Asus ExpertWiFi EBM68 Review (vs. ZenWiFi): A Refined Wi-Fi 6 Mesh Alternative

In a way, each router of the 2-pack Asus ExpertWiFi EBM68 AX7800 Tri-Band Business Wi-Fi 6 System is a combination of the EBA63 access point and the EBG15 non-Wi-Fi router. And in that sense, it’s simply a more powerful variant of the EBR63 router.

That’s to say, the new mesh system is very similar to other ExpertWiFi hardware with all the standard settings and features. However, compared with Asus’s previous purpose-built systems for the home, such as the ZenWiFi XT8 and its later XT9 variant, the new business-oriented ExpertWiFi EBM68 is clearly superior while remaining user-friendly.

Here’s the bottom line: If you’re still in the market for Wi-Fi 6 and contented with Gigabit bandwidth, which is more than fast enough for most cases, the new ExpertWiFi EBM68 is a feature-riched system that has lots to offer. While made for businesses, it’ll work well for all homes.

On the other hand, if you want a simple mesh that gets you connected, you’ll find it pricey even at the current discounted $500 street price for a 2-pack, which is noticeably higher than the cost of similarly specced, albeit less robust in features, Wi-Fi 6E mesh systems, such as the TP-Link Deco XE70 Pro.

Asus ExpertWiFi EBM68: A better version of Wi-Fi 6 ZenWiFi

Out of the box, each ExperWiFi EBM68 mesh router shares a similar “single-slot toaster” design as the XT8. However, it now comes with a cleverly designed port cover that works as a wall-mounting piece, making it much more versatile in terms of placement.

Its hardware specs remain similar to those of previous upper mid-tier ZenWiFi hardware. Specifically, it features tri-band AX7800 Wi-Fi and comes with a 2.5Gbps Mulit-Gig WAN port and three Gigabit LAN ports. There’s also a USB 3.1 Gen 1 (5Gbps) port for all things USB-related.

On the inside, the EBM68 is powered by the new ExpertWiFi firmware that’s built on AsusWRT 5.0. As a result, it has a much more robust set of features while remaining backward compatible with existing AiMesh hardware.

The table below shows the similarities and differences between the ExertWiFi EBM68, the ZenWiFi XT8, and the XT9 variant.

Asus ExpertWiFi EBR63: Hardware specifications

Model	ExpertWiFi EBM68	ZenWiFi XT9	ZenWiFi XT8
Full Name	Asus ExpertWiFi EBM68 Mesh Router	Asus ZenWiFi XT9 Mesh Router	Asus ZenWiFi XT8 Mesh Router
Mesh Technology	Yes (AiMesh)
Dimensions (WxDxH)	6.57 x 3.03 x 7.32 in (167 x 77 x 186 mm)	6.29 x 2.95 x 6.35 in   (16 x 7.5 x 16.15 cm)
Weight	1.78 lbs (808g)	1.63 lbs (740 g)	1.56 lbs (710 g)
Wi-Fi Bandwidth	Tri-band AX7800		Tri-band AX6600
2.4GHz Wi-Fi Specs	2×2 AX Up to 574 Mbps (20/40MHz)
5GHz-1 Wi-Fi Specs (channel width)	2×2 AX Up to 2402Mbps (20/40/80/160MHz)		2×2 AX Up to 1201Mbps (20/40/80MHz)
5GHz-2 Wi-Fi Specs	4×4 AX Up to 4804Mbps (20/40/80/160MHz)
UNII-4 Support	Yes (at launch)		Yes (starting with firmware ver. 3.0.0.4.386_49873)
Dedicated Backhaul Band	Yes (5GHz-2) (optional)
Wired Backhaul	Yes
Guest Network	7x Self-Defined Network	3x per band at the router, 1x per band system-wide
VLAN	Yes	No
Backward Compatibility	802.11ac/n/g/a/b
Mobile App	Asus Router
Web User Interface	Yes (Full)
Operation Mode	Wireless Router Mode AiMesh Node Mode Access Point Mode
USB Port	1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1
Gigabit Port	3 x LAN
Multi-Gig Port	1x 2.5 Gpbs/1Gbps WAN
Link Aggregation	Yes LAN-only		No
Dual-WAN	Yes
Processing Power	1.7GHz quad-core CPU, 256MB Flash, 1GBDDR4 RAM	1.7GHz quad-core CPU, 256MB Flash, 512MB DDR4 RAM	1.5GHz quad-core CPU,  256MB Flash, 512MB DDR3 RAM
Release Date	September 2023	August 2022	February 2020
Firmware	AsusWRT 5.0 (3.0.0.6)	AsusWRT 4.0 (3.0.0.4)
Firmware Version (at review)	3.0.0.6.102_44384	not tested	3.0.0.4.386_24926
Power Adapter	AC Input: 110V~240V (50~60Hz) DC Output: 12V 3A	AC Input: 110V~240V (50~60Hz) DC Output: 19V 1.75A
Power Consumption (per 24 hours)	≈ 200 Wh (measured at the router)	not tested
US Price (at launch)	$599.99 (2-pack) $299.99 (single router)	$499.99 (2-pack)	$449.99 (2-pack)

Asus ExpertWiFi EBM68: Hardware analysis

As shown in the table, the first noteworthy item on the hardware is that each EBM68 unit has only a single 2.5Gbps port, which only works as the WAN port on the router unit—this port can work as a LAN when the hardware is used as a satellite.

The lack of a second Multi-Gig port generally limits the hardware a great deal. That’s because there’s no way to have a real 2.5Gbps wired connection out of it. Additionally, if you intend to use a network cable to link the two units, the wired backhaul will be limited to Gigabit.

Generally, as a Tri-band Wi-Fi 6 system, the EBM68 is meant for environments where wiring is not possible. That brings us to the second noteworthy item: like the case of the ZenWiFi XT8 and XT9, the EBM68 supports UNII-4.

Featuring the 5.9GHz portion of the frequency band means the hardware can reliably use Wi-Fi 6’s venerable 160MHz channel on its 5GHz-2 band regardless of the environment. That’s a boon for a wireless mesh setup where a solid and reliable backhaul link is almost a guarantee.

Other than that, here are a couple of things to note about the EBM68 when working as a mesh system:

• The system automatically uses the best band for its wireless backhaul link, which is 5GHz-2 by default. However, if you place the units too far apart, it might use 2.4GHz for this job.
• If you use the 5GHz-2 band as the dedicated backhaul, which it practically is with UNII-4 since there’s currently no supported client, on the fronthaul side, the system only has the 5GHz-1 band to serve the clients. This band has the mid-tier 2×2 specs and caps at 2.4Gbps of theoretical ceiling speed.
• You can use the 5GHz-2 band for both backhaul and fronthaul. In this case, it has only half of its 4×4 bandwidth from either end.
• If you use wired backhauling, as mentioned, the bandwidth of the satellite will be capped at Gigabit.

A familiar (ExpertWiFi) AiMesh system

As the first ExpertWiFi canned mesh system, the EBM68 has everything available in any of the series’ routers—as detailed in the primer post of the series— plus some family mesh notions available in Asus’s ZenWiFi lineup. Specifically, you can expect the following:

• Pre-synced hardware: If you get a 2- or 3-pack, all you need to do is pick one to work as the primary router. The rest of the hardware units will automatically become part of the system when plugged in.
• AiMesh compatibility: The EBM68 router will work with any existing AiMesh router to form a mesh system. In this case, note, however, that mixing hardware of different Wi-Fi standards and firmware releases can be problematic.
• Standard web user interface: You can access the router via its default IP, 192.168.50.1, and set it up like any standard router.
• All the standard Wi-Fi and network settings: The router supports all possible WAN configurations, including VLAN tagging (a.k.a IPTV or 802.1Q), and comes with a standard set of network settings and features, including Dynamic DNS, port forwarding, IP reservation, and so on.
• Built-in self-defined networks (SDNs) for easy Wi-Fi configuration for different needs.
• There are many free and useful features, including Parental Control, QoS, AiProtection, advanced VPN, VLAN, and AiMesh.
• Optional ExpertWiFi mobile app: In addition to the web user interface, you can use the mobile app for setup and management.

The gist is that the ExpertWiFi EBM68 has everything you’d look for in a mesh system and possibly more. It is for advanced home and business users. As business-oriented hardware, it doesn’t have built-in gaming features, but you can use its QoS engine to curtail the bandwidth for any application.

Asus ExpertWiFi EBM68: Excellent performance for the specs

I tested a 2-pack ExpertWiFi EBM68 for over a month and was happy with it. The hardware was a bit buggy with the initial firmware, but with the latest version, it proved to be a solid performer.

It passed a few three-day stress tests without disconnection and delivered excellent range, especially when I used a UNII-4 connection as backhaul. Generally, it’s hard to put the coverage in numbers, but the EBM68 had about the same range as the GT6, with each unit handling some 2000 ft² (186 m²) when placed at the center. Still, note that your mileage will vary.

In terms of throughput, the mesh system did quite well for one that has only a single 2.5Gbps port. I tested it using a double NAT setup so I could use its WAN port to host the test data, and it did better than most of its peers, both as a router and a wireless mesh satellite. In fact, it was behind only the higher-end ZenWiFi XT12.

Still, compared to newer Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 hardware, the EBM68’s performance, expectedly, remained below multi-Gigabit. At best, it can deliver Gig+ sustained speed. But that’s plenty fast.

I also tested the router unit’s USB port’s network storage feature, and the performance proved to be that of a Gigabit wired connection. As mentioned, since the 2.5Gbps port only works as a WAN, there’s no way to test this feature via a Multi-Gig connection.

Other than that, the EBM68 was completely silent—it has no internal fan—and remained relatively cool to the touch even during extended operation. There was no heat or noise-related issue.

Conclusion

Like the rest of the initial hardware in Asus’s new ExpertWiFi family, the EBM68 is not a must-have mesh system. However, among all Wi-Fi 6 counterparts, it’s easily one of the best. If you’re looking for a robust system that can do everything, including advanced VLANs and serious VPN, give it a try, and you’ll likely find it well worth the seemingly high $500-ish street price for a 2-pack.

Or just keep it in mind and wait for similar hardware from the same ExpertWiFi lineup to be released in the future.