So after having issues using the VR600 V2 router as my main router (sudden ping spikes and extreme ping spikes when running upload speed tests), I had no choice but to re-use the router supplied by my ISP (Sky SR203). 

I thought I'd try and test this router out as an access point instead. At least I'd get some use out of it. Unfortunately, the VR600 V2 doesn't want to play nice with that either.

I use an access point to help boost Wi-Fi signals downstairs (main router is up upstairs by 2 floors). I currently use an old TalkTalk router. I turned off things like DHCP to prevent issues. According to trace routes I've done, there's no double NAT. Only the main router appears and no other private IP addresses. Internet and Wi-Fi works well with that configured as an AP.

I've wanted to upgrade from it though so I thought the VR600 would be good enough.As the TalkTalk router functions as an AP, I know that the setup works. I was expecting it to be as painless to setup as the TalkTalk router was. 

I set up the Tp-Link VR600 the same way. I gave it an IP address of 192.168.0.2 (main router is 192.168.0.1 with IP range of 192.168.0.3-192.168.0.254). DHCP is off. Set SSID to be the same as the main router. Connecting my laptop directly to the VR600 via Ethernet gives me an Internet connection. That shows the VR600 is communicating with my main router.

The problem is Wi-Fi. It is constantly dropping Wi-Fi clients off. I'd see the Wi-Fi icon appear and then an immediate disconnect would follow. After some fiddling with the DHCP option and IPs, along with some reboots, I got it to somewhat play nice. My phone was connecting to the VR600 and staying connected. Internet worked. I thought, "OK cool, it's fixed".

Today, I heard complaints from others in the house saying the Wi-Fi kept dropping. So I went ahead and checked. It seems it's not fixed. I've found devices like my phone and my laptop connect fine and stay connected. I tried another laptop and that refused to connect. 

So what I did was set the SSID on the VR600 to be different to see what's going on. Once again, my phone and laptop automatically connected fine and seem to stay connected. The problematic laptop still would not. It connects, but says no Internet. 

I found if I disconnected the main router Ethernet cable from the VR600 and reconnected, the laptop would get an Internet connection. If I disconnected the laptop once again from the VR600 and re-connected, it would connect but state no Internet. Disconnecting and reconnecting the Ethernet cable once again restored the Internet connection.

What's going on here? This router seems to give nothing but problems. Is this how TP-Link routers behave? It was far less hassle to set up an ISP router as an AP. I just had to change a few settings on that and it worked. It's been in use for months and not once did I hear complaints of Wi-Fi drops. 

Am I dealing with a hardware issue, or is it some weird firmware issue? I tried both the old and latest firmware available for the device. It's still not working right. I tried a factory restore (the one that doesn't remove login info) and still nothing. I even tested Wireless Router mode to see if that helped. It did not. I can't see anything else in the settings that would cause the symptoms I'm seeing. 

Since I can get Internet from the VR600 when using Ethernet and the fact some Wi-Fi do sometimes work, that tells me the configuration has been set up correctly. I want to make sure this router is faulty before I send it back. If there's anything left to try, do let me know. I ideally don't want to have to return it.