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Forum Discussion
Update V1.9.1.12 Netgear officially announcing 'Improvement in wireless connection Stability'
Just downloaded the latest release V1.9.1.12 and noticed in the official release notes from Netgear it states as fix 'Continious Improvement in wireless connection stability'..Dosent spefically makre...
I would recommend any Apple device users NOT UPDATE their software today, per Apple’s release today.
The last thing I want is Netgear claiming an Apple software update is causing problems with Orbi.
For those of you who might be afraid of the recent Ransomware hitting the planet, do what you feel is best for you. I, personally, I am not updating until Netgear tells me it will not interfere with their updates I, and a few others, are testing.
I have kind of given up on my end. I bought a single UAP-AC-M from ubiquiti and so far so good. Coverage isn't as great but the performance has been very good thus far. I will be trying it for a few more days and then decide to keep it or not as these units can be used as wireless mesh AP's as well. If it works out I will likely get the unifi cloud key controller and maybe even the USG firewall from ubiquiti. The interface on this controller is actually very good. This AP/Controller/FW setup is cheaper then the pair of Orbi's.
Does it require more configuration? Yes, a lot more. Does it provide a whole system with amazing visibility? most definitely.
I am with you and appreciate your decision to move on. I however, have reasons to give Netgear “a little more time”.
I am older, and slowly moving away from my hard-core geek days of running a datacenter in my home. As my life priorities have changed in the recent years I have no desire, nor time, to spend hours, days, maintaining a commercial grade “home” infrastructure.
In the past 2 years, I have moved towards Apple and other “less maintenance” products. Not to say they are BETTER, but not having my family and friends calling me every other day asking for help, I am enjoying a more simple product path that requires less involvement. Yes, Android, ASUS, DDWRT, Tomato, OpenRouters, etc. all offer great solutions, but are complex. When they work, they WORK WELL. But do require more up-keep.
My decision to retire my Cisco Aironet WIFI 5-6 years ago, moved to ASUS with some Merlin code…It was great. And the constant firmware releases and added features and abilities were AMAZING!
Netgear promised me a low maintenance WIFI solution that didn’t look like a science project (ASUS, LOL). That is why I got it, and it acted promising from Day-1. But now, Netgear has cost me far more time than my Cisco and ASUS ever did.
So I am with you. I pray I can stop monitoring and posting on this forum, SOON. I did not buy this Orbi so I could spend all this time dealing with it's problem.
Plus, my wife gets “upset” with me when I buy expensive tech stuff, then replace 3-6 months later. Somewhat prevents me from arguing her shopping habits when I drop $600 on Orbi, then replace it with something else months later…..So, I have personal motivations to make Orbi work. But time is running short. If this isn’t meeting my needs by June I will be moving to something else. It's summer time in the Cali Bay Area. The rain is gone! Time for the beach, time for some road trips to SoCal, time for some outside activities. And not parked in front of my computer typing replies to Netgear, and testing Beta code, and using my Android Galaxy and Macbook Pro WIFI-Analyzers to troubleshoot Orbi problem. Spending HOURS trying to understand why my IP Cameras were dropping every 30 seconds, but when i put them back on my ASUS...Problems GONE...Hours questioning is my SlingTV service having buffer problems, or is it an internal home WIFI problem (as my wife gives me that LOOK)...On work conference calls only to have my WIFI-Calling drop because my WIFI connection dropped.
My previous ASUS setup WORKED! I only required check-ins every 30-60 days for firmware updates and basic maintenance. What was also great was the ability to re-configure it when my client device list changed. I ran mixed for due to older B and G devices. But as I moved to N and AC only, I was able to reconfigure for it. When I noticed a device not happy, I could tweak and tune to find a config that worked best for it. And that is what Netgear Orbi doesn’t get. Even if they find a config that works for today, what happens in 6-12 months when customer device list change due to upgrades, or a customer moving, etc….
Given my tech background and deep understanding of the challenges and the time it takes to remediate…I am giving Netgear a chance.