Linksys has unveiled a new Wi-Fi router which will make playing games on a shared network much easier. If you want to play games online lag-free while other people in the house are watching YouTube or downloading some big files, the WRT32X might be the router for you. It was announced at CES 2017 this week, and it'll be available in a few months time for $300.
According to Gizmodo, gaming traffic prioritization on the WRT32X is done automatically thanks to optimized MU-MIMO (multi-user, multiple input, multiple output) with custom firmware. Plus, the router is open source with support for OpenWrt and DD-WRT if you want an extra level of control over your network. The custom-built firmware allows you to have control over device and traffic prioritization, and you can keep an eye on external storage with the built-in USB 3.0 port.
The automatic network control goes both ways too, as the router will be able to throttle download speeds of your machine when it's downloading large patches and give more priority to other machines on the network.
As for the specifications, the WRT32X has a 1.8 GHz dual-core processor, and it's an AC3200 router which operates on a simultaneous dual band of 2.4 and 5 GHz (N600 and AC2600 respectively). It has the aforementioned USB 3.0 port, and an ESATA port which also accommodates USB 2.0. Plus, it has four high speed Gigabit Ethernet ports.
At $300, it's a fairly pricey router, but if it solves issues on a crowded network in your home, it could be worth it. Keep an eye on PC Gamer over the coming days for more news from this year's CES.
