DrayTek Access Point 1060C

It’s hard to fault the Draytek VigorAP 1060C,and the combination of excellent performance and professional features makes it ideal for business use.

It’s easy for wireless access points to all look the same. White and angular, or on occasion rounded, and only standing out when they stop working. But as the 1060C sets out to prove, it’s what’s inside that counts. In this case, the DrayTek access point features relatively high end hardware, designed for businesses with a focus on multi-user wireless network performance.

The headline feature here is the Wi-Fi 6 AX3600 spec, giving a massive combined 3.6Gbps data rate across all bands. That’s 1200Mbps on 2.4GHz, and 2400Mbps on 5GHz – with the latter supporting 4x4 MU-MIMO for efficient connection to many users at once. Importantly, it also has an extra third radio, which is dedicated to monitoring and analysing RF signals. This allows the 1060C to know exactly which bands are least congested, and also provide extra security by detecting rogue access points. To feed the wireless side, the VigorAP comes equipped with a 2.5Gbps LAN port, which of course also supports Power over Ethernet. The unit can also run from 12V 2.5A, though no PSU is included.

The 1060C can be operated as the typical mesh root/node, range extender, or wired access point, and supports up to 16 SSIDs and 256 users (split across both bands). You also get the latest Wi-Fi 6 goodies such as the OFDMA (Orthogonal frequency-division multiple access) to better handle multi-user scenarios, through to essentials like WPA3 security, a RADIUS server and MAC address ?ltering.

A key strength with DrayTek networking gear is the pro-level remote management and simplified provisioning options. The 1060C can be deployed as a root AP managing up to 50 other nodes, or can be part of a larger DrayTek network, and be used with dedicated management software such as VigorACS 3.

Setup can be done via existing DrayTek hardware or software management, directly in the 1060C interface, or via the DrayTek app. Getting it up and running is fast and easy, and we had no issues integrating the access point into our existing DrayTek test hardware, or using it as the central node. We used the ceiling mount during testing, though it also comes with a wall mount, as well as an Ethernet cable and cable ties.

The exact performance will depend on your specific Wi-Fi devices and environment, but using a Wi-Fi 6 2x2 laptop, we hit peaks of 473Mbps standing right under the 1060C. At a five metre range that only dropped a little to 421Mbps, and at ten metres through multiple walls we managed a very impressive 36Mbps. Paired up with a 10Gbps NAS, the 1060C had no problem beaming out high data rates to multiple devices, without introducing any noticeable latency. Under sustained load the unit ran impressively cool – an important consideration in potentially hot, ceiling mounted environments.

All in all the 1060C provided excellent performance, straightforward setup and a great list of features. For business use, the DrayTek network management options are also fantastic.

Read the full review here : https://www.i-lan.net.au/n/220118/APC503.035.pdf

Back to Blog