ELECOM has announced and launched the WRC-BE36GS as an entry-level Wi-Fi 7 model. With a street price of ¥11,350, it features a compact 36 × 128 × 160 mm design and 1 Gbps WAN/LAN ports.
ELECOM has introduced a new product in the entry-level Wi-Fi 7 router segment. With its predecessor, the WRC-BE36QS, discontinued, the new WRC-BE36GS has entered the market as a competing offering. Its pre-tax street price is approximately ¥11,350. Although it is more expensive than the least expensive WRC-W701-B, it occupies a well-balanced price range compared with competing products from other manufacturers.
The new model’s defining features are its compact size and simple wired design. The main unit measures 36 × 128 × 160 mm and weighs approximately 340 g. A switch on the rear selects between router, AP and repeater modes, while a generous selection of physical buttons has also been retained. The WAN port and each LAN port support 1 Gbps, and the product clearly does not support the 2.5 Gbps connectivity available on higher-end models.
In terms of specifications, the product supports speeds of up to 688 Mbps on 2.4 GHz and 2,882 Mbps on 5 GHz, with 3 antennas built into the 5 GHz band. It supports EasyMesh, IPv6, and IPv4-over-IPv6 mechanisms such as DS-Lite and MAP-E. Additional features, including USB, a VPN server and a smartphone app, have been omitted.
In testing in a three-story wooden house, the product achieved download speeds of up to 945 Mbps and upload speeds of approximately 946 Mbps on the same floor, demonstrating performance without an apparent 1 Gbps bottleneck. It maintained a high level of approximately 477 Mbps even at the far end of the third floor, delivering performance approaching that of higher-end models despite its compact size.