One of the contributors to the performance of the mesh WiFi system is the solid backhaul link between nodes. The disadvantage of “wifi” backhaul is that it is prone to signal interference that may disrupt link communication between nodes. Asus xp4 provides solution of powerline backhaul option that uses existing electrical wiring as a backhaul Powerline backhaul isn’t prone to any disruption like wifi.
How does this asus xp4 compete with similar product tp-link deco p9?
Asus XP4 vs Deco P9
Besides releasing premium-class products such as the asus et12 pro based on wifi6e, asus has also released several middle-class products such as the asus zenwifi xd6 and this asus xp4 I will discuss here.
Previously, tp-link had released a powerline mesh wifi router product (deco p9), a mesh wifi system that also uses powerline as a backhaul link between mesh nodes. Why was this powerline chosen as a backhaul?
Note: TP-Link introduces new model of powerline router, TP-Link Deco PX50 Powerline backhaul, new series with ax3000 mesh wifi 6 powerline hybrid.
Powerline backhaul
The main obstacle to wifi backhaul is that it is vulnerable to signal interference. While the wired Ethernet backhaul option is relatively solid, however it is difficult to run the UTP cable between rooms which may be constrained by having to drill the thick walls or probably having to pass through the ceiling which is difficult to do.
With powerline backhaul, you don’t have to bother drilling walls or pulling cables through the ceiling between rooms because with backhaul powerline you just plug your router into the power outlet on the wall within the house and all mesh wifi nodes are connected using the powerline backhaul.
It doesn’t matter how thick the walls between the rooms are, which may be an obstacle when the router uses wifi backhaul, with a powerline link between nodes they use existing electrical wiring network at home, and there is no need to bother drilling the thick walls.
However, keep in mind that this powerline mesh node network must exist in the same circuit break network. When you have to pass through a different circuit break network then you have to use some kind of jumper.
Both Asus xp4 and Deco P9 have the same powerline backhaul approach in connecting between mesh nodes. However, xp4 features faster up to 1300Mbps powerline speed than deco P9 that does speed up to 1000Mbps.
Backhaul Method Options
Unlike the deco p9, asus xp4 gives you the options of which backhaul methods you choose among the three backhaul options. The three backhaul options are wifi backhaul, wired Ethernet backhaul and powerline backhaul.
While the default is that XP4 chooses in a smart way which of these three backhaul options is the most reliable path to use as a backhaul. However, asus also gives you the option to choose the backhaul manually rather than automatically.
In terms of the backhaul method, Asus is much better to the Deco P9.
Wifi technology
Does wifi6 always provide much higher performance than wifi5 network? If your home connected devices are still based on wifi5, of course the performance is not much different when connected to a wifi6 network. However, the wifi6 network gives you a guarantee of being backward compatible with all legacy wifi5 devices. And in the future there will be many devices based on wifi6 are coming, so with a wifi6 router your network is ready to provide optimal performance for wifi 6 connected devices.
In terms of total aggregated bandwidth, indeed asus xp4 gives you wider bandwidth that means faster device connection.
Dual WAN
Unlike the deco p9 which is not equipped with a usb port, the asus xp4 comes with a usb port that you can use to share disk storage if you connect it to an external flash disk or usb disk storage. Not only that, the usb port on the xp4 can be connected to a usb cellular dongle so that it becomes dual wan function. How does this usb cellular dongle work?
Of course, to provide cellular internet services as a backup for the main internet services. If the internet service from the cable modem is interrupted, the systems will failover to the cellular network with a usb dongle. And when the main internet is back available the system will fall back to main internet service.
The question is whether this system is important for your home, whether the availability of internet without interruption is a must at home or not. For business needs in offices or head quarter offices that rely on an internet connection with guaranteed no interruptions, it is necessary, but not using a home router or cellular internet service as a backup. So the internet failover system for home needs is not urgency.
Security protection
One added value of this asus xp4 is that it is equipped with a lifetime free aiprotection pro feature. With aiprotection you can scan your router to provide screening results if there are few security holes that require necessary action to address them as soon as possible.
Many of the features of this Aiprotecion are to provide security protection for your network and all connected devices against any wild internet threats such as malicious sites blocking, two-way IPS (intrusion prevention system), and also advanced parental control to provide peace of mind for children’s activities interacting with the internet.
Take a look at the following spec comparison table between Asus xp4 powerline mesh wifi 6 router and TP-link Deco P9 AC1200 powerline router.
Table 1 Asus XP4 vs Deco P9
| Model | Asus XP4 Hybrid (2-pack) | TP-Link Deco P9 (3-pack) |
| Wifi technology | Simultaneous dual band ax1800 mesh wifi 6 with AiMesh technology | Simultaneous dual band ac1200 mesh wifi 5 |
| Signal speed | 1201Mbps @5GHz; 574Mbps @2.4GHz | 867Mbps @5GHz; 300Mbps @2.4GHz |
| Powerline | AV2 MIMO @1300 Mbps | AV2 @1000 Mbps |
| Antennas | 4x internal antennas | 2x internal antennas |
| Backhaul | Powerline, Ethernet and WiFi | Powerline and optional Ethernet wired backhaul |
| Coverage | 5500 sq ft (2750 sq ft / unit) | 6,000 sq ft (2,000 sq ft / each unit) |
| Ethernet Ports | 1x Gigabit WAN port; 2x Gigabit LAN ports | 2x Gigabit Ethernet Ports WAN/LAN with auto sensing |
| USB Port | USB 3.2 Gen 1 x 1 | N/A |
| Processor | 64bit 1.2 GHz quad-core processor Memory: 256 MB Flash & 512 MB RAM | Qualcom processor (no details) |
| Operation modes | Wireless router (default); Repeater mode; AP mode | Router mode; AP mode |
| Security | WPA3-Personal, WPA/WPA2-Personal, WPA/WPA2-Enterprise Guest network | WPA / WPA2 personal ; Guest network each band |
| Network protection | Asus instant guard ; Free lifetime AiProtection Pro with commercial grade security and advanced parental control | Advanced parental control |
| Network name | Single name for all or network name each radio band | Single network name |
| Dimension | Unspecified | 3.6 in x 3.6 in x 7.5 in (90.7 × 90.7 × 190 mm) |
| Price | $329.99 | $199.99 |
See that the price difference is much. With more than $100 more expansive you get the recent ax1800 powerline mesh wifi 6 technology and faster powerline backhaul. Or you may prefer Deco P9 with legacy ac1200 technology that will not break your bank. Click the product’s link below to learn more details in Amazon (#ads).
Related products
For gamers in mind, you may consider one of tp-link products that is designed for gamers, the TP-Link Archer GX90 ax6600 wifi-6 router. For those folks that don’t bother with the complication of multiple devices, you may consider new released Motorola Mg8725 wifi 6 router with built-in cable modem.