Photos: 10 Wi-Fi access points to consider before dipping into your tech budget

Ruckus ZoneFlex R710

The ZoneFlex R710 from Ruckus Wireless (seen here disassembled) is a full 802.11ac Wave 2 access point, with a 4x4:4 antenna design, which can achieve speeds up to 1733 Mbps. The R710 uses the BeamFlex+ integrated antenna design, which purportedly provides more consistent performance as clients change orientation relative to the access point.

Image: Ruckus Wireless, Inc.

Cisco Aironet 3700

The Cisco Aironet 3700 series is an 802.11ac Wave 2 ready access point that can be upgraded using an add-on module. It has a 4x4:3 antenna design, which is available in both integrated and external antenna configurations. The Aironet 3700 requires the use of other Cisco software for management.

Image: Cisco Systems, Inc.

Linksys EA8500

The Linksys EA8500 is the first home / prosumer router to support 802.11ac Wave 2, which adds support for multiuser MIMO, offering speeds approximately four times faster than Wave 1 devices. It can support 50 users, making it a better fit for home office and small business settings. At an MSRP of $279.99, it is one of the most expensive home routers available, but the 802.11ac performance is very good.

Image: Belkin International, Inc.

Zebra AP 8232

The Zebra AP 8232 is a rather ruggedly-built enterprise-grade access point with a 3x3:3 antenna design. In contrast to other enterprise access points, it has optional upgrades for light sensors and intrusion detection, as well as a 4G LTE backhaul to prevent downtime during an outage of the wired network.

This product was previously sold by Motorola Solutions (the half of Motorola not owned by Google, which was subsequently sold to Lenovo).

Image: ZIH Corp.

Linksys LAPAC1750PRO

The Linksys LAPAC1750PRO features support for 802.11ac, for a maximum data rate of 1,750 Mbps. The antenna design is 3x3:3. This access point uses a 1 GHz Broadcom BCM53016 CPU, and Broadcom radios for both the 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz bands.

Image: Belkin International, Inc.

Ubiquiti Networks UniFi AP-AC

Ubiquiti's UniFi AP-AC supports speeds up to 1300 Mbps, using a 3x3:3 antenna design. Ubiquiti's licensing model does not include licensing or software fees, which can be an important TCO consideration. The UAP-AC is also available in a ruggedized Outdoor version, which supports wall or pole mounting.

Image: Ubiquiti Networks, Inc.

D-Link DAP-2695 Rev. A1

The D-Link DAP-2695 A1 is a Qualcomm Atheros-based 802.11ac access point, using a 3x3:3 antenna design with removable RP-SMA antenna connectors. Owing to the fact that it has external antennas, the system weighs 1,140 grams (2.52 lbs.), which is somewhat heavier than the 950 gram (2.094 lbs.) Aruba AP-325, which has integrated antennas.

Image: D-Link Systems, Inc.

Aerohive AP390

The Aerohive AP390 provides 802x11ac support with a 3x3:3 antenna design. Of particular interest is the Aerohive's HiveOS, which allows the access points to organize into groups or "hives" that coordinate various features such as cooperative RF management without a dependency on a backend network.

Image: Aerohive Networks, Inc.

Meru AP832

The Meru AP832 is a Broadcom-based 80211ac access point with a 3x3:3 antenna design, which can achieve speeds up to 1300 Mbps. Like other solutions, it is available in an integrated antenna and an external antenna design.

Image: Meru Networks, Inc.