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The Linksys EA9300 Max-Stream AC4000 Tri-Band Router was launched in August 2017 and is currently retailing for S$399.

The EA9300 is not the highest end router from Linksys, that title still belongs to EA9500.

Instead, the EA9300 is the successor to the EA9200 which was launched more than two years ago.

Despite not being the highest end router, the EA9300 is the most powerful one because of its 1.8GHz quad-core processor, 512MB of RAM and 256MB of ROM.

While the EA9500 retails for S$539, the EA9300 cost S$140 lesser at S$399. The lower price brings about, the more powerful processor, more RAM, and ROM. You may be wondering why. The reason being instead of a 4×4 MU-MIMO (4 simultaneous streams) design found in the EA9500, the EA9300 only has a 3×3 MU-MIMO (3 simultaneous streams).

Because of that, the speeds also decrease. From 1,000Mbps to 750Mbps on the 2.4GHz and from 2,166Mbps to 1,625Mbps on both 5.0GHz.

Specifications (Credits: SmallNetBuilder and WikiDevi)

• CPU: Broadcom BCM4908 1.8GHz Quad-Core (ARM Cortex-A53)
• RAM: 512MB
• Flash: 256MB
• Wireless: 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac
  • 2.4GHz
    • Broadcom BCM4365EKMMLG 3×3 2.4/5G single chip 802.11ac SoC
    • Skyworks SE2623L 2.4 GHz power amp (x3)
    • IEEE 802.11n, IEEE 802.11g, IEEE 802.11b
    • Speeds up to 750 Mbps
  • 5GHz
    • Broadcom BCM4365EKMMLG 3×3 2.4/5G single chip 802.11ac SoC
    • Skyworks SKY85408-11 802.11ax 5 GHz power amp (x3)
    • IEEE 802.11ac, IEEE 802.11n & IEEE 802.11a
    • Speeds up to 1,625 Mbps
  • 5GHz
    • Broadcom BCM4365EKMMLG 3×3 2.4/5G single chip 802.11ac SoC
    • Skyworks SKY85408-11 802.11ax 5 GHz power amp (x3)
    • IEEE 802.11ac, IEEE 802.11n & IEEE 802.11a
    • Speeds up to 1,625 Mbps
• LAN/WAN
  • Broadcom BCM4908
  • 4x 10/100/1000 Gigabit LAN ports
  • 1x 10/100/1000 Gigabit WAN port
• Antennas: Six external non-removable antennas
• Other Ports: 2x USB 3.0 port
• Dimensions: 168.15 x 229.62 x 296.93 (mm)
• Weight: 1.27kg

Unboxing
The box is huge but not as huge as EA9500’s box.

Design

The EA9300 only has four LAN ports instead of eight found in the EA9500.

Instead of one USB 2.0 and one USB 3.0 port in the EA9500, the EA9300 has two USB 3.0 ports.

UI
Similar to the EA9500, the EA9300 is a Smart Wi-Fi Router. That means you can access and control your home network from anywhere with a web browser or a mobile device via an iOS or Android App.

I would not be covering the router UI here since it is the same across all the latest Linksys router that I reviewed.

in case you are wondering, the EA9300 supports VLAN tagging and OpenVPN server.

Speed Test
The wireless speed for EA9300 is pretty decent

Coverage
The EA9300 coverage for 2.4GHz is pretty bad when compared to EA9500. It seems that Linksys routers have worse 2.4GHz coverage than Asus routers.

I would say the 5.0GHz coverage between the EA9300 and EA9500 is a close one. I am leaning towards EA9300 having slightly better coverage because it has less bluish areas around the main bedroom, bedroom 2, and kitchen area.

In reverse, Linksys routers have better 5.0GHz coverage than Asus routers.

In case you are wondering, I am using a paid version of NetSpot to generate the above heatmaps.

Conclusion
Despite it not being the highest end router in the market, it is probably the most powerful one because of its quad-core processor and 512MB RAM.

If you find the EA9500 too expensive at S$539, the EA9300 might be suitable for you at S$399 (S$140 cheaper). It is a good upgrade over the EA9200 which may be defunct soon.

S$399 is probably the maximum price I will pay for a router and EA9300 fits right into the criteria.

I wish that the EA9300 has an 8-port switch instead of just 4.