D-Link's AX11000 futuristic router promises extreme speed

AX is the future: D-Link's new DIR-X9000 router promises superfast speeds, a forest of antennas and an otherworldly design here at CES 2018.

Dan Dziedzic Associate editor

Dan has been a professional writer for more than a decade and now specializes in routers and networking devices. Originally from Chicago, IL, Dan studied comedy writing at Second City and worked as a Chicago sports journalist for a number of years. With a background in physics, he spends his spare time learning about the intricacies of the universe.

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Dan Dziedzic

Jan. 7, 2018 5:30 p.m. PT

d-link-ax11000-ultra-wi-fi-router-dir-x9000 — The new D-Link DIR-X9000 has theoretical speeds of up to 11,000Mbps.
Chris Monroe/CNET

Get ready to hear crazy speed claims for new 802.11ax routers, due out by the end of 2018.

D-Link just announced its triband AX11000 Ultra Wi-Fi router, the DIR-X9000, which theoretically can deliver speeds up to -- you guessed it -- 11,000Mbps. And it looks just as futuristic as you would expect, with eight antennas and a funky pyramidal shape, similar to AC routers in D-Link's Ultra Wi-Fi router line, such as the D-Link DIR-885L/R.

Other features of the new D-Link AX11000 Ultra Wi-Fi router include:

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WAN port that supports up to 2.5Gbps speeds
Four gigabit LAN ports for wired devices
4x4 MU-MIMO for fast simultaneous connections to multiple devices
USB 3.0 port for network storage and printers
Setup and management via D-Link Wi-Fi app

Unfortunately, you won't be able to buy the DIR-X9000 until the second half of 2018, and very few devices can even support the 802.11ax standard right now. Expect to hear a lot more about it as the year goes on. AX is the future, and I can't wait to test one of these out.

If that's just too much speed for you, D-Link also announced a dual-band AX6000 Ultra Wi-Fi router (the DIR-X6060), which has similar features and design.

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