Synology RT6600ax is a new router with support for the latest version of the wireless standard, Wi-Fi 6, and the addition of other advanced functions such as UNII-4.
Synology is one of the world’s largest companies in the design and marketing of NAS devices, but it also markets other solutions for network infrastructure such as routers, with some interesting models especially when you consider your custom operating system, Synology Router Manager or SRM, which like its NAS is the best on the market.
Synology RT6600ax is the latest announced and in addition to Wi-Fi 6 support, will be one of the first to support the WiFi band UNII-4, also known as the 5.9 GHz band. This is an extension of the 802.11ax / WiFi 6 band. UNII-4 adds a total of four 20 MHz WiFi channels, but the key here is that it allows for an additional 160 channel MHz, which is useful in locations that are congested. At the moment it only works in the United States, but it is expected that this band will open in regions such as Europe.
Synology has not provided details of the internal hardware, but considering that all of its previous Wi-Fi products have been based on Qualcomm chips, it is likely that we will see a continuation of that partnership. What we do know is that it has 4 × 4 support in the 5 GHz band.
It has six external antennas, a 2.5 Gbps port that can be used as a LAN or WAN port, three Gigabit LAN ports and one USB 3.0 port. With this model, Synology will launch version 1.3 of SRM in 2022, adding a series of new functions such as VPN Plus, which allows blocking access to certain devices on the network from users connected through virtual private networks.
Synology will also add VLAN support to SRM; more advanced SSID support; improved network analytics and a new mobile app. Best known for its NAS, it will be another manufacturer to consider when upgrading wireless networks to Wi-Fi 6, a standard that continues to grow in adoption unabated, both in routers and connected devices.
