For $30 you can already get used enterprise access points. No OpenWRT, but they perform way better than 500Mbps. Even the ones that are now five or more years old.
I just want to make sure we're comparing the same thing, since data rates are such a nuanced topic. I have two 802.11ac APs communicating at 866Mbps link rate, via two spatial streams at 80Mhz of channel bandwidth. The APs bridge Ethernet traffic using WDS. I can measure 500Mbps of sustained TCP throughout over that wireless link. I believe that's pretty much the theoretical limit for the link rate.
Are you suggesting there are some good cheap APs that can readily do WDS with more than two spatial streams, or wider channel bandwidth? That could be fun to play with, although at this point my WDS link is just for the lols because I've since run cat6 between buildings...
Are you suggesting there are some good cheap APs that can readily do WDS with more than two spatial streams, or wider channel bandwidth? That could be fun to play with, although at this point my WDS link is just for the lols because I've since run cat6 between buildings...