Performance in Benchmarks

In our test setup we have used an ASUS RT-AC56U router. We compared Edimax N300 Smart Wi-Fi Extender with ASUS RP-N14, a single-band range extender that is one of its direct competitors, both in terms of price and features. All our measurements were performed using a Surface Pro 2 device.

We started by measuring the wireless signal strength in all the rooms where we use our wireless devices. For this task we have used a tool named inSSIDer.

Below you can see the signal strength in each room of our test apartment for the 2.4 Ghz wireless network. As you can see, Edimax N300 was not able to beat ASUS RP-N14 in any of the rooms in our apartment.

For the next set of measurements, we have used PingTest. It is a test that evaluates the quality of your network. It measures packet loss (which was 0% in all of our tests), the average ping and the jitter, which is the variance in measuring successive ping tests. Having a jitter that's low is great as it signals that your network connection is constant.

First, let's take a look at the ping reply measurements. As you can see from the graph below, Edimax N300 performed better than ASUS RP-N14 in almost every room in our apartment.

The same remained true in terms of jitter - Edimax N300 outperformed ASUS RP-N14 in almost every room in our apartment.

Then, we have used SpeedTest to measure the download and upload speeds that were obtained when using this range extender.

As you can see in the chart below, Edimax N300 outperformed ASUS RP-N14 in almost every room in our apartment and in some rooms, the differences were quite significant.

The same story was repeated when measuring the upload speed. Edimax N300 was again faster than ASUS RP-N14.

Edimax N300 Smart Wi-Fi might not deliver the best wireless signals strength we've seen but it does deliver fast downloads and uploads.

Special Features

Edimax N300 Smart Wi-Fi Extender doesn't offer any special thrills or extras. It's an affordable range extender that does what it is supposed to do - extend the coverage of your wireless network.

It does promise some Parental Control features but they are not found in the standard firmware. You have to download the EdiRange app for Android and iOS in order to access them. Unfortunately, there is no app available for Windows Phone.

In terms of advanced features, you can adjust transmission power used for the wireless signal, enable guest network access and turn off the range extender according to a given schedule.

Unfortunately, you cannot set this range extender to turn off only the LED indicators during the night. You can only turn off both the wireless network and the LED indicators. Hopefully, future firmware upgrades will provide the option to turn off just the LED during the night, while keeping the wireless network active.

Verdict

Edimax N300 Smart Wi-Fi Extender is an affordable device that delivers good performance when extending the coverage of your wireless network. It doesn't have any bells and whistles as other devices do but it does its job well and reliably. If you don't need to extend the coverage of a dual-band wireless network and you don't want any special features from a range extender, then Edimax N300 is a great choice. It will deliver very good performance at a very reasonable price.