Blacktubi's
Unifi Router Buyer's Guide
This page is a product summary of wireless routers in Malaysia. TM is upgrading their Unifi users to faster speed recently. Many users wonder why their WiFi speed is slow after they received the free upgrade. One of the reasons is due to your existing Unifi router is incapable to support the new upgraded speed.
All Unifi installation comes with 2 devices, an ONU and a wireless router. The ONU or known as the modem is non-user replaceable and it comes with a lifetime warranty by TM. There are many wireless routers you can buy in the market but not all of them are compatible with Unifi. Unifi require a router to have VLAN tagging feature for the Internet and HyppTV to work.
We included these columns to help your decision making in deciding which router to buy
- Suggested plan – This is made based on our testing the maximum WiFi speed the router can deliver.
- Maximum Internet speed – This is made based on our testing of the maximum Internet speed the router can support over wired LAN.
- Beamforming – Beamforming generally help in improving the coverage on Wireless AC devices.
MU-MIMO –
Leave a comment below for any suggestions and feedback. You can click on the model name to read my review on the router.
Unifi Router Setup
Once you purchased the new router, please request your Unifi login ID and Password from TM. You will need them when configuring your new router. Once you got everything ready, remove your old wireless router and connect the new router to the ONU. You have to reconfigure your new wireless router. The process depends on the brand of the router but generally, you just need to insert the PPPOE ID and password and select the Unifi profile on the router.
TP-Link Unifi Router
TP-Link routers are fully compatible with Unifi. TP-Link offers really good value for money as their routers are usually cheaper while delivering the same level of performance compared to their competitors. They offer a 3 years warranty on all their networking products.
You can refer to my guide on how to setup TP-Link Unifi router here.
Model WiFi Specification Suggested Plan Beamforming MU-MIMO Maximum Internet speed Retail Price
Archer C5400X Gaming AC5400 800Mbps ✔ ✔ 941Mbps RM1499
Archer C5400 AC5400 800Mbps ✔ ✔ 941Mbps RM1499
Archer C4000 AC4000 800Mbps ✔ ✔ TBD TBD
Archer C3150 AC3150 800Mbps ✔ ✔ 941Mbps RM799
Archer C2300 AC2300 800Mbps ✔ ✔ TBD RM679
Deco M9 Plus Mesh AC2200 500Mbps ✔ ✔ 800Mbps RM999
Archer C9 AC1900 500Mbps ✔ – TBD RM499
Deco M5 Mesh AC1300 300Mbps ✔ ✔ 800Mbps RM719
Archer C7/ A7 AC1750 500Mbps – – 800Mbps RM409
Archer C6/ A6 AC1200 300Mbps ✔ ✔ 941Mbps RM409
Archer C1200 AC1200 300Mbps – – TBD RM299
Do note that HyppTV do not work on their Deco mesh series of products but Internet is working properly.
Asus Unifi Router
Asus is another well known brand in the wireless router industry. They are slightly more expensive but they have really solid performance and the AsusWRT firmware offers the most comprehensive set of features. Asus also pioneer their AiMesh technology which allows you to use several compatible Asus routers to form a high performance mesh network. Asus routers come with 3 years of warranty in Malaysia.
You can refer to my guide on how to setup Asus Unifi router here.
Model WiFi Specs Suggested Plan AiMesh BF MU-MIMO Maximum Internet Speed Price Range
RT-AX88U AX6000 800Mbps ✔ ✔ ✔ 941Mbps Unreleased
Asus ROG Rapture GT-AC5300 Gaming AC5300 800Mbps ✔ ✔ ✔ 941Mbps RM2489
RT-AC5300 AC5300 800Mbps ✔ ✔ ✔ 941Mbps RM2209
RT-AC88U AC3100 800Mbps ✔ ✔ ✔ 941Mbps RM1809
Asus Blue Cave AC2600 800Mbps ✔ ✔ ✔ 941Mbps RM1099
RT-AC68U AC1900 500Mbps ✔ ✔ – 850Mbps RM1039
Lyra Trio Mesh AC1750 500Mbps ✔ ✔ ✔ 850Mbps RM1579
Lyra Mesh AC2200 500Mbps ✔ ✔ ✔ 850Mbps RM999
RT-AC66U B1 AC1750 300Mbps ✔ ✔ – 941Mbps RM859
RT-AC1300UHP AC1300 300Mbps ✔ ✔ ~500Mbps RM569
RT-AC58U AC1300 300Mbps ✔ ✔ ~500Mbps RM479
RT-AC1200G+ AC1200 100Mbps – – ~400Mbps RM449
D-Link Unifi Router
You probably heard of D-Link before as they are one of the oldest brand selling networking gear in Malaysia. They also produce some really great networking equipment. New D-Link routers are fully compatible with Unifi. They are also rather affordable while delivering good performance.
You can refer to my guide on how to setup D-Link Unifi router here.
Other Brands (Tenda, Netgear and etc)
There are also other brands in the market and most if not all Enterprise level gear can be configured to support Unifi. But, we do not include them in this list as they may be harder to configure for most users.
Netgear is known for requiring manual setup of VLAN for it to work with Unifi.
The DIR-895L is selling for RM799 currently. I plan to put my router in my living room, my unit is around 1300sqft. The distance from the router to the master bedroom and toilet would be around 15-16m. Would the DIR-895L be the best value for money purchase, or is there a better choice to go for at a much lower price point?
This router is no longer maintained by D-Link and comes with a ton of firmware issue.
If I am able to afford the Asus RT-AC88U. Is there any reason I should get it over TP-Link Archer C3150.
Set-up: Double story house with modem & router at upstairs. Unifi Turbo 800mbps. Only uses 1 or 2 lan ports to connect to PC & PS4. Others are mobile devices/tv box (6 to 7) over wifi.
Currently I have no problem getting full speed over wired lan on PC. It’s just that the mobile device over wifi are slow like hell. So I want to fix this by getting a better router.
The current version of the RT-AC88U comes with the latest RangeBoost chipset for really good WiFi performance although ASUS don’t advertise it. Not to mention ASUS track record of firmware support.
What’s the best TP Link and Asus router for Unifi 500 mbps budget below RM1k? And how much are you missing out by getting a TP Link router vs Asus router if both are the same price?
ASUS Router customer service is a lot better and their firmware are always updated. If budget not an issue, I will always recommend to go for ASUS. ASUS RT-AC86U or TP-LINK C5400X are good choice.
HI Alvyn,
I’m torn apart between TP-Link C2300 vs D-Link DIR-882. Both are in same price range (+-) and on paper I believe Dlink has the advantage in term of WiFi speed and coverage. But on the otherhand, TP-Link has the best USB 3.0 speed as per your review.
What is your opinion on this?
C2300 is better in every single way than the DIR-882.
Howdy,
Planning to use google WiFi to replace Unifi’s provided crappy router.
Heard VLAN is required and it can get complicated?
Unless there’s other mesh network router that’s Malaysian Unifi friendly u can recommend
I recommend TP-Link Deco Mesh series, it is very easy to setup and user friendly just like Google WiFi.
Is it true that the Unifi’s provided router is ‘crappy’? and how better does the asus and tp-link router perform than the Unifi’s provided router?
It depends, there’s high end and low end routers. A high end router will give you better WiFi speed especially when you are further from the router, better stability when you have more devices connected.