ASUS TUF-BE6500 (BE6500) Dual-Band WiFi 7 Extendable Gaming Router

Solid Choice for 2Gbps Plans, but Not Without Limitations

Firstly, let’s address the elephant in the room: this router is designed for those with a 2Gbps Hyperfiber plan. If your plan is under 1Gbps, this router is overkill, and if you're on a 3Gbps plan or higher, this router won't cut it since it's capped at 2.5Gbps.

All of my testing was conducted on a 2Gbps Hyperfiber Internet Plan, and I’ve included screenshots of speeds before and after adjusting settings.

Pros
Wired Performance - Excellent! On my 2Gbps plan, I consistently hit 2Gbps download and upload speeds, with low latency. The link speed is exactly as advertised—2Gbps.
...view more Solid Choice for 2Gbps Plans, but Not Without Limitations

Firstly, let’s address the elephant in the room: this router is designed for those with a 2Gbps Hyperfiber plan. If your plan is under 1Gbps, this router is overkill, and if you're on a 3Gbps plan or higher, this router won't cut it since it's capped at 2.5Gbps.

All of my testing was conducted on a 2Gbps Hyperfiber Internet Plan, and I’ve included screenshots of speeds before and after adjusting settings.

Pros
Wired Performance - Excellent! On my 2Gbps plan, I consistently hit 2Gbps download and upload speeds, with low latency. The link speed is exactly as advertised—2Gbps.

Wi-Fi 7 Features - Improved Performance With Wi-Fi 7 features like OFDMA, MIMO, and MLO, this router outperforms my older ASUS AX3000 (Wi-Fi 6) router. On the 5GHz channel (Band 36, 160MHz), I tested speeds of 1922/1441 Mbps on my PC. However, I primarily use Wi-Fi for mobile devices, so I can’t speak to PC usage extensively.

Cons
CPU Load During speed tests (Ookla) on a 2.5Gbps WAN port with a LAN-connected PC, the router's CPU usage peaked at 95-99% across all 4 cores, with memory usage exceeding 65%. The CPU throttled the speed, even with a single speed test. I believe Asus should’ve opted for a faster processor (at least 2GHz) and more RAM (2GB or preferably 3GB) for those wanting to fully maximize their connection.

Wi-Fi Performance - Underwhelming Despite good link speeds on PC, Wi-Fi performance on my 2024 iPad M4 Pro (Wi-Fi 6E) underwhelmed. Even with 160MHz support, I only achieved 1350Mbps download and 950Mbps upload just a foot away from the router. For a device supporting Wi-Fi 6E, this is disappointing. Since this isn’t a tri-band router, it lacks 6GHz support and 320MHz, which is a letdown, especially at this price point.

Stuck at 2Gbps Hyperfiber You’re locked into a 2Gbps Hyperfiber plan. If you need more, this router isn't up to the task.

How I Improved CPU Performance
To reduce CPU and memory load, I disabled several features: AI Protection, Parental Controls, Traffic Analyzer, QoS, and Game Boost. This dropped CPU usage to about 60% across all cores. With the features disabled, I noticed a speed improvement of over 100Mbps, with download speeds reaching just above 2.1Gbps. The biggest gain came from disabling the Traffic Analyzer.

Steps to Improve Performance:

Disable unnecessary services (AiProtection Pro, Traffic Analyzer, QoS, etc.).

Enable Hardware Acceleration (“NAT Acceleration”).

In Adaptive QoS, ensure hardware NAT/Ctf is on.

Re-test speeds after adjustments.

On Wi-Fi, I was initially dissatisfied with both the speed and channel selection, barely hitting 900Mbps (the same as my previous AX3000). To improve performance, I turned off Agile DFS and selected a non-DFS channel (36). I recommend researching DFS before making changes.

Verdict
This router isn’t future-proof, but it’s not a bad option either. After tweaking settings to reduce CPU load, it performed adequately for a 2Gbps plan. At around 400 NZD, it's a solid entry into Wi-Fi 7. However, at around 600 NZD, you may find better options with more powerful processors and more RAM from other Wi-Fi 7 non-gaming tri-band routers.

Pros: Solid wired performance, decent Wi-Fi 7 features. Cons: CPU load issues, underwhelming Wi-Fi performance on newer devices, limited to 2Gbps plans.

Fantastic mid-tier router, Easy to set up and just works. Easily hit top end speeds on my 900/500 mbps internet connection even over Wifi. Fantastic mid-tier router, Easy to set up and just works. Easily hit top end speeds on my 900/500 mbps internet connection even over Wifi.

Has improved both speed and coverage around the house.

Great investment. Has improved both speed and coverage around the house.

Great investment.

I have a long line fo ASUS routers, dating back from the RT-AX58U and I purchased this router because of its additional features -- so far, I have been pleasantly surprised the interface and settings. Performance-wise, it hasn't disappointed so far as I am using it for my home office network as a wireless router, with ethernet backhaul / ai mesh enabled for the other ASUS routers to ensure connectivity as I need it for my work device. I have a long line fo ASUS routers, dating back from the RT-AX58U and I purchased this router because of its additional features -- so far, I have been pleasantly surprised the interface and settings. Performance-wise, it hasn't disappointed so far as I am using it for my home office network as a wireless router, with ethernet backhaul / ai mesh enabled for the other ASUS routers to ensure connectivity as I need it for my work device.

Arrived just 2 days after purchase, once set up, there was a noticeable increase in Wi-Fi strength and range compared to my previous router. My family can now have a reliable connecting to the Wi-Fi while on the other end of the house or while in the garden and speeds are excellent.

Updating to 3 stars because the Doom The Dark Ages promotion is not working with my product, apparently, the serial number is ineligible. I will update my review back to 5 stars if Asus support resolves the issue.

Edit: Asus and PBTECH resolved the issue and I've received the game per the promotion. Router is still working very well. Arrived just 2 days after purchase, once set up, there was a noticeable increase in Wi-Fi strength and range compared to my previous router. My family can now have a reliable connecting to the Wi-Fi while on the other end of the house or while in the garden and speeds are excellent.

Updating to 3 stars because the Doom The Dark Ages promotion is not working with my product, apparently, the serial number is ineligible. I will update my review back to 5 stars if Asus support resolves the issue.

Edit: Asus and PBTECH resolved the issue and I've received the game per the promotion. Router is still working very well.

Setup was easy and the router with 2.5hbs ports was a great addition and upgrade.
Recommended. Setup was easy and the router with 2.5hbs ports was a great addition and upgrade.
Recommended.