Asus Ships the First Wi-Fi 8 Router Before the Standard Is Even Finalized

Because no Wi-Fi 8 hardware exists to connect to it, reviewers tested the router entirely with Wi-Fi 7 clients. Even so, the GT-BN98's theoretical link rates are identical to those of its Wi-Fi 7 predecessor, the GT-BE98; Blacktubi pointed out that the headline numbers "are the exact same." Real-world range and throughput told a different story.

Build quality drew consistent praise. Blacktubi described the unit as "extremely well constructed with very good attention to detail," while Guru3D focused on its looks, joking that unboxing it feels like "a small alien spacecraft has crash-landed on the desk." YouTuber Landpet called it flat-out "an absolute beast of a router."

The chassis measures roughly 35cm by 35cm and weighs more than 2kg, so it needs a dedicated spot rather than a small shelf, and the size rules out wall mounting. Adjustable antennas run around the perimeter and give the router an insect-like silhouette when fully extended. The top panel combines a metallic finish with geometric detailing and translucent sections, plus Aura RGB lighting. Panel fit is clean with no flex, and the antenna arms hold their position; front-edge LEDs give a status read without opening the app. A thicker aluminum top plate and an upgraded heatsink layer handle passive cooling, and stress testing turned up no signs of throttling.

Inside is a 2.6GHz quad-core processor with 2GB of RAM running a quad-band radio setup: 2.4GHz, two 5GHz bands and one 6GHz band, for a combined theoretical throughput of 25,000Mbps. A North America-only Pro variant replaces the second 5GHz band with an extra 6GHz band on the UNII-8 spectrum, which is not approved in most other regions. Wired connections include two 10GbE ports, one of them a dedicated gaming port, four 2.5GbE ports and a single gigabit port, with up to six LAN ports active depending on configuration. USB 3.2 Gen1 and USB 2.0 ports are included for network storage or 4G/5G backup internet.

In speed testing, a wired 10G connection matched a 5Gbps ISP plan exactly in both directions. Over Wi-Fi, internet speeds reached 4.1Gbps down and 2Gbps up. Local network testing, where the ISP is not the cap, pushed higher: 4.6Gbps down and 4.2Gbps up over a wireless backhaul between two mesh units, with wired backhaul close behind at 4.5Gbps down and 4.2Gbps up. Range held up as well. At 20ft, downloads stayed near 4Gbps; at 50ft outdoors they reached 2.7Gbps; at 100ft the router still managed 1.92Gbps down, though upload fell sharply to 718Mbps. A controlled comparison of two GT-BN98 units against two GT-BE98 units found significantly higher throughput at long range with the newer hardware.

The more surprising result: those gains are not limited to future Wi-Fi 8 gear. Testing with an existing Wi-Fi 7 MacBook measured more than 10 percent higher average throughput on the GT-BN98 than on the older router, evidence that the upgraded radio components benefit today's devices even with no Wi-Fi 8 features switched on.

Firmware was singled out as a step up. ASUSWRT 6.0 was called noticeably more modern and much more responsive than Asus's decade-old software. Its headline addition is an Adaptive QoE engine that allocates network resources across gaming, streaming and daily tasks, replacing the older Adaptive QoS system. A revamped AiProtection suite was described as genuinely impressive for including network-level ad and tracker blocking at no extra cost, and the new Wi-Fi Insight tool correctly flagged interference from a Zigbee smart home device on the 2.4GHz band.

Pricing is still rolling out region by region ahead of a wider October 2026 launch. The flagship GT-BN98 Pro is currently the only model on sale, listed on Asus's Canadian eStore at CA$1,299.99. Early previews have floated a US launch price of around $899, which is not yet official. The standard non-Pro GT-BN98 has been priced at €960 in Europe.