I periodically check for newer hardware and firmware builds when it comes to routers. I am more interested in stability than performance but of course would like to have both.
In my last update, I was using:
Asus RT-N16 + r18050
In this check, I'm still sticking with Asus RT-N16. They are plentiful and affordable. New routers are available but they are 100% higher in costs and I don't think are worth the trade-off yet.
Stable More Affordable Version
The only change at this time is to move to the latest K26 r22200 build here:
Asus RT-N16 + http://www.desipro.de/ddwrt/K26/r22200
I was looking into the K3.x builds for the RT-N16 but it seems a rather complex process.
Stable Upgraded Bleeding Edge Version
Since I'd rather wait till hardware changes and the process is a little more straight forward, the next step up seems to be:
Asus AC-RT66U + http://www.desipro.de/ddwrt/K3-AC/22715