Customer Ratings & Reviews

When traveling for work or leisure it's essential to stay connected. Most hotels, conference centers and the like offer wifi, but they don't always make it easy to connect. Even some of the nicest hotels I've stayed at limit you to one or two device connections, even if you pay for the wifi service. Moreover, with a variety of methods to log in, it's sometimes difficult to get connected from anything other than a phone or computer -- not to mention the ever-present security concerns of using public wifi. Asus' answer to many of these concerns is their latest travel router, the RT-BE58 Go. This tiny wifi 7 device packs away easily and offers a plethora of connection methods suitable to just about any scenario. The idea with a device such as this is to create your own private wifi network while traveling, sharing public wifi (or your hotspot) connection with the rest of your devices. What's especially neat here is the ability for the BE58 Go to connect to a public wifi portal and share that connection via its own wifi network with the rest of your devices, adding a layer of security and potentially getting around limitations on the number of device connections to the public network itself. In areas without public wifi, you can connect the Asus directly to an ethernet port or even plug in your phone to share its hotspot connection. The BE58 Go comes packaged in an appropriately small package, and I was pleased to see no styrofoam and a minimum of plastic wrap. The entire package unfolded easily and the packaging materials were all easily recycled as well. Asus includes just the basics here: the router, a USB-C power supply, a (wonderfully) thin ethernet cable and a quick start guide. Despite being billed as a travel router, the BE58 Go functions in nearly all respects as a typical router. The setup process is largely the same: go to Asus' router setup page on a web browser or download the Asus Router app and follow the directions. The only difference here is when the setup process asks you what mode you'd like to set the router up in. You can select "router mode" and set the BE58 Go up as a traditional router, you can select the "Public Wifi Mode (WISP)" to connect to an established wireless network on the go. I decided to test WISP mode in two different ways. First, I connected to my standard home network, which was very straightforward. I selected the SSID, entered the password and after quick reboot the BE58 Go was connected. Switching my phone to the BE58 Go's SSID and entering the password I just selected gave me immediate Internet access, and I was able to use my phone normally. For a more "typical" public wifi test, I set up a guest network on my home router with a captive login portal, so that a webpage would load asking for a password like any coffee shop or hotel. I wasn't sure how I'd access this portal from the BE58 Go, and Asus' instructions aren't very helpful in that regard. I found that the BE58 Go connected to my guest network, but there was no built-in prompt during the setup process to load the captive portal. I then tried to load a variety of web pages on my phone, hoping to trigger the portal, but only got the "no internet" warning again and again. I then took a look at the guest network I created and found a warning that the captive portal might not load on an https website, which nearly all sites are these days, unless I disabled IPv6 or visited an http (not -s) website. So I headed to www.httpforever.com, which exists for just this scenario, and boom -- the captive portal page popped up! I entered the password and just like that I was connected to the guest network I'd created. All this to say, if you're wondering how to get a router to connect to a public network that requires a captive portal, you might want to try visiting the link above to see if that triggers the portal. Alternatively, and I haven't tried this method, you can connect to the public wifi with your phone or computer and then close your MAC address to the BE58 Go, which as I understand it will trick the public wifi into thinking the BE58 Go is your computer or laptop. I haven't tried this method personally but there are instructions available online if you're interested. The other main scenario for using a travel router is to share the hotspot connection from your phone via USB tethering. Strangely, the BE58 Go includes a USB-A port for this purpose, rather than a second USB-C port. I would have thought a travel router would default to all USB-C ports but I was wrong. This required finding a USB A-to-C data cable, which I'll note isn't necessarily the same as a charging cable. For the fastest connection you'll want a USB 3 type cable, too, so I ended up ordering a short one online just to be sure the specs were correct. Setup in this way is a little different than expected. After connecting the BE58 Go in WISP mode I went thru the setup process again, looking for a USB tethering option but not finding one. It took me a few minutes of trial and error to realize the USB option is available once putting the Asus into "router mode" and enabling USB 3 on the USB port. This will trigger a reboot, after which you can plug in your mobile device and get USB Tethering working. You'll most likely see a popup on your phone asking you to approve the Asus' USB connection, after which I found the USB tethering connection active immediately. You can also enable an auto-tethering mode that will allow the BE58 Go to switch to your connected phone automatically if the ethernet connection you're using goes down or, I assume, if the public network you're using in WISP mode becomes unusable. A nice bonus is that the Asus will charge your phone when connected. In both WISP mode and USB Tethering mode the Asus produced solid, stable connections. I ran multiple internet speed tests and found speeds were consistently lower than I was getting when directly connected to either the cellular network or my home wifi network, but this is to be expected when routing a connection through additional devices like a second router. Overall, the Asus BE58 Go is a powerful device in a compact package. It offers the unique ability to create your own personal wifi network using the internet connection of a public wifi network, adding both convenience and security. Similarly, you can plug in your phone or tablet and share the hotspot connection through the BE58 Go, which might be useful for connecting multiple laptops in a business setting or a streaming device when on the go. And if that's not enough, you can plug the BE58 Go into any active ethernet connection and use it just like a regular router, possibly giving you a two-in-one functionality if your home or apartment is on the smaller end. Other than wishing for a second USB-C port, my only complaints are really the clunky setup process and relative lack of good, clear instructions from Asus. Visiting their support site helped a bit, but there are lots of typos and mistranslated words that add to the general confusion. At its core the BE58 Go is just a router, and anyone who's set one up knows they're always more complicated than they need to be. Despite that, Asus has developed a really neat device for frequent travelers that's absolutely worth a look.

I have used the ASUS RT-BE58 Go on a couple of trips now and have a pretty good idea of what it does well and where it falls short. First off, the router is compact, with foldable antennas, and easily fits in carry-on luggage. It was never flagged by TSA or needed to be removed from my bag at airport security. It has two Ethernet ports, which I personally did not have a reason to use, a USB-C PD power port, and a USB-A 3.0 port that I wish was USB-C (more on that in a moment). Setup is done through the ASUS Router app, available from your mobile app store. The router supports three modes: Router, Access Point (Extender), or WISP (Public Wi-fi) mode. Anytime you change modes, or even switch networks in WISP mode, the device will need to restart. This is probably the biggest disappointment I have with the device. I was hoping I could easily move from a coffee shop to my hotel and quickly switch public Wi-fi networks, but the process is cumbersome. In order to switch networks in WISP mode you have to power on the router, wait for it to boot, open the app (or web admin), log in, select “Change Network”, wait for it to connect to the new network, complete the login or accept whatever is needed on the new network, and then wait for the router to reboot again. On top of all of that, it does not seem to remember Wi-fi passwords, so I had to re-enter wi-fi passwords every time. Where the router is most useful is in hotel rooms or Airbnbs. You can connect to the property’s Wi-fi and then have all your devices join your private network. I have even set up a VPN to my home network so that my devices could access my printers and file shares as if I were at home. Another feature it has is the ability to point specific devices to different VPNs or exclude them entirely. I set my ASUS ROG Xbox Ally X to not connect to my VPN since I only use it for gaming. However, the extra hop between the ASUS router and the property’s Wi-Fi still introduced enough latency to affect my gaming in fast-paced esports titles like Rocket League. For normal browsing, zoom calls, the impact was negligible. I primarily used the router in hotel rooms with insecure public Wi-fi, but I also tethered it to my iPhone. Here, things got tricky. You either need a USB-A to USB-C (or Lightning) cable, or do the setup from a second device, as you can’t host a wireless hotspot and configure the router on the same phone simultaneously. I got both approaches to work but I ran into issues with the wired option on my first couple of attempts because the USB-A to C cables I had did not support data so plugging in the phone did nothing. This is where a USB-C port on the router would have been better. With the right cable, the router set up the tethering automatically (just need to accept the “Trust This Computer” prompt when doing it on an iPhone). I was also able to get tethering to work wirelessly, but only by using my laptop to configure the router while the wireless hotspot was enabled on my phone. Some might wonder why even bother and just connect the devices directly to the phone’s hotspot but this does give you some benefits as you’ll have device level configuration and can enable features like the VPN, QoS, or custom DNS. I found the range to be adequate for a hotel room or a few rooms but certainly not going to be enough to provide full coverage for most homes. Pros: - Compact Footprint - Wi-Fi 7 dual-band support - Supports separate guest and IoT networks - Robust VPN support - Support advanced router features like Port Forwarding, Manual DNS, DDNS, etc. - USB-C Powered – can run off battery pack Cons: - Slow to configure and reboot - Does not remember Wi-fi passwords - No 6Ghz band Overall, this is great hardware for someone who travels with a lot of devices, but the setup can be slow and complicated especially for doing something as trivial as switching public Wi-Fi networks.

I have been using (and traveling) with the ASUS RT-BE58 Go BE3600 travel router for about 2-3 weeks now, so have a lot of practical experience in the setup and use. There's a lot to like about the ASUS Be3600 - WiFi 7, portable size, USB C powered but there's also some odd little setup and usage quirks. I'm giving it 4 stars because there are some quirks, it's technically a 3.5/5 given the app vs web UI quirks but I am rounding up given there are some great advanced features like VPN support, built in firewall, security tools, etc. First, the ASUS BE3600 Go is USB C powered but it requires 9V/2A or 12V/2A power delivery, so you need to use the included external charger or a battery that supports this output. I have always used it only with the included charger. Setup and use, you can use the app or your browser. The app is OK, not great - it could be an iOS issue but if you're changing the WiFi you're connecting the B3600 to you get in this loop where it's harder to manage the settings. You're 10x better off just browsing to the BE3600 IP address on your router. I would recommend setting up the first time at home using a wired connection, mainly because there was a firmware update and better to get those out of the way on a stable connection you know and trust. There is an option on setup to bind this to your ASUS account (if you have one) but I'm not sure what this does or value it brings. You can connect to any sort of network, public, private, secure, those with captive portals like you get in hotels. There is an odd quirk with captive portal, where you may require something like your name and room number, you won't get that prompt in the app, only when you reconnect to the router WiFi and then you get the prompt on your device connecting to the Wifi. This is an odd quirk and I can't seem to find anywhere to save or do this within the ASUS app itself, but it does persist i.e. you don't need to relogin on every device. If you're changing the WiFi you connect to as your main connection for the router, it's easier via the browser interface vs the app. I found if I was app only, iOS was freaking out about internet access and wouldn't stay connected to the router and I would have to reset the router to start from the beginning vs just browsing to the WebUI where your PC or Mac doesn't worry if there's no proper internet. What does set the ASUS RT-BE58 apart and makes it edge into 4 stars is there's a LOT of security controls. There's Trend Micro security built in (called AiProtection, because everything has to have AI these days), you can manage Quality of Service (QoS) - great if you want to make sure your Zoom calls get priority while the family is watching Netflix in the hotel. There's a built in firewall, parental controls, you can setup your own captive portal, a separate IoT network, clone MAC addresses... I mean it's more sophisticated than some of the routers you get from your broadband provider which is impressive. You can also stream from attached devices on the USB port - seriously cool. On the VPN front, the RT-BE58 supports all standard protocols like OpenVPN and Wireguard. In terms of off the shelf providers, your options are NordVPN and Surfshark. I would really recommend adding a VPN connection if you really want great security on public WiFi. With extended use the RT-BE58 does get a little warm (not hot, just warm) but I've found this to be standard on WiFi7 equipment. Overall, the ASUS RT-BE58 is a great WiFi7 travel router, a worthwhile upgrade if you're using an older travel router. I definitely recommend the web UI vs the app though for setup and use.

Setup fail, factory reset fail, ASUS web support does not even list this router, So far ASUS support still unfinished because of their open hours are California time zone.

I've been using the ASUS RT-BE58 Go specifically to address some privacy concerns I had while working in my office, and it has exceeded my expectations. My current daily setup involves connecting the router directly to my office’s guest WiFi and then using the 2.5G WAN port to run a physical Ethernet line to my Surface Pro tablet. At the same time, I keep my personal cell phone and my Samsung tablet connected wirelessly to the router’s private WiFi network. Even with multiple devices active, the speeds are consistently impressive with absolutely no latency issues, which is critical for my workflow. The biggest win for me, however, is the security aspect. It gives me incredible peace of mind to know that my visited sites and browsing habits are shielded from the primary office network. Since I often use my own computer and phone for tasks that aren’t strictly work-related, having that private bubble is great. I'm not too sure what IT can see, but I imagine they cannot see a list of my individual devices but instead just my router connected which I labeled Work Station. The app is good with features that allow for deeper customization, and I’ve already started looking into setting up a VPN at the router level to further encrypt my data. The issue was the VPN made the network connection extremely slow so I abandoned that for now. Although I am currently using it in my office, the portability is where this router shines. It is compact enough to toss into my backpack without a second thought, and I am already planning to take it with me on my upcoming trips. I’m looking forward to using it in hotels and airports to avoid connecting my devices directly to sketchy, unencrypted public access points. You can even power this router with a powerful enough power bank which is awesome! Being able to set up my own secure network in a hotel room or in public in seconds is a massive upgrade for my travel kit. If you are someone who values data privacy and wants a reliable, fast connection that you can take anywhere, this router is definitely worth it.

It was hard to connect to my Iphone and use my Iphone hotspot.

This is an awesome little companion you may want to consider getting when you are on the road or travelling a lot. I know a lot of times we all rely on the Hot Spot of our smart phones to create a wireless network. However it drains your phone's battery quickly and may not always have the best connection depending on where you are. I think this router from Asus brings all the latest tech to your disposal, "stuffed" with the latest wireless Wi-Fi 7 format for fast speeds. So let's break it down and see what specifications it has. So the key features certainly surprised me: - Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) with Multi-Link Operation (MLO) and 4K-QAM for faster, more efficient wireless performance. - Dual-band support (2.4 GHz & 5 GHz) with speeds up to 3570–3600 Mbps. - Tri-mode connectivity. - Standard router mode (via 2.5G WAN port). - 4G/5G mobile tethering via USB-A. - Public Wi-Fi (WISP) mode for creating a secure hotspot from shared networks. - Compact design with folding antennas for portability. - Coverage: Up to 1800 sq. ft., supporting 150+ devices simultaneously. Let me explain what some of this tech "mambo jumbo" means. So Multi-Link Operation is one of the headline features of Wi‑Fi 7, and it changes how devices connect by allowing them to use multiple bands at the same time. So in other words, any of yours devices can connect simultaneously on 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and (when available) 6 GHz. Instead of choosing one band, your router and device treat all available bands (think of it as a combined highway), therefore reducing latency, increasing throughput, and making the connection more stable. 4K‑QAM (Quadrature Amplitude Modulation) is a modulation technique that packs more data into each wireless signal. Why it would matter to you? Well, it offers faster speeds at short to medium range, provides more efficient data transmission and helps Wi‑Fi 7 routers hit multi‑gigabit wireless speeds (which we all love when gaming or streaming 4K content). So here are some real life case uses I encountered while using this cool router. I was staying at a hotel and hotel's Wi-Fi is never a safe choice to conduct your business. With this Asus router you can convert Hotel Wi‑Fi to your own private, secure network. With the RT‑BE58 Go: - You connect it to the hotel Wi‑Fi (WISP mode) - It creates your own encrypted Wi‑Fi 7 network - All your devices connect through it laptops, phones, tablets, consoles. Very easy and you are safe on that unknown network. Another example is when we travelled as a whole family. Instead of connecting every device to sketchy public Wi‑Fi you can: - Connect the router once - Everyone joins your private network Now yours kids’ tablets stay connected even if the hotel Wi‑Fi logs out. You can manage content filtering with AiProtection and you avoid device limits. It simplifies the whole trip. All in all, I really like this router, it is powerful enough, compact and a great addition to my tech bag and hope it serves you well if you decide to go with it.

The ASUS - RT-BE58 Go Dual-Band Wi-Fi 7 Travel Router is a very small router compared to today’s standard routers or Mesh systems. It is about the size of a classic 4-port network switch with the antennas sticking up. Don’t let its size fool you, this is a full-featured router that includes most of the features of its bigger Asus router siblings running the AsusWRT software and Quad-core 2.0GHz, 256MB Flash, 1GB RAM. Starting with its Dual-band Wi-Fi 7 speeds of up to 3600 Mbps with Multi-Link Operation (MLO) and advanced VPN connectivity built-in, this little router can be your main router in a small apartment or your hotel room while on the go. It can work as the main router or a satellite/range extender using the AIMesh technology. As a travel router, it comes with USB-C charging that supports the universal Power Delivery standard. You can use any USB-C charger that delivers 18W or more to power it, making it convenient to use on the go and use its USB-A port to charge another device connected to it. It supports multiple options as its WAN (input). The 2.5Gbps WAN port if you have access to an ethernet broadband connection. The USB-A port to tether it to your phone mobile hotspot feature. Or it can connect to a Wi-Fi (hotel) network, and NAT to other devices via its 1Gbps LAN port or provide a private Wi-Fi network via the WISP protocol. There are plenty of other advanced security and network features, one worth mentioning is dual-WAN setup, main broadband connection and simultaneous USB-tethering as a backup connection if your main ISP goes down. Overall, this little Asus travel router will come in handy on my next business trip, it will certainly provide a more secure connection than putting my laptop directly on the hotel network.

I wish they had this 15 years ago when I did most of my travel but it still comes in handy. I hate connecting to public Wi-Fi. So much bad can happen especially if you are doing any online banking. I've used VPN services to do most of my online masking but the new travel router from ASUS adds another level of protection when connecting to those "secure" public Wi-Fi. Powered with the latest Wi-Fi technology with WiFi7 speed. Setup is amazingly simple with the ASUS router app. It has built n WISP (Wireless Internet Service Provider) mode which gets you a secure private hotspot. It took me less than 5 minutes to setup the admin account and family and friends connection password. You can also setup a guest portal password and limit traffic and access. I like that it has a dedicated IoT capability linking any IoT devices you have in your home or office for seamless access. The RT-BE58 Go is small enough to toss into your backpack. It does not come with a power block but can get powered the included USB-C cable connected to your power block or computer/laptop/tablet. There are 2 ethernet ports on the back. One is 1GHz and the other is 2.5G. At home I connected the 2.5G port to my home 2.5G modem/router and connected to the ASUS router via Wi-Fi and ran Speedtest and got just over 2G of speed which is pretty impressive for a wireless connection. Not to mention that if you can add to an ASUS MESH network, which I have :) I've just touched on the features I use the most and it can do so much more so if you need a good travel companion for work or leisure then consider grabbing one of these.

Travel routers can be useful if you have a lot of devices you travel with. This may include a family, each with their own two or three devices, needing to connect to a hotel's Wi-Fi. It could also be a work group that needs to share some files locally.The key is to connect each device to the router in advance. This way, when you get to your destination, you have to only configure the router, and all other devices are also connected to the internet. The biggest drawback to this approach is the router does not have a built-in battery. You therefore first have to find a place to plug it in. It only draws about 4 watts, so it can easily be powered by any phone charger or battery pack. The router can be configured to always use a VPN. If you have a subscription to something like Nord, you can use that, but only at the country level. Unlike routers from TP-Link, you can't choose which state in the US you'd like to connect through. Asus also provides options to use OpenVPN along with several other commercial providers. Using the VPN ensures your internet traffic is secure, even when you are connecting through a public network. Keep in mind, however, that VPNs do not play nicely with captive portal network connections. When using this router in WISP mode, it's easier to configure using a laptop or web browser instead of the phone app. When you use a laptop and your hotel has a captive portal requiring you to sign in, the router will simply pop up the login page in a separate window and allow you to continue with the configuration. The few times I tried this with my phone app, it locked up. I had to restart the app, and wasn't always able to get to the captive portal login page. Once I was connected to the public hotspot, all of my devices had full access. I checked the speed prior to connecting through the router and after connecting through the router. The speeds were the same. The router adds no appreciable overhead. Unfortunately, it also can't speed up a slow hotel connection. Be sure to turn the VPN off before attempting to connect to your hotel wifi's captive portal. As long as you do that, this travel router will definitely save you time. This will also help if your hotel has a device limitation, and you have more devices to connect. Overall, I was very pleased with the ease of use this router has to offer. The biggest downside is the initial boot time, and the time it takes to reboot whenever you configure the router to use a new captive portal. You won't have this issue if you use this in router mode, but there are fewer locations where you can get access to wired internet on the go. With a few UI tweaks, this router could be exceptional. Instead, it is merely adequate.