I am looking to buy a router and need some recommendations.
Requirements-
AC Wifi
Flashable to an open firmware without hassle.
Cheap. $50 or less USD. Used is fine.
Gigabit eithernet
It does not need to have tons of ethernet ports as I already have a switch. I was looking at the TP-Link Archer C5 but maybe there is something better for around the same price.
I can not honestly recommend any router that fulfils those criteria.
I suspect price will be your main sticking point, if you find something with flashable firmware at that price and the rest of those features, jump on it. Because i don’t think your selection will be very big.
I would recommend the Ubiquity “Edge Router X” Or the SPF version if you are on fiber. I know you said AC wireless, but if you interested in a better solution at least take a look at it.
https://www.amazon.com/s/?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=edge%20router%20x&tag=duckduckgo-20
If you are stuck on the 50 bucks limit than use the tp-link I have had good luck in the past with those. If you want full control and long term updates. Pfsense and a 80 dollar UAP AC Lite.
Search the forums and you will see that pfsense and unifi combo is the most suggested. It just works and works well. Both get frequent updates.
T-mobile re-badged Asus AC-RT68u, refurb. Excellent router that can be reflashed to stock Asus firmware or aftermarket firmwares like Merlin.
Thanks for the advice. The Asus router looks like a good option.