They’ve been saying it for years, don’t hold your breath…
I have an M9, and I really like its range and performance, but the fact I have to use their app to manage it is a total turn off. Not only that, the app is clunky and not intuitive (terrible UI), and I have trouble hunting through the screens to figure out how to use it. I wrote up about it here - Support for TP-Link Deco M9 Router Integration - #17 by mwav3 . I had to rely on IFTTT for awhile (a cloud based connection) to find out if devices are connected locally for presence detection. Someone finally put together a custom HACs integration - GitHub - amosyuen/ha-tplink-deco: Home Assistant TP-Link Deco Custom Component . Its still far from ideal compared to other routers.
When it dies, I would not purchase one again based on the app alone. I don’t mind the idea of being able to use an app to configure it AND the router’s network page, but the network page for this router is a joke and has limited config options. You need the app to do almost anything, and I did not fully realize this going in because I thought I could manage everything through the router’s webpage like every other router I’ve ever had. If TPLink decides to kill this app or discontinue it, I now have 3 overpriced bricks in my house.
I haven’t done a ton of research on it, but I think I would go with the Unifi/Ubiquiti system instead next time. There seems to be a much better Home Assistant integration for it - UniFi Network - Home Assistant
I agree and ANY router you can flash OpenWrt to would be better