Your wireless connection can be a reason for slow internet transmission while watching Netflix or playing PUBG.
You might be having a single band router that can’t handle your extensive data transfer needs.
Let’s understand the difference between Dual-Band vs Single-Band router in this article.
What Is Single-Band Router
A router that uses only one frequency for wireless connectivity, that is 2.4 GHz, is a Single Band Router.
Single-band router adheres to Wireless-N standard (802.11n) that provides internet speed limited up to 300 Mbps (in theory up to 800 Mbps).
Single-band routers are better in penetrating objects such as walls, doors, and furniture because of the low-frequency rate, making it a good choice for small homes or offices.
For example, if your primary purpose to use the internet is web browsing or reading news or articles and watching youtube videos, then a single-band router can take care of your needs.
But if you are a heavy gamer or like to watch Ultra-HD videos over the internet, then you need a dual-band router that will provide you fast internet performance.
Top 3 Best Single Band Router in India
#1. TP-Link TL-WR840N 300 Mbps Speed Wireless WiFi Router
TP-link TL-WR840N router is equipped with 802.11N standard technology that provides you an internet speed of up to 300 Mbps via Wifi. You also get 4 100 Mbps LAN ports for wired connections.
The router has three 5 dBi antennas for coverage up to 400 square feet making it suitable for small homes and offices.
You can also control bandwidth depending upon the IP to provide more bandwidth to certain devices like gaming laptop or mobile.
You can easily set up the router using TP-Link tether app that you can download the app in your mobile phone.
- 300Mbps Wi-Fi Speed —— 300Mbps wireless transmission rate ideal for both bandwidth sensitive tasks and basic work
- Access Point Mode —— Supports Access Point mode to create a new Wi-Fi access point
- Range Extender Mode —— Supports Range Extender mode to boost the existing wireless coverage in your room
- Parental Control —— Parental Controls manage when and how connected devices can access the internet
- IPTV —— IPTV supports IGMP Proxy/Snooping, Bridge and Tag VLAN to optimize IPTV streaming
Pros of TP-Link TL-WR840N Wireless Router
- Easy to install via app
- 400 square feet range
- dual antenna for stable connections.
Cons of TP-Link TL-WR840N Wireless Router
- Not suitable for medium size and large homes.
Best for – 2 BHK or small office
#2. D-Link DSL-2730U Wireless-N 150 ADSL2+ Router for BSNL Broadband
D-Link DSL-2730U is a DSL modem with an ADSL2+ standard BSNL or MTNL broadband connections. The D-Link router supports speeds up to 150 Mbps.
You get an in-built modem with a single antenna suitable for a 1 BHK home. You also get four 100 Mbps LAN ports for connecting computers through LAN cable. You get an inbuilt security feature to protect your network from malware and viruses.
- Input Type RJ-11 (Ethernet Cable) supported by ISPs such as MTNL, BSNL, Airtel,Hathway,ACT Fibrenet,Spectranet and neighbourhood cable operator
- High-speed ADSL2 + internet connection
- High performance wireless speed upto 150Mbps
- Smooth and secure transfer of photos, files, music, video and e-mail over the internet
- Universal plug-and-play(UPnP)
Pros of D-Link DSL-2730U ADSL2+ Modem Router
- Ideal for BSNL, MTNL or any DSL broadband connections.
- 4 LAN ports for wired connections.
- 3 years warranty
- Secure from malware attacks
Cons of D-Link DSL-2730U ADSL2+ Modem Router
- Low supporting speed of 150 Mbps
- Not suitable for fiber connections
Best for – BSNL Broadband connections.
#3. Tenda N301 Wireless-N300 Wifi Router
Tenda F3 router is popular for stable connections and covers an area of 400 sq feet making it ideal for 2BHK apartments. Tenda N301 offers a wireless speed up to 300 Mbps thanks to the 802.11N standard compatibility.
You get two 5 dBi antennas and three LAN ports at the back for connecting your devices wirelessly as well as through cable.
Tenda F3 has parental control features to block unwanted website access to your children.
- Input Type RJ-45 (Ethernet Cable) supported by neighbourhood cable broadband ISPs such as Hathway, ACT, Tikona, Airtel Fibrenet, MyWorld, Nextra, Siti Cable, You Broadband, Spectranet etc
- This Router Does Not Include Modem and works well with Cable Broadbands
- Power Consumption: 1.9W at no load and 3.3W at full-load
- Buttons: 1 x WPS/reset
- LED for system, Wi-Fi, LAN, WAN and WPS
Pros of Tenda F3 300Mbps Wireless Router
- Provides broadband connection support
- Parental control
- Stable connection
Cons of Tenda F3 300Mbps Wireless Router
- Range is not ideal for large homes
Best for – Small to medium-sized apartments
Also check out – TP-Link TL-WR841N vs D-Link DIR615
What Is Dual-Band Router
A dual-band router is a router that uses two frequency bands 2.4GHz and 5GHz simultaneously for data transmission to provide you better performance.
In a dual-band router, 1 channel of 2.4 GHz band works on 802.11n standard that provides a similar speed of up to 300 Mbps, while 5 GHz works on 802.11ac standard which is blazing fast and provides you a speed up to 2 Gbps.
Dual-band router has better range coverage and better signal strength. A dual-band router is capable of switching bands automatically whenever required.
Dual-band router works well in open areas with fewer obstacles due to high oscillating radio waves. If you have a mid-size home or a small office, you can get better coverage with a dual-band writer.
For example, if there are 2 types of users connected on a dual-band router, one is browsing the internet while the other is playing an online game. Both will access the internet at different frequencies, so won’t get any slowness on the internet speed.
Dual-band router has strong signal strength double frequency bands, it’s highly suitable for online gaming, 4K video streaming, and uploading/downloading big files where you need high-speed data transmission.
Top 3 Best Dual Band Router in India
#1. TP-Link Archer C20 AC750 Wireless Dual Band Router
TP-Link Archer C20 Router is a dual-band router that supports up to 733 Mbps bandwidth (300Mbps at 2.4GHz and 433Mbps at 5GHz).
The dual-band helps you to get faster speed with a stable network connection. You can use a 5GHz band for heavy network usage tasks like online gaming whereas you can 2.4GHz band for long-range coverage in your home.
You also get 4 LAN ports for wired connections that support up to 100 Mbps. The Archer C20 has 3 omnidirectional antennas that can cover a 2-BHK home with ease.
TP-link makes sure your network is safe from hacks thanks to its inbuilt network protection feature and WPA2 wireless encryption.
- 750 Mbps Dual Band Wi-Fi —— Simultaneous 2.4GHz 300Mbps and 5GHz 433Mbps connections for 733Mbps of total available bandwidth. WiFi Range : 2 Bedroom Houses (3× Fixed Antennas)
- Antennas —— 3 external antennas provide stable omnidirectional signal and superior wireless coverage
- Working Modes —— Router Mode, Access Point Mode, Range Extender Mode.
- Wireless Standards —— IEEE 802.11ac/n/a 5 GHz, IEEE 802.11n/b/g 2.4 GHz
- Interface —— 1× 10/100 Mbps WAN Port, 4× 10/100 Mbps LAN Ports
Pros of TP-Link Archer C20 Dual Band Router
- High spee and wider coverage
- Tether app to control network from mobile
- 3 antennas for stable connections
Cons of TP-Link Archer C20 Dual Band Router
- No USB ports available
#2. D-Link DIR-825 AC 1200 Wi-Fi Dual-Band Gigabit Router
D-link DIR-825 supports 802.11ac standard that provides up to 1200 Mbps speed (867Mbps in 5GHz band and 300Mbps for 2.4GHz band). You can use dual band router for better speed while gaming online or streaming Netflix.
You can also connect your computer or 4K Tv with 4 high-speed 1Gbps LAN ports. D-Link has 4 omnidirectional antenna that is sufficient to cover a 3 BHK home.
You also get a USB 2.0 port for connecting printers and media-sharing hard drives. You can use your DIR-825 as a wifi extender for your existing network also.
- AC-1200 with 1.2Gbps of speed / 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n, 802.11AC. Dynamic IP (DHCP) : Yes
- WEP, WPA/WPA-2(Personal / Enterprise), WPS, Easy network management at your fingertips with D-Link Wi-F- APP.
- Dual band with 2.4GHz band (300mbps) and the 5GHz band (867mbps)
- 4-Omni Antenna/ TX. Beamforming, MU-MIMO Technology / 4 X 10/100/1000 LAN & 1 x 10/100/1000 WAN port, 1 x USB 2.0
- Multiple Operating Mode: Router, Access Point, Client, Repeater, Guest Wifi, Bandwidth Limitation, TR-069, FTP/SAMBA/DLNA Server.
Pros of D-Link DIR-825 Gigabit Router
- High speed wireless network
- Stable signal coverage
- 2 year warranty
- Gigabit LAN ports
Cons of D-Link DIR-825 Gigabit Router
- No ]app provided
#3. TP-Link Archer C6 AC1200 Wireless MU-MIMO Gigabit Router
TP-link Archer C6 offers 867Mbps in 5GHz band and 300Mbps for 2.4GHz band on your wireless network. You also get 4 LAN ports supporting up to 1Gbps for wired connections.
Archer C6 has 4 omnidirectional external antennas to cover a medium size (3-BHK) apartment. You can control your C6 router using the smartphone app.
- Dual Band WiFi speed —— Simultaneous 2.4GHz 300 Mbps and 5GHz 867 Mbps connections for 1200 Mbps of total available bandwidth; supports 802.11ac standard
- Ultimate Range Wi-Fi —— 4 external antennas and one internal antenna provide stable wireless connections and optimal coverage
- Qualcomm Chipset —— High-Performance Chipset provides an excellent connection experience
- MU-MIMO —— MU-MIMO achieves 2X efficiency by communicating with up to 2 devices at once
- Gigabit Ports —— With one Gigabit WAN port and four Gigabit LAN port, speeds can be up to 10× faster than standard Ethernet connections. Connect your favorite wired devices to the Archer C6 and get impressed
Pros of TP-Link Archer C6 Gigabit Router
- MIMO technology-enabled antennas for better coverage
- Faster wireless and wired connectivity
- 3 year warranty.
Cons of TP-Link Archer C6 Gigabit Router
- No USB port.
Check out – Best dual band wifi routers
How To Identify Dual Band Router Or Single Band Router
To identify, you need to check out its specifications and if it shows bandwidth compatibility with a single 2.4 band, then it’s a single-band router.
But if it shows compatibility with two bands – 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz, then its a dual-band router.
Difference Between Dual Band Router Vs Single Band Router
#1. Network Speed
A single band router supports a maximum internet speed of up to 300 Mbps. Single-band router is less stable and users often complain about connection drop.
A dual-band router supports 5-7 times more internet speed which is a maximum of 2 Gbps.
A dual-band router is more stable and has better signal strength than a single band. Users get strong signals without any connection drop.
#2. Cost
Single-band routers are inexpensive and miss some features like MU-MIMO formation that is a better way of handling connected devices, whereas, dual-band routers are 3x more expensive than a single band.
You can buy a single band router in the range of Rs. 1,000 to Rs. 1,500, whereas, you can get a dual-band router in the range of Rs. 3,500 to Rs. 10,000.
Dual-band routers offer some important features like device prioritization for better utilization of the bandwidth but you have to pay extra money for that.
#3. Performance
If you compare performance-wise, a single-band router provides a shorter range and the signal is also not strong enough.
But if you have a small area to cover like 40-50 feet with walls and other objects in your home, then the single-band router will perform well because of the low-frequency range, it penetrates objects well.
Secondly, if your primary need is to browse the internet, read articles, or watch youtube for some time, then a single-band router won’t let you down.
Dual-band offers long-range (with fewer obstacles), strong signal strength, and switches automatically from 2.4 GHz to 5 GHz and vice versa as per the requirement.
If you like to play online games or watch hi-definition videos then you need a dual-band router. You can use it in a mid-size home like 3 BHK.
If there are multiple WiFi connections in your building or locality, that may result in connection drops on a single-band router but you won’t find such an issue on dual-band writer.
#4. Compatibility
Compatibility is another important point to discuss because all devices are not compatible with both routers.
Single-band router being an old technology is compatible with most of the broadband modems and wireless cards because they use the 2.4 GHz band.
Dual-band router uses both frequencies (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz), so it is compatible with both old and modern devices like smartphones, modems and wireless receivers.
Let’s compare both in the tabular form for better understanding.
| Specifications | Single Band Router | Dual Band Router |
| Operating frequency | 2.4GHz | 2.4GHZ and 5GHz |
| Signal strength | Medium | Very strong |
| Performance | Average | High |
| Designed for | Web browsing, email, listening to music | Online HD gaming, 4K video streaming |
| No. of connected devices | 3-4 | 5-10 |
| Signal strength | Medium | Very strong |
| Covering area | Small | Very large |
| Designed for | Web browsing, email, music | Online HD gaming, 4K video streaming |
| Suitable for | Small home | Large home |
| Price | Rs. 1000 to Rs. 1500 | Above Rs. 3000 |
You would like to read – Difference between wifi and broadband
Which Is Best For You
If you use the internet for web browsing, listening to music online, video conferencing, and watching online youtube videos, then a single-band router is ideal for you because you can perform all such normal activities at 2.4 GHz without any issue.
On the other hand, if you are a heavy gamer who loves to play online and you watch 4K video streaming on Netflix or you are a video editor who needs to upload/download large files, need a dual-band for a faster and stable connection.
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