TP-Link HX510 AX3000 mesh WiFi router review

Mesh WiFi systems have a bad rep for costing an arm and a leg, particularly once you start looking at two-pack or three-pack variants. In a way, it makes sense: the newest networking configuration on the block is bound to attract a premium. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Cue the entry of the TP-Link HX510 AX3000, which not only shows mesh doesn’t have to cost hundreds of dollars, it can work as a standalone router without having to buy two or more units.

Like the ZTE H1600, the TP-Link HX510 is one of those bits of networking kit that’s tricky to buy independently at an online retailer. In fact, I couldn’t find anywhere that was selling two-pack or three-pack configurations, which is usually pretty standard fare these days for mesh WiFi systems. That said, the HX510 was available for purchase from Spintel as a plan add-on for $110 and bundled as an EasyMesh extender with the TP-Link VX230v for $279.95 from Activ8me.

For comparison, the cheapest mesh competitor I could find at retail was the TP-Link Deco X50 for the same $159 RRP, otherwise you’re looking at around $200 for the Amazon Eero 6, D-Link R15 Eagle Pro AI mesh-able router or around the $250 mark for a standalone Eero 6 Plus or Google Nest WiFi. Basically, the HX510 is a very affordable start to a mesh home network whose theoretical $330 cost (not including shipping) from Spintel makes it one of the cheapest three-unit mesh WiFi systems going, too.

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As long as you follow the cardinal rule of installing new networking equipment—thou shalt download the companion app before disconnecting the old networking gear—the TP-Link HX510 is a breeze to get up and running. I was online in about 10 minutes after following the guided steps via TP-Link’s Aginet companion app, and I appreciate that the installation includes images and guidance on when to power off (and power back on) your NBN modem and the HX510.

You’ll be prompted to add a locational name for the device, which is handy if you plan on using more than one of them. Full disclosure: TP-Link sent me a single unit to review, so I was effectively using the HX510 as a router with mesh potential rather than a multi-unit mesh WiFi system.

Once you’re up and running, there really isn’t any extra configuration necessary. The Aginet companion app takes care of the basic settings that most users would be curious about, including firmware updates, and there’s a full list of settings via the web portal. If you have more than one HX510, or another EasyMesh-compatible piece of networking kit, tap the plus in the top right-hand corner of the Aginet app, select ‘Add Agent’ and follow the prompts.

As is the trend these days, band steering was enabled by default for the TP-Link HX510. This networking feature unifies the typically separate longer-range (but slower) 2.4GHz and shorter-range (but faster) 5GHz bands into one, which is supposed to automatically shift between the two as you move around the network coverage. The tests below were conducted with band steering enabled.

All of my router internet speed tests are done with an Exetel NBN 100/20 FTTC apartment connection, using Ethernet for the first test then a Google Pixel 7 Pro for the WiFi tests (via WiFi 6). All of the results below are from tests conducted in the evening. Lower numbers are best for latency (measured in milliseconds), while larger numbers are better for download and upload speeds (both measured in megabits-per-second). Use the top line of results in the tables as an idea of best-case speeds, then every line below as comparative.

For a baseline, here are the results from my main Synology RT6600ax router.

As soon as those tests concluded, I connected the HX510 and ran tests for the results below.

The HX510 had top-row Ethernet results that were basically identical to the RT6600ax, which isn’t unexpected. What’s impressive, is how the HX510 maintained consistent results for latency, download and upload inside my apartment and on the balcony. Impressively, it even managed to stay connected for my downstairs garage tests—a test designed to showcase the wireless penetration of networking equipment through a thick signal-blocking building wall—where the RT6600ax did not.

What’s less impressive is the speed drop-off outside the apartment. While the HX510 maintained great latency around 12.5 metres and 25.5 metres away, respectively, the hits to download speed and upload speed were very noticeable, which wasn’t as much the case with the RT6600ax. Still, given the RT6600ax is a dedicated router with external antennas and the HX510 is about a quarter of the size, I wasn’t expecting it to have a comparable range. If I had another HX510 unit or two to test with, I expect that the outside speed tests would have had better results.

During days of testing, the TP-Link HX510 AX3000 didn’t have any connectivity issues nor any ongoing issues with my main devices. I regularly use an Nvidia Shield TV Pro, Pixel 7 Pro, Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 Plus, Surface Laptop 4, Razer Blade 14 and a hardwired desktop PC, and had no measurable problems. My partner did have connectivity issues with her Google Pixel 8 Pro, but given there were similar issues with the TP-Link GE800, my research is leaning more towards that phone being the problem than networking equipment.

Local file transfers were consistent and fast for the HX510, restricted more by device bottlenecks: namely, the WiFi version and the reality that gigabit Ethernet ports are the device and networking gear norm. That’s true of the HX510, too, and while it has three Ethernet ports—solid by mesh standards—practically, you’ll only have access to two because one port is needed to connect the mesh router to your NBN modem. Still, transferring a 52GB file from the WiFi 6 HX510 to the WiFi 7 MSI Raider GE68 HX 14V gaming laptop in around eight minutes with peak 936Mbps speeds is impressive.

Similarly smooth were the tests with my latency-sensitive tasks, including online gaming and voice chatting. While I had a terrible time with the ZTE H1600—issues that made online chat and gaming unusable—there were no such issues with the HX510 during my tests. What I did have issues with was Quality of Service (QoS). For starters, QoS was disabled by default—it’s more user-friendly if the setting is enabled out of the box—albeit easy enough to enable.

Once enabled via Aginet, all of my currently connected devices were shifted to the ‘Middle Priority Devices’ category, effectively relegating them to 30% of the maximum available bandwidth. Speaking of bandwidth, I had to set that manually for download and upload speeds, but it would have been preferable to have this automated via an inbuilt speed test. While you can manually shift devices to low or high-priority categories, the bigger issue was only about half of the listed devices had meaningful names, with the other half either listed as ‘Unknown’ or with device names that didn’t explain what the device was.

Ultimately, automated QoS that prioritises latency-sensitive tasks like calls or online gaming, plus buffering-sensitive tasks like video streaming, are a much better fit for set-and-forget mesh WiFi systems.

Yes, the TP-Link HX510 is absolutely worth buying, even if only as a standalone router. The disclaimer there is if you live in a larger home and/or want consistent speeds outside, you’ll need to purchase two or more units and link them into a unified mesh network. There are some minor gripes with the HX510, but those aren’t enough to detract from a powerful and compact bit of networking kit that’s as comfortable as a router as it is as a network extender.