Google: OnHub Wi-Fi Router Is Prettier, Simpler, Faster And Ready For IoT

Google has launched what it says is a simple to use, aesthetically pleasing router that will help consumers improve connectivity around their homes and manage an ever growing number of connected devices.

OnHub, manufactured by TP-Link, automatically detects the best channel during setup and automatically switches if it finds interference so the Wi-Fi network operates at “peak performance.”

Google has paid a lot of attention to the design of the router, claiming it is more handsome than other access points, whose flashing lights and unsightly antennas cause many people to place them on the ground or out of sight – impacting connection quality. The company hopes owners of the OnHub will consider it good looking enough to be on open display, improving signal.

Google OnHub router

A companion app provides users with management tools, such as network checks, tells users how much bandwidth they are consuming and offers suggestions to improve performance. Users can also prioritise certain devices, such as a set top box streaming video content, to ensure enough bandwidth is available.

The app also reveals the network password so guests can get online quickly, rather than have to look under the router for the default settings. The device’s software will be continuously updated in the background, so users don’t have to do anything.

Google has suggested the OnHub is the first in a series of routers made by different manufacturers, with Asus mentioned as one hardware partner. Google hopes that by making connectivity simpler, more web users will embrace the Internet of Things (IoT), and add more devices to their network, such as the smart metres made by its Nest unit.

OnHub is available in the US online for $199.99 and will come to Canada soon. There is no word on a UK release just yet.

“At the end of the day, we want our Wi-Fi to just work, so that we can do all the things we love to do online” said Trond Wuellner, group product manager at Google. “Here’s to Wi-Fi with the reliability, speed, and security you want at home, without the frustrations you don’t.”

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