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Forum Discussion
Spontaneously-bricked Orbi RBR50
Guess I will try asking for guidance here, although I already know there's nothing to do at this point except replace the hardware. But so far, Netgear support has been useless.
I purchased an Orbi RBR50 with the single satellite back in AUG 2019. My home is about 3500 sq ft and I needed additional signal strength on the second floor to reliably use a WiFi security camera on the exterior. I don't particularly want WiFi cams, but it's a short-term solution until I have time to replace with an IP PoE setup.
Anyways, I was pretty happy with my Orbi and it worked exactly as I hoped. I had no issues, other than my WiFi-enabled printer having trouble with a mesh setup. I figured this was more Canon's problem and found a workaround.
Then, on a Saturday afternoon upon returning from some errands and lunch, and despite everything working just fine earlier that day, I suddenly received notification from my security panel that it couldn't communicate with ... anything.
It was pretty easy to figure out that my entire WiFi and wired networks were down. Zero activity on the Orbi router. The satellite LED was lighted, and whatever color it is when searching for a connection. The router itself had no lights at all on the top LED, but the little LED in the back to indicate power was solid green. The router, however, would not boot / cycle / connect / whatever it does when first powered on.
I tried everything I could find on the internet -- reconnect everything, cycle the power for whatever random durations of time people claim will work, swapped power supplies with the satellite, etc. I figured it was DOA. I confirmed this by trying to get internet access through the wired Gigabit LAN ports, and still nothing. It's dead.
My Orbi is a useless paperweight after having it for only 4 months. I have yet to resolve the issue. I see no reason for anyone to waste their time trying to troubleshoot, because it won't work -- the thing is dead. It receives power but does nothing. It's in a digital vegetative state. I am interested in what anyone could recommend to actually get a ticket open for a replacement, instead of trying for yet another time to go through another futile troubleshooting process phone call after over an hour on hold.
9 Replies
Well, there's dead, and there's "dead". As I am sure you are aware, Netgear provides 90 days of "complimentary support" with a purchase. August to today is more than 90 days. So, to get a Return Material Authorization (RMA) from Netgear, I would send a private message to one of the forum moderators, such as by clicking on this link to Blanca_O
Just to confirm that it is "really dead", have you attempted a "Factory Reset" on the router?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMw4ePACgc4
Support will probably want to confirm that the internet connection is in fact working correctly. i.e. to have you connect a computer to the ethernet port on the modem and see if it (a) connects, and (b) can access the internet. This is not "troubleshooting" that you can avoid.
In a (sad) way it is fortunate that this happened now, rather than next September. Netgear provides a one year warranty on the Orbi.
- Unfortunately, it’s dead dead. I spent a considerable amount of time on YouTube, google, and Reddit trying to resolve the issues myself. I enjoy the challenge of solving problems and figuring stuff out. So, I’ve tried the factory reset and nada.
I actually have a fiber connection to the internet, so no modems or anything. I plug the network cable coming from the internet provider’s panel directly into my computer, I’m good to go and have internet access.
When I plug the WAN cable into the air i router, then another LAN cable from the orbi lan port to my computer, I have no internet. This configuration was tested with a factory reset, reboot, and ancient incantations. The orbi router receives power, but does nothing else.Please contact the forum moderator and get help. Ask about an RMA. The moderator has attempted to make contact with you.
DrInnominate wrote:
Unfortunately, it’s dead dead. I spent a considerable amount of time on YouTube, google, and Reddit trying to resolve the issues myself. I enjoy the challenge of solving problems and figuring stuff out. So, I’ve tried the factory reset and nada.
I actually have a fiber connection to the internet, so no modems or anything. I plug the network cable coming from the internet provider’s panel directly into my computer, I’m good to go and have internet access.
When I plug the WAN cable into the air i router, then another LAN cable from the orbi lan port to my computer, I have no internet. This configuration was tested with a factory reset, reboot, and ancient incantations. The orbi router receives power, but does nothing else.
- Looks like the same thing just happened to me. All the lights and things are on, but no signal at all. It's just gone.
