts X8's combined wireless speeds to up to 5.3Gbps. Four external Active Antennas plus four internal antennas amplify WiFi range. Six gigabit Ethernet ports means even more wired devices can connect and with port aggregation 2 ports can combine to double maximum wired speeds. Nighthawk X8 is the next wave in WiFi.

Fastest Tri-Band WiFi Router
The Nighthawk X8 AC5300 Smart WiFi Router with breakthrough Tri-Band WiFi technology delivers a massive combined wireless speed of up to 5.3Gbps. X8 uses Smart Connect to optimize WiFi performance by intelligently assigning every device to the fastest WiFi band possible and doing so allows devices to connect at their maximum speed. Load Balancing distributes WiFi devices ensuring usage of both the 5GHz WiFi bands. Even if everyone and everything in the home that’s connected to the Internet is streaming, gaming, working, playing, socializing or updating at the same time, the X8 won’t miss a beat—you’ll enjoy seamless clarity and zero lag.

Dynamic Quality of Service
If you like gaming and streaming videos, then you'll benefit from Dynamic Quality of Service (QoS). Dynamic QoS resolves Internet traffic congestion when you have competing Internet demands at home. Dynamic QoS identifies your online activities by application and device, and then utilizes bandwidth allocation, and traffic prioritization techniques, to automatically allocate more bandwidth to latency sensitive applications like online gaming and video streaming, while ensuring that lower priority applications continue to work.

Industry's First Active Antennas
Each new generation of routers grows more powerful than the last, delivering stronger WiFi signals with greater range. At the same time, the WiFi signals on mobile devices are not getting more powerful. This difference in WiFi performance reduces overall WiFi range and speed.  To meet this challenge, NETGEAR developed the industry’s first Active Antennas technology. NETGEAR moved the WiFi amplifiers from their usual location, on the router’s motherboard, to the top of the antennas. These Active Antennas help improve WiFi performance by amplifying signal in the antenna itself. This allows the router to receive cleaner and stronger signals from your mobile devices, avoiding signal degradation between the antennas and motherboard

Connect More
Six Gigabit Ethernet LAN ports allows you to connect even more wired devices. Two of six Gigabit Ethernet ports can be aggregated to double the connection speed to a Network Attached Storage device for 4K HD streaming or fast backups of multiple WiFi devices simultaneously.

Powerful Dual Core 1.4HGz Router Processor
Basic WiFi routers use simple single core processors to connect WiFi devices to the Internet.  Nighthawk X8 delivers Tri-band WiFi, quad-stream performance on each band, Multi-User MIMO capable, has 6 Gigabit LAN ports with Port Aggregation, and dual USB interfaces to connect external USB storage. Using a single core processor would cause severe performance issues as various processes compete for CPU power.  That's why the X8 utilizes a powerful 1.4GHz dual-core processor to separate processes and prioritize high performance WiFi connections to get maximum combined WiFi speeds of up to 5.3Gbps.

Multi-user MIMO (MU-MIMO)
Using Multi-User MIMO technology, NETGEAR routers can stream data to multiple devices simultaneously. With MU-MIMO, your WiFi network can deliver faster throughput to every MU-MIMO connected device. That means faster downloads and smoother streaming for your devices.

Simple and Secure Cloud Storage via US
Access and share your files stored on a USB Drive through NETGEAR ReadyCLOUD® USB Access. Simply plug your USB hard drive into your NETGEAR Nighthawk X8 Smart WiFi Router to create secure personal cloud storage. Enjoy the convenience and accessibility of Google Drive and Dropbox without the fees, storage limitations, or privacy concerns. Using the ReadyCLOUD mobile app or web portal, you’ll now have anytime, anywhere access to your USB drive at home… it’s that easy!

Speed
Get the fastest combined WiFi currently available and enjoy a blazing-fast, lag-free WiFi experience for gaming, video streaming or surfing - up to 5.3Gbps.
5.3Gbps—The fastest combined WiFi speed for uninterrupted streaming
Tri-Band WiFi—Up to 1000 + 2166 + 2166Mbps†
Quad Stream—Up to four data streams per WiFi band maximizes connection speed
Smart Connect—Designates slower and faster devices to separate WiFi bands for best wireless speed
MU-MIMO capable—Go faster by simultaneously streaming to multiple devices
Gigabit WiFi—Next-generation WiFi now at Gigabit speeds
Gigabit wired—Six Gigabit Ethernet LAN ports with the ability to aggregate two ports for faster file transfers
Dynamic QoS—Intelligently prioritizes video streaming and gaming

WiFi Range
Got range? Homes come in all shapes and sizes and Nighthawk X8 Smart WiFi Router's 4 external and 4 internal antennas provide WiFi coverage no matter where you connect in your home.
Four Active Antennas —Enhance weak signal and reduce interference with a patent pending design
Ultimate range—WiFi coverage throughout very large homes

Reliability
There’s nothing more frustrating than lost connections! With NETGEAR’s advanced features and best-in-class technology, you’ll reduce interference and enjoy more reliable WiFi connectivity.
Simultaneous Tri-Band—More and faster WiFi connections to all devices
Beamforming+ — Focuses WiFi signals for stronger more reliable connections on 2.4 and 5GHz bands

Sharing
Sharing across your network is fun and easy. Anything from accessing stored photos and music to sharing a USB printer and keep everything safe by using the included FREE ReadySHARE Vault software for backing up Windows-based PCs.
ReadyCLOUD USB access—Enjoy personal and secure cloud access to USB storage anytime, anywhere
ReadySHARE USB access—Wirelessly access and share USB hard drive and printer via two (2) USB ports: 1 USB 3.0 and 1 USB 2.0 port
One super speed USB 3.0 port—Up to 10x faster than USB 2.0
DLNA—Find and play your media on DLNA TVs, game consoles and media players
ReadySHARE Vault—Free software for automatic PC backup to a USB hard drive connected to the router
ReadySHARE Printer—Wirelessly access and share a USB printer

Ease of Use
Start enjoying your new device faster than ever. NETGEAR wants to make sure installation and management is simple and easy, so you can connect quickly and make sure you stay that way!
Easy install—Easy setup for iPad, tablets, smartphones and computers
NETGEAR genie App—Personal dashboard to monitor, control and repair your home network. Now includes remote access to manage your network away from home.
Push ‘N’ Connect—Easy push button WiFi connections (WPS)
WiFi and power on/off—Convenient power savings
VPN support—Secure access to your home network when away from home
LED on/off—Easily turn router LED lights on or off

Security
Maintain the highest security across your network to ensure your privacy and family is safe while online. Whether it’s preventing phishing and spyware or just limiting access for kids and guests, NETGEAR has you covered.
Enhanced parental controls—Manage web site access by family member and device
Guest network access—Separate and secure access for guests
Secure WiFi connections—Highest-level wireless security with WPA/WPA2
Personal FTP server—Customized free URL to create FTP server
VPN support—Secure access to your home network when away from home

Technical details

General
Brand : Netgear
Model : R8500
WiFi Technology : 802.11ac
WiFi Performance : AC5300 (1000 + 2166 + 2166 Mbps)†
WiFi Range : Very large homes
WiFi Band : Simultaneous Tri-Band WiFi - Tx/Rx 4x4 (2.4GHz) + 4x4 (5GHz) + 4x4 (5GHz)
Beamforming : Implicit & Explicit Beamforming for 2.4 & 5GHz bands
Processor : Powerful dual core 1.4GHz processor
Memory : 128 MB Flash and 512 MB RAM

Number of Ethernet Ports
Seven (7) 10/100/1000 Mbps Gigabit Ethernet ports: 1 WAN & 6 LAN
Dual Gigabit Ethernet Port Aggregation

Number of USB Ports
Two (2) USB ports: 1 USB 3.0 & 1 USB 2.0 port

Key Features
Smart Connect intelligently selects the fastest WiFi band for every device
Load Balancing distributes WiFi devices ensuring usage of both 5GHz WiFi bands
MU-MIMO capable—simultaneous streaming of data for multiple devices
Eight (8) high performance antennas with high-powered amplifiers
Four (4) external Active Antennas enhance weak signals and reduce interference for best WiFi performance (patent pending)
Dynamic QoS prioritizes network traffic by application & device
ReadyCLOUD USB Access—Personal & secure cloud access to USB storage anytime, anywhere
ReadySHARE Vault—PC software for automatic backup to USB hard drive connected to the router
DLNA server to find & play your media on TVs & game consoles
VPN support—secure remote access to your home network & Internet
Enhanced Parental Controls to manage web filtering & accessibility by profiles or devices
NETGEAR genie home network manager includes remote access to manage your network away from home

Security
Customized free URL to set up personal FTP server
VPN support—secure remote access
Guest network access—separate & secure
WiFi Protected Access (WPA/WPA2—PSK)
Double firewall protection (SPI and NAT)
Denial-of-service (DoS) attack prevention

Standards
Two (2) USB ports: 1 USB 3.0 & 1 USB 2.0 port
IEEE 802.11 b/g/n 2.4GHz 1024QAM support
IEEE 802.11 a/n/ac 5GHz1024QAM support
Seven (7) 10/100/1000 Mbps Gigabit Ethernet ports: 1 WAN & 6 LAN

System Requirements
Microsoft Windows 7, 8, Vista, XP, 2000, Mac OS, UNIX, or Linux
Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.0, Firefox 2.0, Safari 1.4, Google Chrome 11.0 browsers or higher

Physical Specifications
Dimensions : 12.44 x 10.39 x 2.40 in (316 x 264 x 61 mm)
Weight : 3.70 lb (1680 g)