I tested Android download managers on Wi-Fi 6; multi-threaded transfers on this app consistently reached 500Mbps

I download quite a bit on my phone, especially when I’m traveling or need music or video content to consume in areas with patchy data connectivity.

But downloading content through Chrome or other browsers never matches up with a dedicated download manager capable of multi-threading.

While download managers boosted speeds on my old Wi-Fi router, I wanted to see which download manager app delivers the highest speed on a Wi-Fi 6 connection.

Why a Wi-Fi 6 router is best to achieve 500Mbps multi-threaded downloads

Need the right hardware first

I’ve been using the first-generation Google Wi-Fi and Amplifi HD in my home for a while, and they are outdated.

They aren’t Wi-Fi 6 routers, so they can’t deliver the full download speeds my phone and Xiaomi Pad 6 can reach.

Since I was due for an upgrade, I decided to invest in the ASUS RT-AX86U (AX5700 class) router, which can deliver up to 1,300+ Mbps download speeds.

A Wi-Fi 6 router like the ASUS RT-AX86U offers many advantages you might not get from the stock router your ISP provides.

For starters, the RT-AX86U delivers consistent download speeds. It also handles multiple devices better than any of my older routers.

The ASUS router uses OFDMA (Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple Access), which means it can split smaller subchannels into Resource Units.

OFDMA helps it communicate with multiple devices simultaneously, a feature essential for consistent high download speeds.

What I found really cool about the ASUS RT-AX86U router is that I had fewer dead zones in my home than I previously experienced with my ISP’s stock router.

After setting up the router via its dedicated app, the first thing I wanted to check was its download speed capabilities. Many factors affect a router’s download speed, so I set it up in my home office.

This solves the proximity issue, since I can be within 10 feet of the router to see how fast it downloads files in a real-world scenario.

I also needed a capable download manager for my phone. I use Internet Download Manager (IDM) on my desktop computer and wanted something similar for my phone.

I came across several download manager apps, so I tested a few to find the best fit.

To evaluate a download manager app, I downloaded the same video file since I knew the host server was ideal for this test and also leveled the playing field.

The apps I chose to test were the usual suspects: 1DM, Advanced Download Manager (ADM), and Free Download Manager.

Finally, to understand each app’s pure download-speed capabilities, I didn’t use a VPN or throttling.

Network

802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax, dual-band, AX5700, 2.4GHz (3×3) and 5GHz (4×4), up to 160MHz channel width

Ports

1x 2.5-gigabit WAN/LAN, 1x gigabit WAN, 4x gigabit LAN, 2x USB 3.2 Gen 1

Internals

1.8GHz quad-core processor, 1GB RAM, 256MB ROM

Price

$270

The ASUS RT-AX86U router can handle multiple devices and deliver 1Gbps download speeds, depending on conditions and the number of connected clients. It has a range of 150-180 meters and has a range of features such as parental controls, device management, amongst others.

How multi-threaded downloads work and which download manager gives the best speeds

My test results were quite impressive

Traditional downloading via a browser like Chrome often uses a single connection and doesn’t use the full bandwidth for several reasons.

These can include latency, server-side limits, or TCP windowing. This results in slower download speeds, which can be frustrating when I’m in a hurry or downloading large files.

Multi-threaded managers solve this problem because, instead of using a single connection, these managers split files into segments.

Splitting files into segments lets download managers use more bandwidth and download in parallel to deliver the fastest speeds possible.

Since the ASUS RT-AX86U handles multiple connections better, I immediately noticed the difference in download speeds.

The router also has very low latency and strong 5GHz performance when I’m close enough. This was the perfect condition to test multi-threaded downloads.

After setting up each app with multi-threading downloads turned on, here are the results I achieved with my Wi-Fi 6 router:

Many servers don’t allow multiple connections, which is essential for multi-threaded downloads.

In those cases, some downloads throttle or use only a single thread. However, a good download manager like 1DM can detect this and adapt accordingly.

In my tests, 1DM can reach close to 500Mbps over Wi-Fi using multi-threaded downloads.

The free version of the app allows up to 16 threads for multi-threaded downloads, but if you are a power user who wants more threads (up to 32 threads), you can upgrade to IDM+ for $4.

I upgraded to the full version to unlock features I knew I would need. Here are some of the features I use often:

• Video and Audio capture
• Torrent/Magnet support
• Download Scheduler
• Clipboard interception
• Resume downloads after interruptions or phone reboot

With a little more testing, I found 1DM best suited to my needs and consistently hit ~500Mbps download speeds when the server permitted.

But if you don’t want to pay for 1DM’s extra features, ADM is a capable alternative to consider that also supports up to 16 threads, plus features like scheduling and resuming downloads.

ADM may not hit the same download speeds as 1DM, but it gets the job done and is still better than regular browser downloads.

Switching to Wi-Fi 6 and multi-threaded downloads saved me a lot of time

Downloading large files can be time-consuming in traditional browsers, but Bare Browser is an exception since it can hand off downloads to 1DM.

But using a download manager like 1DM or ADM is now my only way to download files. I no longer worry about downloading videos and audio if I’m in a hurry. 1DM downloads these files as fast as a quick shower.

Handing off downloads to a download manager like 1DM might be the best thing I’ve done in years, and I doubt I will ever go back.