D-Link’s new Ultra Performance routers look as bold as they are quick

By Brandon Widder January 6, 2015

D-Link has never been known for its design — I mean, the Taiwanese company manufacturers routers for Christ’s sake. Its reputation may change with the introduction of its powerful Ultra Performance series, however, a trio of powerful routers with bold style.

Dubbed the AC5300 DIR-895L/R, the AC3200 DIR-890L/R, and the AC3100 DIR-885L/R, each showcases an aggressive design of hard angles paired with, in some models, a deep cherry red shimmer. The internal hardware of each device is as striking as the exterior, too, with 802.11ac tri-band beamforming speeds ranging between 3.1 and 5.3Gbps. Each supports Gigabit Ethernet and USB 3.0, and moreover, lets you control the entirety of your home network via your mobile device. That feature should make setting up parental controls, guest networks, and QoS a breeze, regardless of which router you opt for.

DLink-Ultra-Performance-AC3200-DIR-890LR-Wi-Fi-Router-2 — Image used with permission by copyright holder

The differences between the three seem minor, but they’re important. The AC5300 DIR-895L/R is poised to be the first tri-band router on the market capable of delivering full Wi-Fi bandwidth of up to 5,300Mbps. Whereas the two 5GHz bands are rated up to 2,165Mbps, the router’s lone 2.4GHz band can deliver up to 1,000Mbps. Although the AC3200 DIR-890L/R is also a tri-band router, its 2.4GHz band can only deliver up to 600Mbps and its dual 5GHz bands each 1,300Mbps. The AC3100 DIR-885L/R only offers two Wi-Fi bands – a 2.4GHz and 5GHz band – delivering a total bandwidth of 3,100Mbps.

What’s more, both the DIR-885L/R and DIR-895L/R routers incorporate the latest multi-user MIMO (MU-MIMO) technology, which enables simultaneous transmission to groups of clients and makes the most of the available Wi-Fi network capacity. Newegg is currently offering the six-antenna AC3200 DIR-890L/R for $310, with the other two slated for release sometime next quarter at an unspecified price.

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Brandon Widder is a multimedia journalist and a staff writer for Digital Trends where he covers technology news, how-to…

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