ASUS OnHub Router

For many people, routers are an afterthought. Stuck in a closet, out of sight and out of mind, regular users only think about their routers when something is wrong. Dealing with routers is frustrating: they usually have poor user interfaces, buggy firmware, annoying lights and most people don't know how to change their settings, update firmware or improve their performance.

Google hopes to solve these issues with OnHub, a series of routers designed by Google and manufactured by third-party companies. After launching a TP-LINK router, Google announced a second router with similar specs, this time from ASUS. The new router is even more expensive ($219.99) and can only be preordered in the US.

OnHub routers are designed to be fast, secure, easy to use and to look good. "Like our first router, the ASUS OnHub comes with faster Wi-Fi, easy set-up, and simple management with the Google On app. With the ASUS OnHub, we're also introducing Wave Control, which lets you boost the Wi-Fi speed for a particular device by simply waving your hand over the top of the ASUS OnHub - great for busy houses," informs Google.

It's worth pointing out that OnHub routers run Google's software and they're automatically updated, without having to be restarted. That's an impressive achievement. No other router can be updated without disrupting your Internet connectivity for a few minutes and most users don't bother updating their routers.

Both OnHub routers have powerful specs and they're designed for the future. That's why they only have a single LAN port, they support Bluetooth and Weave and have many other features borrowed from smartphones. They're supposed to be smarter, just like all the other smart devices they enable. As Google says in the following video, hopefully one day you'll love your router.

I've only liked two routers: an old Linksys router running Tomato and an Apple Airport Express. They're very different routers, but they have a few things common: they're stable, reliable and secure. Hopefully, OnHub routers will be just even better.