Google announces OnHub, a $200 smart Wi-Fi Router

Routers have never been exciting, they are something you just want in the background to do its job. Enter the OnHub router from Google, this $200 router is unlike any router you have ever seen before. This is a one of a kind smart router which is supposed to be easy to setup, give better network performance and avoid congestion. OnHub it just a router, nothing fancy like the Amazon Echo, you can't talk to it nor is it a wireless speaker, although it might look like one.

You can pair OnHub router with your Android or iOS smartphone which tells you the number of devices connected alongwith the throughput they are getting. The circular design gives better penetration in your home, according to Google. There are 13 antennas inside this and it includes support for 802.11ac as well as 5GHz Wi-Fi band alongwith the 2.3GHz a/b/g/n networks, moreover the OnHub is smart enough to switch channels to get better network speeds and avoid congestion. It has been built in partnership with TP-Link and another router is already in the works with Asus.

OnHub also gets Bluetooth LE support, as well as Google's Weave framework which would make it your smart-home hub in the near future. Although the OnHub is an interesting device, you wouldn't easily find people willing to shell out $200 for a router even though the easy to manage part, especially automated firmware updates, is worth the trouble itself.

Coming to the hardware, we're have Qualcomm taking the reigns with an IPQ8064 1.4 GHz Dual-core processor, 1GB RAM, 4GB flash storage and QCA8337 Gigabit Ethernet Switch. There is a single Ethernet port here, a USB 3.0 port for possibly connecting a network drive.

You can pre-order the OnHub router starting today from Google Play Store and it will be available through WallMart, Amazon among other retailers starting August 31st.

Source: OnHub