Pros: Great design, super simple installation, works together perfectly with Linksys 8-port GigaBit switch, very fast with mentioned switches and CAT6 cables in wired network.

Cons: None essential;

Other Thoughts: Shows a confusing Samba ... devise in "Workgroup" after install on some computers what is obviously a known issue in the firmware as reports can be found on the internet . Maybe this can be fixed one day.

Pros: Pretty fast. The fast CPU and large amount of ram do well here. Connection is stable, and factory firmware does not seem as bad as others have stated at this point. Signal is very good, even over a rather long distance.

Cons: I prefer to use dd-wrt for the expanded features that it allows. Unfortunately, while this router can run dd-wrt, it is insufficient due to bad drivers. Any of the routers out there using Marvell MVEBU based hardware, which would include the original WRT1900AC and WRT1200AC suffer from terrible performance on dd-wrt. The driver being provided to these open source firmware developers is apparently not the same as the one being used in official firmware, and it is causing many issues.

You basically have one of two outcomes on open source firmwares, depending on which version you use.

The first result is that latency almost doubles, causing pings as high as 20ms just to the router, even if right next to it. Obviously this causes latency to locations outside of the local network to be even worse. Connection speeds seem to be fine in these firmwares, but that additional ping is a big negative during gaming.

The other possible result is that you have good ping times, but speeds are terrible. More recent versions of dd-wrt with newer drivers seem to have this problem. Limitations of around 20Mbps down occur on open source firmware with this driver. Marvel/Linksys really need to step up and get these driver problems worked out.

The above issues are not present in the official linksys firmware, however it is simply not as feature rich as dd-wrt.

Other Thoughts: Maybe the future will change this situation as open source firmware developers are working on fixing these issues. For now the router is good, but despite being claimed as "Open Source ready" it really falls short of expectations in that regard. If you are looking at this router, and alternatively considering the original WRT1900AC or the WRT1200AC, you should probably consider the points brought up in this review.

Pros: I replaced my Netgear N750 wireless router with the WRT1900ACS and there is no comparison. This router is easily twice a fast with a signal that is full strength in all areas of my house. The netgear 5GHz was very weak where as the WRT1900ACS is full bars everywhere.
Setup was quick and easy. I renamed the SSID to my previous SSID/pass and all my devices connected no issues. Devices that were previously unable connect to the 5Ghz connected easily and performance was incredible!

Cons: The only downside is that north of $200, it is expensive, but well worth the cost. Having super fast and stable internet in the house is worth the cost!

Other Thoughts: I Highly recommend this router.

Pros: -Has all the features one could want
-Very fast network storage speed via USB 3.0
-GUI allows custom naming of devices on the network (great if you are unable to rename a device from the device)
also makes identifying who or what is connected to your network very easy.
-Great range and speed when the router is up and running properly

Cons: -Price (because of the current performance of the router I would expect better at this price point)
-Firmware is buggy
-Previous problem makes speeds very slow very often and the 5ghz network keeps dropping out. A router restart will remedy this problem, sometimes for days sometimes for hours but the problem always comes back.
-Restarting the router to fix the previous problems eventually started to not work very effectively.

Other Thoughts: Update (21 Jan 16):
After battling with this item for close to two months I finally threw in the towel (returned the router). My speeds constantly slowed to a crawl and the 5ghz band would often just drop out. I had to restart this router very often, sometimes hourly (no exaggeration). On a flagship router like this one would think a billion dollar company could get it right the first time or even correct the problems in a reasonable amount of time, this is not the case with this router. Many other reviews have said open source firmware fixes many of the issues, but if you install the firmware you void your warranty so you are stuck waiting for a fix from Linksys. I got tired of waiting and returned this item. I've replaced it with a TP-Link AC3200, and I couldn't be happier, I finally have a very reliable connection. I'm not happy I had this experience nor did I want to return the item, but circumstances demanded it. I've also downgraded my rating from 3 to 1 egg. Thanks for reading. (I had written a review earlier in the year for this product, I deleted that review in order to get this updated review)

Manufacturer Response:

Hi, Adam,

We appreciate your taking the time in posting this review, and we feel sad to hear your sentiments about the product. This is not the type of experience we want you to have with our device, and we could have assisted you in diagnosing and resolving this challenge with the help of our second level support team for advance troubleshooting.
Should you need assistance in the future, please email us at LinksysCares@linksys.com along with your contact details and the link to this post for reference. We would be more than happy to help.

Regards,
 
Linksys Support
http://www.linksys.com

Pros: Excellent radio range.

Cons: Broken firmware:
* Randomly prevents clients from communicating between 5ghz and 2.4ghz radios, as though AP isolation was on. This was particularly noticeable with phones on the 5ghz radio trying to communicate with Chromecasts on the 2.4ghz radio--problems connecting that went away if the phone connected to the 2.4ghz band, etc.;
* Problems with connections to Samsung clients with WPA2 on, had to revert to WPA 1;
* Severe speed issues with a number of clients--sitting 5 feet from the router downstairs, got faster connections connecting to the old router upstairs through the floor;
* Delays in OpenWRT support that might have provided a working firmware;

Other Thoughts: After 4 months of hoping for a firmware fix, I've finally given up.

I'd had great experience with Linksys before, and the above problems were using the same settings, channels, etc., as the Linksys router it replaced that worked flawlessly.

Tier 2/3 support was only able to note my problems in hopes a future firmware would fix them. I had to spend 30 minutes explaining to Tier 2 support why a problem with phones on the 5ghz radio communicating with a Chromecast on the 2.4ghz radio that disappeared if the phone connected to the 2.4ghz radio couldn't be a firewall issue since there was no firewall between the radios, only AP Isolation which was either OFF, in which case it should always work, or ON, in which case it should never work.

I'm past the return date, so I just ate the cost of this and replaced it with an ASUS RT-AC5300--which on the same channels is giving me 5 times the speed (100+ bps with 2x2 MIMO clients), is letting me use WPA2 with Samsung devices, is having no problems with 5ghz and 2.4ghz communications, and even has a significantly better radio range.

I don't know what happened to Linksys's firmware development and QA, but for this price to release a product this dysfunctional, not to mention to fail to fix the problems this long after release, is unforgivable. They have permanently lost me as a customer.

Manufacturer Response:

Hi James B.,

Thank you for taking your time in sharing with us your comprehensive review for the Linksys WRT1900ACS. We can feel your frustrations over the difficulties you've encountered with the device. Based on your feedback, your case has already been handled by our Level 3 Support. We would like to ask for your case number or email address so we can do a follow-up regarding this matter. Please send it to LinksysCares@linksys.com.

We look forward to hear from you.

Regards,

Linksys Support
www.linksys.com

Pros: The packaging looked great and I have heard that these are pretty good.

Cons: It didn't work. I would love to be using it now, but instead I will be dealing with a return. I assume QC missed this one.

Other Thoughts: Let's see how long it takes to get my replacement. Newegg has always been good about returns, but an advanced swap would be awesome.

Manufacturer Response:

Hi Crystal,

We appreciate the time you've spent in providing us a product review and for sharing your experience with us. We're sorry to hear that the Linksys WRT1900ACS router did not work quite well for you and that you encountered some challenges with it. We respect your decision that you've had it replaced. If ever you encounter challenges again with the replacement unit, please feel free to email us at LinksysCares@linksys.com along with your contact details and the link to this review. We'd be more than happy to assist you.

We'll wait for your response.

Regards,

Linksys Support
www.linksys.com

Pros: Great Price, Great range, Fast USB.

Cons: After installing and updating the FW I started losing 5GHz band and noticed frequent reboots. Went to their community boards and seen others having the same issue. I tried adjusting recommended settings from users for a couple days with no results. Returned it for refund.

Other Thoughts: I followed the posts on Linksys boards for several weeks and there doesn't seem to be a fix. I recommend avoiding this router till the issue is fixed.

Manufacturer Response:

Hi Jeff,

Your feedback is valuable to us and we regret hearing your experience using our product. We understand your decision and we’re still grateful that you’ve given it a try. Should you have any Linksys products in the future, we're here to help if you need assistance. Feel free to send us an email at LinksysCares@linksys.com with your contact details and the link to this review for reference.

Regards,

Linksys Support
www.linksys.com

Pros: Everything about the hardware of this device is fantastic. The build quality is like that of a Rolls-Royce and the packaging is the best I've seen to date on a consumer router. It's clearly designed with hardware hackers in mind. You don't need to fight with it to get it open -- in fact you'll find just 4 easily accessible screws on the bottom that open it up where you'll be pleased to find pre-populated headers.

Cons: Stock firmware from Linksys left a lot to be desired and required frequent reboots throughout the week. Aftermarket firmware is available (I'm looking at you DD-WRT) which converts this into a rock-solid wireless beast of a router that's a force to be reckoned with.

Other Thoughts: I'd highly recommend this router to anyone who's accustomed to running aftermarket firmware or an advanced user looking to get their feet wet. For the grandmother? Probably not.

Pros: Solid Performance

Good USB3 Speeds

Great Range

Easy to Use and Setup

Good build Quality

Antennas!!!

High End Specs (Ram, Processor Etc)

Handles Massive Network Traffic Like a Champ

Fast USB3

Cons: Price....Many people I know when it comes to routers use either what is provided by their ISP. or spend only 70-120 Dollars on one. They simply don't realize how much more you truly get in terms of functionality, range and pure performance.

With a Price Tag north of $220.00 a lot of consumers will overlook this because of cost. Which is a shame because its performance is exceptional.

Beyond The cost there was no flaw or weak spot I found in this router, in the 2 months I've Had it.

Other Thoughts: This is a review for the Linksys 1900ACS router. The router arrived well packaged, and undamaged.

For the unaware this is a premium higher end router, with hardware specs and range to match.

The design of this and the previous 1900AC model are a throwback in color and look the the WRT54G router of old (from 2002). The color scheme is black and blue, and it also has external Antennas. It looks like the routers we used 10+ years ago. Personally I love the look, and I prefer external antennas for range.

When unpacking the router the only installation the users has to do besides attach the CAT Ethernet cables is install the Antennas. The 4 external Antennas simply require to be spun onto the mounts no tools required.

For purposes of this review installation was done on a PC running Windows10 x64.

The router comes with an Installation CD but at no point did I need it. Upon booting my main PC windows informed me that it found the router and at that point the Linksys router actually took over the installation at that point. Having an internet connection, it asked if i wanted to update the router and install the software. After saying yes it did the rest......very easy.

During the setup it asks you the standard things such as networks names you like for 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands, passwords, guest network etc. All fairly standard setup if you ever used any router before.

The routers Smart WiFi menu gives you tools such as SpeedTest, setting up external storage (such as a USB Flash drive or a USB Hard Drive) as well as Media Prioritization. All options are very easy to understand.

The media prioritization menu i really like its fast and easy to use and understand. The router gives you a list of all devices that have connected to it such as desktops, laptops, tablets and cell phones. From this list you can pick which device or devices get higher priority.

Beyond physical devices it also quickly allows you to pick programs that also get higher priority. It has 2 drop down boxes one that picks from common applications that can be bandwidth sensitive, the 2nd drop box actually has a list full of Games from MMO's, to LoL/Dota to First Person Shooters.

Its very easy to setup, and when you have a lot of people over and connected the affects of this are easy to see. I had 13 people over for a LAN party of League of Legends (20 people total counting 7 Girlfriends that came) All Gaming PCs/Notebooks were giving high priority as well as the application for League of legends it took me under 5 minutes to set this up for the LAN party.
So with 20 people 13 of us gaming and everyone using their phones/tablets for youtube/facebook/Hulu/netflix etc Not one of us while gaming saw any slowdown or bad pings, where with my previous 802.11AC router the last LAN party was a mess peoples pings were very inconsistent when people who weren't gaming were playing on phones/tablets.

So i cant stress enough that having a very simple and user friendly configuration menu is extremely nice.

As far as the performance its is definitely at the top of its class. The 1.6 Ghz dual core processor included makes fast work of even heavy network loads. The 512 megs of DDR3 also help with buffering large amounts of data. In the 2 months I've had this router I haven't experience any slow down or range issues. On the subject of range this thing is a beast, where my previous router pings and range became very inconsistent after you got over 180 ft away, this thing impressed me...on Christmas day I was at my mother house (2 houses away across the street approx distance 400ft) I was still getting a solid 17ms ping and 3.5 MB/sec....to put it politely my last 802.11AC compatible router id lose ping consistency at about 180ft (the end of my driveway), and at over 220ft connection became totally unreliable..

All devices within my home have run smoother (chromecasts, tablets streaming, etc) regardless of distance now all function optimally. I contribute that to this routers performance and its range. I can not understate how important quality range is, its one thing to be able to pickup a WiFi signal far away it another to have it give you good pings, and consistent data throughput regardless of how much network traffic there is. In these regards I am absolutely in love with this router, even my fiance who has is not tech savvy at all noticed within the first week that all our devices were running better (stopped hearing her complain about netflix and hulu in the far rooms in the house 100+ ft away from router, she asked if i got a larger internet package to which I said no just a new router).

If you have a large home, or have a lot of devices that are on your network I highly suggest this router. If you have the money you wont be sorry. I have been using this for over 2 months now, its range and performance are great. The menus in the router configuration are easy and straight forward to understand. Linksys with this one hit a home run.

Pros: Nice Looking, Very east setup, Great Range.

Cons: Was very excited to get this product but was soon very disappointed. Right off the bat the router frequently rebooted all by itself. 6-10 times a day. Linksys support was no help at all. Spent 2 days back and forth with them without it being solved. They said it was not something they were aware of except the issue is posted on their own community boards. Before you buy this product you must check this out...http://community.linksys.com/t5/Wireless-Routers/WRT1900ACS-frequently-rebooting/td-p/977475. I tried all suggestions on the board and still rebooted. Sending this terrible product back. Purchased a Nighthawk x6 AC3200 instead. Issue is gone!!!

Other Thoughts: I would highly recommend staying away from this product until Linksys admits there is an issue and fixes it.