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Amped Wireless TAP-EX Wi-Fi Extender

Editor's rating (1-5): Where to Buy

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What's Hot: Super easy setup thanks to 3.5" touch screen that guides you through the process. Good wireless range.

What's Not: Touch screen sometimes a bit sluggish, specs are middling for the price.

Reviewed February 11, 2015 by Lisa Gade, Editor in Chief (twitter: @lisagade)

To the average home user, setting up a new wireless router is probably up there with visiting the dentist... not something you love or even like doing. It's an inscrutable black box that tells you nada. You dutifully plug it in and read the manual that's usually as big as a state map-- remember those in the days before Google Maps? Then you jog over to your computer and use a web browser and an IP address to set the thing up. Or you have to plug the router into your PC via Ethernet cable and run a special setup app, then hope it works when you unplug the network cable and place it several rooms away. What if it had a touch screen that walked you through the steps, even providing feedback about signal strength so you had an idea if you were putting it in the right location? Enter the Amped Wireless TAP-EX wireless range extender. It extends your main wireless router's signal to reach dead zones in your home or office.

How to use it? Plug it into AC power. Place the TAP-EX between the dead spot and your main wireless router. The touch screen display will guide you through the steps of getting your network extended. It's extremely easy and doesn't involve jogging between your PC, router and range extender to get them all talking. There is however a web interface should you wish to administer it that way. You can use the touch screen to check for firmware updates and install them and to get stats and log access too. The 3.5" resistive touch screen isn't ideal for big fingers so Amped Wireless includes a stylus the size of a toothpick that lives in a silo on the upper left corner.

The TAP-EX is pricey as range extenders go, and for $120 we do wish it had stronger specs. But for many non-networking savvy users (and that's probably the majority of home and small business users), the ease of use may well justify the lack of features. The TAP-EX is a single band 802.11n (300Mbps) 2.4 GHz extender. We'd really have preferred it to be dual band 2.4/5 GHz to avoid interference from microwave ovens, Bluetooth and other devices that reside on the congested 2.4 GHz band. That said, 2.4 GHz has greater range, and this is a range extender. It has a high gain 800 mW radio, so it's a strong extender that Amped Wireless claims covers 10,000 sq. feet. It lives up to its claim with good range and strong throughput.

The unit has two 10/100 Ethernet ports (Gigabit would have been nice) and a USB 2.0 port (3.0 would have been nice). That means you can plug in your XBOX or Smart TV to the Ethernet port if you like and you can turn a flash drive or hard drive into a shared network drive. Obviously this isn't a product for the tech and networking pros who will want dual band Wi-Fi and USB 3.0. If you're a gamer into LAN parties, get a Netgear Nighthawk with 802.11ac in two bands and its companion range extender. But for the average Joe who just wants his iPad to work in the upstairs bedroom in the back corner of the house, it does the job in a more friendly way than other range extenders.

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