MSI made a router with antennas that follow you around your house

There are few things that piss me off more than having a spotty Wi-Fi connection at home, and it seems MSI agrees because the company brought a rather clever router to CES 2023 featuring antennas that dynamically follow specific devices as you walk around your house. 

Dubbed the RadiX BE22000 Turbo, MSI’s top-spec Wi-Fi router is packed with pretty much every feature you can think of (and probably some you haven’t) to ensure you get the fastest wireless speeds possible. That’s because while the standard is still being finalized, not only is the RadiX designed to support Wi-Fi 7 it also includes MSI’s AI QoS tech which can reduce your ping while gaming or prioritize different types of content like streaming video at the touch of a button. And with channel bandwidths of 320MHz, MSI claims the BE22000 delivers 4x faster throughput when compared to a typical Wi-Fi 6 router. 

But clearly, the RadiX’s standout party trick is its antennas, which unlike pretty much every other router out there, have the ability to automatically adjust their position to follow a specific device as it moves around your home to deliver optimal wireless coverage at all times. And I can tell you, after seeing the router in person, it’s kind of mesmerizing. 

Unfortunately, before anyone gets too excited, it’s important to note that even MSI doesn’t expect the BE22000 Turbo to go on sale until sometime in 2024. That’s because there are a couple important hurdles like waiting for the Wi-Fi spec to be finalized, along with other challenges like ensuring the motors for the router’s antennas can handle months and years of constant operation. Even during the short time the RadiX was on display at CES, I noticed the speed at which its antennas moved became a bit sluggish due to increased heat.

Sam Rutherford/Engadget

On top of that, I still have other questions like how does the router know which device (or devices) to prioritize in a home filled with multiple gadgets. And what’s the repair process like if one of its antenna motors dies? After all, under ideal conditions, routers should be something you can set and forget. And at this point, I’m sure some of you are wondering what kind of person this robo router is really for?

Is the BE22000 Turbo over-designed? Sure. And while MSI hasn’t announced pricing for it either, you can bet this thing won’t be cheap. But you can’t say MSI isn’t trying, and when compared to rival products, a router with automatically adjustable antennas is exactly the type of thing I like to see at CES.