Asus RP-AX58 AX3000 Dual Band Range Extender Review

The Asus RP-AX58 is a Wi-Fi 6 range extender that plugs into an AC outlet to bring wireless connectivity to areas your router can’t reach. It’s easy to install, can be paired with an Asus AiMesh router to create a mesh network, and has very good throughput performance based on our tests. At $99.99, it’s in line with the cost of other range extenders, but you’ll get better signal range with our Editors’ Choice winner in the category, the TP-Link RE715X.

Design: Ready to extend Wi-Fi 6 signal

At 5.9 by 2.8 by 3.4 inches (HWD), the RP-AX58 isn’t quite as heavy as the RE715X (6.2 by 4.2 by 1.3 inches), but it’s a bit deeper. It has a white finish with grillwork on the back, bottom and sides. On the front is an LED indicator, which glows white during bootup and solid blue when ready to connect to the router. The LED is solid white when the extender is connected to a router with a strong signal, solid yellow when the router’s signal is weak, and solid red when the router’s signal cannot be detected.

On the right side of the extender are the Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS) and reset buttons, and you’ll find a 1GbE LAN port on the bottom edge. The rear two-prong plug is located near the bottom so that the extender does not block the second outlet in a two-outlet electrical receptacle. However, like most modern extenders, the RP-AX58 doesn’t offer a pass-through AC outlet, so you’ll need an extension cord or power strip if the outlet has two devices besides the extender.

The extender uses two internal antennas to transmit on the 2.4GHz and 5GHz radio bands. As an AX3000 device, it can hit maximum (theoretical) data rates of up to 574Mbps on the 2.4GHz band and 2,402Mbps on the 5GHz band, for a total of around 3,000Mbps. It’s mesh-ready, which means you can use it as a mesh node when paired with an Asus AiMesh-compatible router. If you set it up with a wired connection to your router, it can be pressed into service as an access point or as a media bridge.

The RP-AX58 is a Wi-Fi 6 extender that provides coverage up to 2,200 square feet. It supports 160MHz channel transmission, WPA3 encryption, 1024 QAM, wired backhaul to the router, MU-MIMO data streaming, orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA), and beamforming.

RP-AX58 Asus Extender can be installed and managed using mobile app or web console. When you launch the app, you will see a network map in the top panel and extender in the other panel. Tap the extender’s panel to access the settings screen, where you can edit the extender’s name, SSID, and password credentials. If your router is an Asus router, you can access the settings by tapping the router icon on the network map.

Other information displayed on the extender’s settings screen includes the MAC and IP address, firmware version, and port number. Here, you’ll also find buttons to restore the device to its factory settings, reboot the extender, change the administrator name and password, and access the web console. The web console provides additional options not available in the app, such as letting you view system logs, configure LAN settings, and run diagnostics.

Asus RP-AX58 AX3000 Testing: On-Point Throughput

You can install using the RP-AX58’s WPS button or via the mobile app mentioned above. I plugged the extender into an outlet in the same room as my router, downloaded the app, and tapped Setup Extender. Following the on-screen instructions, I connected my phone to the extender’s SSID, selected a room for the device, and tapped Next. I selected the SSID of the router I was extending, created a new SSID and password for the extended network, and tapped Next. The app needed a few seconds to create the new network, then I moved the extender to an outlet that was halfway between the router and the area that needed a strong signal.

The RP-AX58 turned in solid scores in our 2.4GHz throughput performance test. Its 100Mbps score in the close proximity test was faster than the D-Link Aquila Pro AI AX3000 E30 (99Mbps) and the Netgear AX1800 EAX15 (65Mbps) but not as fast as the TP-Link AX3000 RE7000 RE7000 (70Mbps). The RP-AX58 scored 70Mbps in the 20-foot test, besting the E30 (69Mbps) and EAX15 (37Mbps) but not the RE715X (71Mbps). Each extender scored 14Mbps in the 40-foot test, except for the EAX15, which scored 15Mbps.

In the 5GHz close-proximity test, the RP-AX58’s score of 401Mbps beat the EAX15 (354Mbps) but didn’t quite catch the other two. In the 20-foot test, the RP-AX58 scored 260Mbps with the D-Link E30 and beat the Netgear EAX15 (171Mbps), but it came up against the TP-Link RE715X (264Mbps). In the 40-foot test, the RP-AX58 scored 147Mbps, faster than the Netgear EAX15 (132Mbps) but slower than the D-Link and TP-Link models.

We use an Ekahau Sidekick 2 Wi-Fi diagnostic device and the company’s Survey mobile app to test wireless signal strength. This combo creates heat maps that show the extender’s 2.4GHz and 5GHz signal range across our test home. (Note: Ekahau is owned by Jeff Davis, the parent company of PCMag.com. To learn more, read about our ethics policy in the editorial mission statement.) The circle on the map represents the expander’s location, and the dark green areas indicate the strongest signal, the light green and yellow Areas represent gradual signal degradation and gray indicates a very weak signal or no measurable signal.

As shown in the map, the RP-AX58 provided relatively strong 2.4GHz and 5GHz signals in the target area on the right side of the house, but both signals were much weaker on the opposite side of the house.

Verdict: An easy way to boost Wi-Fi coverage

If your current router needs help broadcasting a Wi-Fi signal to the far corners of your home, the Asus RP-AX58 AX3000 Dual Band Range Extender can help. Plug it in and use the Asus Extender mobile app to link to your router and you’re ready to go The RP-AX58 performed admirably in our throughput tests and delivered a solid Wi-Fi signal in its target area, but you’ll get better performance for the same price with our top pick for range extenders, the TP-Link RE715X.