Hi all,

(Sorry for the long post, but trying to provide useful and relevant detail).

I’m trying to find the best overall home network/wifi solution and am after a bit of advise, I’ve done a bit of research but am pretty over whelmed with all the products out there.

My current set up is just a simple ISP provided NF18ACV which performs okayish, the wifi range isn’t very good. I’m also only on 100/20, but will probably bump that up to 1000/500.
My house is a 2 level, 3 bedroom, 200m2, wooden/gib construction.
The ONT is located in the garage and there is Ethernet wiring to all bedrooms and the lounge, which is where my router is.

There are a couple of dead spots and wifi isn’t the best, especially upstairs which is what I want to rectify.

Initially my thoughts were to replace just the router and see if the makes a difference. I was considering the Asus RT-AX58U, only as I’d heard it’s a decent router with good Wifi, and I’ve been happy with an Asus dsl router in the past (plus I may be able to get a good deal on one).

After doing a bit of research I thought a Mesh solution sounded good and was drawn to the TP-link Deco M5/M9, it sounded like it good solution. I liked the simple design, it has VLAN tagging which means I could ditch the ISP router, and I liked the Ethernet backhaul option... though by using that it essential makes it a router with a couple of APs?
I also liked the Amplifi HD router too. Though not the design of the Meshpoint antennas but potentially consider buying 2 routers set up with Ethernet backhaul (or an AirCube, though not sure that’s compatible). The other drawback is the Amplifi HD seems to lack MU-MIMO?

Option 3 would be a new router and a new wired access point both with the same SSID. My knowledge of these are limited so not too sure the best options with this setup.

Appreciate your expert opinions and suggestions.
Budget wise, not looking to spent too much, so ideally under $500 would be great.

Thanks