Netgear Nighthawk RS600 review: Fast WiFi 7 router with 10GbE

The Netgear Nighthawk RS600 impressed us with high data transfer rates, both wireless and wired. It also has a fast USB port, which makes it easy to integrate storage devices into the network. The compact design is also visually pleasing.

However, there are also compromises. The 2.4GHz WiFi is comparatively slow and there is only one high-speed Ethernet port available. This wouldn't be a point of criticism if Netgear wouldn't be asking a lot of money for this WiFi 7 router.

The Nighthawk RS600 can be purchased on Amazon for less than the official MSRP of $499.

The Nighthawk RS600 is a fast router and offers WiFi 7 with up to 18 Gbps, a 10 Gbps WAN port, a single 10 Gbps Ethernet connection as well as three GbE ports and USB 3.2 Gen 1.

With an MSRP of $499, it is certainly not cheap, but is in the same range as the TP-Link Archer BE800. However, both are lacking a modem, which some European competitors like the Fritz!Box 5690 Pro have built-in.

The Netgear Nighthawk RS600 is made entirely of plastic and has a tower-like form factor. The workmanship and appearance make a very good impression, and the design is also compact. There are rubberized feet on the bottom as well as two screw holes that can be used to mount the router on a wall.

Furthermore, there are numerous LEDs on the front that indicate the activity of individual ports and WiFi bands. If this bothers you, you can also disable them so that only the power LED remains active. All connections can be found on the back, including the 10 Gbps WAN port for the internet modem, an additional Ethernet connection with 10 Gbps and three LAN ports with 1 Gbps each. For the latter, 2.5 Gbps would certainly have been more appealing, but if you only use these for devices like an AV receiver, it will be enough.

The equipment is otherwise decent. External storage devices can be connected via the USB 3.2 interface (up to 5 Gbps), which can then be accessed inside the network. It is also possible to set up a VPN, but Netgear only supports OpenVPN in this regard.

Netgear's WiFi 7 router ships in a printed cardboard box, the inside of which is made of cardboard as well. However, it is completely shrink-wrapped in plastic and the quick start guide is sturdy but does not appear to be free of plastic either.

Netgear does not provide precise information on the CO₂e footprint or the potential use of recycled materials. However, general information on sustainability can be found on the company's website.

The end of security update support is three years after market launch, which means the Nighthawk RS600 will be up-to-date until at least September 2027.

The Netgear Nighthawk RS600 can be set up using a mobile device or a wired computer via the WiFi 7 router's web interface. The latter is necessary if it there's no internet connection. In addition, there are more configuration options in the web interface, while the mobile app is limited to the essentials. Both interfaces guide users through the setup process step by step.

The extended security features of Netgear Armor are included free of charge for 30 days and can be extended with a subscription. These protect the router and up to 50 mobile devices. The Netgear Armor Plus subscription costs around $50 in the first year and $150 per year thereafter. The cheaper Armor Security costs $40 and $100, respectively.

The Netgear Nighthawk RS600 supports the modern WLAN standard IEEE 802.11-be (also known as WiFi 7) on all three frequency bands. One drawback is that Netgear uses fewer antennas for the 2.4 GHz band, which is why this is limited to a maximum of 0.7 Gbps.

The Smart Connect function combines all SSIDs and assigns the appropriate frequency band to the connected end device. Alternatively, a separate network can be set up for each band.

In our review of the Netgear Nighthawk RS600, we focused on the WiFi speed. We used two fixed measuring points: The first (MP1) is located in the immediate vicinity of the router (1 meter), without any obstacles. Measuring point 2 (MP2) is about five meters away, one floor above and a concrete ceiling in between. Three smartphones are used as clients: OnePlus 13, Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra and Xiaomi 15, all of which support WiFi 7 with 4x4 MIMO.

On the 5 GHz network, all smartphones can use 160 MHz and hit high speeds in both directions as long as they are close to the Netgear router. At the second measuring point, the data throughput is noticeably lower, but HD streaming should still be possible with all devices without any issues. The situation on the 6 GHz band is similar, except that the peak values are significantly higher. The range is therefore very good on both bands.

The Netgear Nighthawk RS600 is a fast WiFi 7 router that also has 10 Gbps Ethernet port, but is only partially suitable for a high-speed network due to the other 1 Gbps LAN ports.