ROG NeoCore: ASUS Unveils First Wi-Fi 8 Concept Router and Real-World Draft-Based Performance

The future is here. Sort of.

Today, ASUS announced the ROG NeoCore, its “first” Wi-Fi 8 router at CES 2026.

Before you get too excited, there’s a caveat: unlike previous announcements, such as the Wi-Fi 7 GT-BE19000AI at the previous CES, which became available at the end of 2025, the NeoCore is a concept router, so it might not fully reflect the final product. In other words, when (or if) it becomes available, it’ll differ significantly from what was shown at the show.

However, given that Wi-Fi 8 is currently at such an early stage, its existence alone is significant. And its design is intriguing, in a good way.

ASUS ROG NeoCore: A new design for a new Wi-Fi standard

The NeoCore concept router looks like no other ASUS router I’ve seen: it’s a relatively compact 12-sided cube with a hollow underside for easy access to its three network ports.

ASUS says the number of ports will likely increase in the production version, and chances are at least two, if not all of them, will be 10Gbps.

By the way, take the “underside” notion with a grain of salt. Per design, you can place it down on a surface using any of the 12 sides, and that will become its “underside”. Additionally, the NeoCore is wall-mount-ready and includes mounting accessories, as showcased at CES 2026.

Other than that, on the inside, the NeoCore is meant to be a gaming router, as indicated by the ROG branding in its name. On this front, it’s a far cry from the exciting “dead spider” design of other flagship ROG routers, such as the GT-BE98 Pro or GT-BE19000AI.

Again, a lot of things will change by the time you can get an actual Wi-Fi 8 router, this NeoCore or otherwise. Still, with this concept router, ASUS showed its desire to create an entirely new design, something more streamlined, aesthetically pleasing to easily pass that “spouse approval” hurdle, to match what the new Wi-Fi standard has in store.

ASUS’s Wi-Fi 8 demo: Impressive real-world results

In addition to the NeoCore, ASUS also demoed Wi-Fi 8’s real-world performance using circuit boards based on the standard’s draft specification to represent both sides of a Wi-Fi 8 connection. The result? A clear improvement compared to Wi-Fi 7 in real-world scenarios.

Some context: Wi-Fi 8 doesn’t aim to exceed Wi-Fi 7 in theoretical bandwidth. Instead, it focuses on connection quality. In other words, it’s designed to yield faster real-world performance than Wi-Fi 7 hardware can within the theoretical ceiling speeds specified by Wi-Fi 7.

ASUS’s demo showed just that: its Wi-Fi 8 draft hardware could deliver up to 2X higher mid-range throughput, 2X broader IoT coverage, and up to 6X lower latency via smarter multi-AP/multi-client operation than Wi-Fi 7 with similar specs.

Ultra-high reliability for everyday connectivity

Through that lab-based experience, ASUS concluded that Wi-Fi 8 reduces speed degradation over range and makes connections more stable, enabling “smooth performance” in less-than-ideal environments.

Additionally, Wi-Fi 8 enhances two-way communication for low-power devices, such as bright lights and controllers, ensuring steady connections for all devices.

According to ASUS, the existing Wi-Fi standards (including Wi-Fi 7) are often evaluated under best-case scenarios and therefore fall short in real-world use. Consequently, they often fall short in meeting users’ expectations in modern apartment buildings or densely populated neighborhoods.

Wi-Fi 8 differs from the rest by having intelligent spectrum coordination, higher spectrum efficiency, and better dynamic scheduling to maintain fast performance and reliability even in less-than-ideal environments.

After all, it’s the first new linear Wi-Fi revision to buck the trend of offering higher bandwidth (speeds).

Availability and the takeaway

Chances are there won’t be an actual Wi-Fi 8 router—the NeoCore, or others—until 2027, considering the standard won’t be ratified until late 2028. On this front, ASUS told me that the NeoCore, with its current concept design, is “highly likely” to become an actual product, though the now-classic “dead spider” option will also remain.

In any case, what ASUS showcased at CES 2026 proved that the new Wi-Fi 8 standard is indeed exciting, and it might be adopted even more quickly than Wi-Fi 7. And faster and more reliable real-world Wi-Fi is never a bad thing.