Buffalo WZR-D1800H 802.11ac Router review

The WZR-D1800H is equipped with four Gigabit Ethernet ports, and these also help with incredibly fast file transfers. When we plugged our laptop and test PC into the WZR-D1800H and ran our file transfer tests, we saw an incredibly fast data transfer rate of 838.8Mbit/s. This is hugely beneficial if you’re streaming from a NAS or PC attached to the device.

The 802.11ac transfer rates we saw are incredibly fast and remained consistent as we ran our benchmarks several times. Sadly, we were less impressed with the WZR-D1800H’s web interface, which seems designed to terrify users and not encourage them to use what is otherwise an incredibly powerful device. The menus are divided into a series of tabs along the top of the screen, which is clear, but the sub-menus are split into buttons that also run along the top of the screen, which makes the interface confusing. The WZR-D1800H’s wireless configuration screen, for example, is split into 10 sub-menus, and it’s difficult to remember where the setting you need is located. Modern routers have increasingly clear web interfaces, and Buffalo needs to get in on the action.

Despite its chaotic web interface, the WZR-D1800H has all the functions that you need, such as Dynamic DNS, port forwarding and QoS. It also has a USB port to which you can attach external storage devices to share over your network. The router also has a built-in media server that lets you take full advantage of 802.11ac’s high speeds. We had no problems viewing high-definition video from attached devices, even when two laptops were simultaneously accessing two different files from the same drive.

The WZR-D1800H is an astonishingly fast wireless router and a real showpiece for the benefits of 802.11ac. It’s just a shame that the web interface makes its advanced functions tricky to use. If you need a high-speed router and media bridge combo to stream high-definition content over your network to your home cinema system, the WZR-D1800H and the WLI-H4-D1300 are a good choice, but we’d recommend waiting to see what routers other manufacturers come up with based on the 802.11ac standard.