A $70 Wi-Fi 6 Network Card launched by Asus to boost your desktop’s wireless speed | Details Inside

Asus launches a $70 Wi-Fi 6 Network Card to boost your desktop’s wireless speed

Credit: Asus

Asus has quietly introduced a PCI Express expansion card (PCE-AX3000) that adds Wi-Fi 6 connectivity to your desktop PC. Under the right circumstances, it can surely boost your system's wireless speed, though other gear is required.

However, you also need a Wi-Fi 6 router to take full advantage of the Wi-Fi 6 adapter. The reason for this is because Wi-Fi 6 is a next-generation standard (also known as 802.11ax). This standard introduces features that are not supported by previous-generation Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac) hardware.

The biggest benefit you get while using Wi-Fi 6 is that it is better equipped to handle multiple devices at the same time. You might have up to around a dozen connected devices at your home when you factor in desktops, laptops, smart TVs, game consoles, speakers, smartphones, smart tablets, and everything else. The Wi-Fi 6 was designed with this in mind.

This means that to fully utilize the Wi-Fi 6's benefits, both the router and host adapters have to support the standard. The vast majority of wireless devices, available in the market today, have not yet adopted Wi-Fi 6 standards. So, by just installing a Wi-F6 6 network card into your desktop will have a limited benefit, even if you've also purchased a Wi-Fi 6 router.

The good news is, Wi-Fi 6 hardware is backward compatible. So you can install the PCE-AX3000 into your desktop and connect to your Wi-Fi 5 router just fine.

The Asus PCE-AX3000 supports speeds of up to 2,402Mbps on the 5GHz channel and 600Mbps on the 2.4GHz channel. With this, it also offers Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity.

Image Credit: Asus

However, the pricing is a little steep, though. It's available now to preorder on Amazon for $69.99, and will be "in stock on November 26." Book Your's Now! The Asus PCE-AX3000 is based on an Intel AX200 M.2 Wi-Fi module that sells for around $20. So, you're basically paying $49.99 extra for the PCIe card form factor and external antennas.

It is also one of the more expensive PCIe card solutions, even without considering potential Black Friday deals that might loom around the corner.