Portal Smart Gigabit WiFi Router - Review 2022

The Portal Smart Gigabit WiFi Router ($378 for the 2-pack we tested) past Ignition Design Labs is all the same another Wi-Fi arrangement that uses mesh technology to provide whole-business firm wireless coverage with seamless roaming. Equally with other mesh systems such as Eero, Luma, and the Amped Wireless Marry Plus Whole Domicile Smart Wi-Fi System, it offers a sleek, low-profile artful, but its proprietary 5GHz engineering, which helps with network congestion, is what sets it apart from the competition. Although it delivered solid performance in our throughput testing, information technology doesn't offering the configurability or a top-notch companion app like you get with the Linksys Velop. Merely if you live somewhere, like a big apartment edifice, with many competing wireless networks, it's worth considering.

Blueprint and Features

Ignition Design Labs sent us a two-slice Portal system that provides up to 6,000 square feet of wireless coverage. If y'all live in a smaller dwelling you can purchase a single Portal, which covers up to three,000 square feet, for $199.99. The router is housed inside a sleeky white enclosure with the Portal logo stamped into the top. The O in Portal is actually an LED indicator that glows cerise when the router has lost its internet connectedness, blue when it is connected to the cyberspace, dark-green when it is connected and the Fastlanes and Smartlanes features are operational, and blinks bluish or green when the firmware is beingness updated.

The low-contour blueprint is similar to that of the Eero and Amped Wireless Ally routers, but at 2.1 by 9.5 by vii.ii inches (HWD) it is significantly larger. Around dorsum are four Gigabit Ethernet ports, a WAN port, two USB 2.0 ports, and a reset button. Nether the hood are 2.4GHz (3x3) and 5GHz (4x4) 802.11ac Wi-Fi radios, a Bluetooth radio (for connecting to your mobile device), and nine loftier-ability antennas.

The Portal supports the latest 802.11ac technologies, including beamforming, which sends Wi-Fi signals directly to clients rather than over a wide spectrum, and MU-MIMO (Multi-User Multiple Input Multiple Output) data streaming, which transmits data to compatible clients simultaneously rather than sequentially, allowing for faster all-around throughput speeds. The Portal is an AC2400 router capable of speeds of up to 600Mbps on the 2.4GHz band and up to 1,733Mbps on the 5GHz band. It uses mesh networking applied science to communicate with its satellite node.

Portal'due south Fastlanes applied science allows the router to access frequencies within the 5GHz spectrum that are unremarkably reserved for weather radar systems. For users who alive in crowded areas where there's lots of network traffic (think flat buildings), Fastlanes offers a range of 5GHz channels that other routers tin't access, which means less congestion and better throughput at pinnacle times. Portal's Smartlanes is a type of band-steering engineering that automatically chooses the least crowded radio band and channel to avoid network congestion.

The mobile app lets you perform certain tasks from your mobile device, but its functionality is limited. It opens to a Abode screen which displays an interactive network map with icons for Internet, each continued Portal router, connected guests, and connected devices. Tapping the Portal icons takes you lot to a screen where you lot can access bones settings to rename the SSID, enable the web interface, divide the radio bands, and enable beamforming. If yous own a device that cannot connect to a Fastlanes channel (there's a listing of devices on the Portal website), use one of the 3 compatibility modes to find a channel combination that will piece of work with your devices.

Portal Wi-Fi Router

Other settings allow you to upgrade the firmware and restart the network, only that's about it. There are none of the granular parental controls that you get with the Amped Ally and Linksys Velop which permit you to pause internet access, block websites, and filter content, nor are there any device-prioritization options. The Portal web panel offers basic parental controls such every bit admission scheduling and internet blocking but it lacks content filtering and website blacklists. Withal, it does allow y'all to create port forwarding and firewall rules, configure static routing, and configure VPN client settings. It as well provides IP address and MAC address details for LAN, WAN, both radio bands, and all connected devices.

Installation and Performance

Installation was a bit tricky. The instruction card says to power off your modem, connect the Portal to a LAN port, and and then power on the modem and the Portal. What it doesn't tell yous is that y'all have to power up the Portal first, then the modem. I waited about 10 minutes for the ruby LED indicator to turn green or blue, indicating an internet connectedness, just it never happened. A quick search on the Portal website support page brash me to plough the Portal on first. Once I did this, the Portal was connected within 90 seconds.

Next, I downloaded the app, tapped Set up, and waited about x seconds for the app to recognize the Portal. I tapped Customize, entered a network name and countersign, and was finished with the initial router setup. Or then I thought. Within 10 seconds the LED began blinking blue and the app displayed a message saying Something's incorrect. Portal is offline. A infinitesimal afterwards the LED turned red and I had lost my net connection. Unfortunately in that location is no Portal back up number to phone call, nor is there a alive conversation characteristic on the website, then I filled out the online request for back up and waited 45 minutes for an email to arrive. While I was waiting I decided to unplug the router and modem, await 30 seconds, and power them both on again. I was rewarded with a light-green light indicating that everything was OK. It's worth noting that the email response did non offer a phone number to call; instead I was asked to respond to several questions via electronic mail. For users who rely on Portal to evangelize their email, this can be a frustrating practice that requires a secondary internet source to send and receive support emails.

To add the 2nd node, I tapped the Add a Portal icon, continued the node to the main Portal router using the included LAN cable, plugged in the node, and waited around ii minutes for it to be added to the network. I unplugged the node and relocated to another room effectually xl feet from the main router. Once I plugged it in, it showed upward in the app inside seconds.

Portal Wi-Fi Router

The Portal system delivered fast throughput in our tests. The principal router's score of 83.2Mbps on our 2.4GHz close proximity (same room) exam was a bit faster than the Almond 3 router (fourscore.6Mbps) and was nearly identical to the Amplifi Hd Home Wi-Fi Organisation's router (85.9Mbps), but the Amped Wireless Ally router (95.7Mbps) was faster than all of them. The Portal's satellite node scored 65.4Mbps on this test, besting the Almond three nodes (35Mbps and 42.3Mbps) merely not the Amplifi nodes (76.1Mbps and 75.3Mbps). The Amped Wireless Ally node led with a score of 88.8Mbps. On the 2.4GHz 30-foot test, the main Portal router scored 75.8Mps compared to the Amplifi router's 76Mbps and the Almond 3 router's score of 47.1Mbps. In one case again, the Amped Ally led with a score of 86.5Mbps. The Portal node's score of 45.6Mbps topped the Almond 3 nodes (31.7Mbps and 40.1Mbps) simply couldn't continue stride with the Amplifi nodes (75.5Mbps and 67.9Mbps) or the Amped Wireless Ally node (87Mbps).

5GHz performance was impressive. The router's score of 490Mbps on the close proximity test was slightly higher than the Eero (469Mbps) and the Netgear Orbi (460Mbps) but trailed the Amped Ally (508Mbps) and the Linksys Velop (556Mbps). At thirty feet, the Portal router'south score of 232Mbps was about identical to the Eero router (233Mbps), the Linksys Velop (236Mbps), and the Amped Ally (234Mbps). Information technology was a bit faster than the Netgear Orbi (223Mbps) and significantly faster than the Luma (76.1Mbps). The Portal node scored 233Mbps on the close proximity test. That'south much faster than the Eero (139Mbps and 93.8Mbps) and Luma (106 and 101Mbps) nodes merely not as fast every bit the Linksys Velop nodes (328Mbps and 257Mbps) or the Amped Marry node (326Mbps). The Netgear Orbi led the pack with a score of 480Mbps. At a distance of 30 anxiety the Portal node scored 177Mbps, one time once more beating the Eero nodes (151Mbps and 84.6Mbps) and the Luma nodes (77.2Mbps and 75Mbps) simply not the Linksys Velop (238Mbps and 286Mbps), Netgear Orbi (220Mbps), and the Amped Ally (226Mbps) nodes.

To test the Portal'southward MU-MIMO performance, I used three identical Acer Aspire E15 laptops equipped with Qualcomm Atheros QCA9377 wireless 802.11ac network adapters equally my clients. The main router averaged 134Mbps on the close proximity exam and 103Mbps on the 30 foot examination. That's expert throughput just non as good every bit what we saw with the Amped Ally (197.3Mbps and 107Mbps, respectively) and the Linksys Velop (264Mbps and 116.2Mbps). The Netgear Orbi router averaged 128Mbps at close proximity and 124Mbps at thirty feet. The Portal node's throughput speed of 115Mbps at close proximity was faster than the Linksys Velop (sixty.1Mbps and 70.1Mbps) and the Amped Ally (90.3Mbps) but non the Netgear Orbi node (127.6Mbps). At 30 anxiety, the Portal nodes' score of 65.2Mbps was a scrap faster than the Linksys Velop nodes (50.8Mbps and 57.8Mbps) and much faster than the Amped Ally node (29.7Mbps) but information technology couldn't catch the Netgear Orbi node (124Mbps). To put these scores in perspective, our Editors' Choice for midrange routers, the D-Link AC3150 Ultra Wi-Fi Router (DIR-885L/R), scored 237Mbps (close proximity) and 165Mbps (30 feet) on our MU-MIMO throughput tests.

Decision

If you live in an expanse where heavy network traffic is impeding your abode Wi-Fi performance, the Portal Smart Gigabit WiFi Router tin can aid. Its Fastlanes applied science gives you access to channels in the 5GHz spectrum that other routers tin can't touch, which means less interference from neighboring networks. Every bit a mesh Wi-Fi system, it delivered solid performance and proficient range on our throughput tests, but its lacks the robust parental command and QoS features that y'all go with competing Wi-Fi systems. Moreover, you'll have to login to the web console to access certain settings as the mobile app offers limited functionality. You'll pay more for a three-piece Linksys Velop system, which too gives you lot 6,000 square feet of coverage, but the Velop is much easier to install and offers a well-designed mobile app with robust parental controls and device prioritization settings. More importantly, it offers improve all-effectually throughput functioning, so information technology remains our Editors' Pick for home Wi-Fi systems.