FRITZ!Box 5690 Pro: Hardware Revision Found with Halved Memory
A buyer's discovery has sparked questions regarding the hardware consistency of the FRITZ!Box 5690 Pro. While the product maintains the same article number and external appearance, recent inspections suggest that some newer units may be equipped with only half the memory capacity found in earlier production runs.
The discrepancy was first noticed by a consumer who purchased a second FRITZ!Box 5690 Pro and observed significantly higher RAM utilization compared to their original unit, even though both were running the same FRITZ!OS version. Detailed analysis of support data, as reported by Router-FAQ.de, confirms a notable shift in internal specifications between different production dates.
Significant Differences in Memory Capacity
The data reveals a stark contrast between units manufactured at different times. A device from July 2024 was found to possess 2 GB of RAM and 4 GB of Flash storage. In contrast, a unit from June 2026 contained only 1 GB of RAM and 2 GB of Flash. The impact on usable resources is even more pronounced: available RAM for the system drops from 1,754 MB to just 742 MB, while the internal storage available for features like FRITZ!NAS shrinks from approximately 1.7 GB to 680 MB.
These variations are identifiable through the hardware sub-revision number, which has increased from version 3 to version 5 in the examined units. Despite these internal changes, the hardware version and the article number (2000 3043) remain identical, making the devices indistinguishable from the outside.
AVM's Response and Industry Context
When confronted with these findings, AVM's press office stated that it is common practice during a product's lifecycle to adjust internal components, such as memory chips. The company maintains that such changes are standard in the industry and do not affect the product's specifications or performance. While AVM did not explicitly confirm the exact halving of the memory capacity, they reaffirmed this as their official position.
The implications of this reduction remain unclear. There are currently no comparative performance tests between the two hardware variants, and the long-term impact on future FRITZ!OS update support is purely speculative. This is particularly sensitive given that during the product's launch in June 2024, AVM explicitly highlighted the high memory capacity as a key feature, claiming the FRITZ!Box 5690 Pro was 'optimally equipped for future updates' because of it.
Price Increases and Potential Scope
The hardware changes coincide with a notable price hike. The manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP) for the FRITZ!Box 5690 Pro has risen from €369 at launch to €479, representing an increase of nearly 30%. While some retailers offer the device for less, the combination of higher costs and reduced memory has raised concerns among consumers.
The investigation also suggests this might not be an isolated case. Discrepancies in Flash storage reported in firmware configuration files have been observed in other models, including the FRITZ!Box 4060, 4690, 5590 Fiber, 5690, 7682, 7690, and the FRITZ!Repeater 6000. However, whether these models have also received smaller memory components remains unverified.
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