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Forum Discussion
Paul__G
Jul 30, 2020Aspirant
Nighthawk CAX80 Connectivity Issues with 2018 Samsung QN55Q6FNA TV Plus
I have also posted this to Samsung community boards because at the moment I'm still not sure who owns this issue! To start off this long winded explanation of a problem I will say I have a 2018 S...
ryeclift
Dec 09, 2020Tutor
Trust me. The problem was solely with the Netgear CAX80. I have five Samsung TVs and only one wasn’t working. And the only time it wasn’t working was when it was connected to the CAX80. If connected to any other device, such as a hot spot device I have, or my phones hot spot, or any other router, the tv worked flawlessly. Even if I connected the modem to the tv via Ethernet, the same problem existed.
As I said, Netgear sent out a replacement cax80 and it had the precise same problem. Netgear even admitted as much and claimed the CAX80 is too new but will get better if I just wait for a firmware update. How reassuring... Netgear eventually sent me an RAX80 and magically the tv worked. The RAX80 has its own unreliability issues though and I now have a Linksys system, which works perfect.
Not only did certain TVs have issues with the CAX80, but it always had connectivity issues that seem to have been caused by the smart wifi feature. Frequently the CAX80 wifi would be broadcasting, but no internet was flowing through.
The cold hard truth is that the chips on the Netgear “AX” devices are not ready for prime time. The kinks were not worked out before the release. It was a great idea but the most important thing for me, and many others, is reliability. There are other companies with AX products that are indeed reliable. Linksys being one.
Again, the problem isn’t the TV. If it were the TV, it would have problems with every device. But it doesn’t. It only has problems with the CAX80 when both wifi or Ethernet connected.
The best advice I. Can give is: Don’t even bother wasting your time troubleshooting. Ill they will do is tell you to disable the very features that made you want to buy the product in the first place. Spend your money elsewhere is my advice.
As I said, Netgear sent out a replacement cax80 and it had the precise same problem. Netgear even admitted as much and claimed the CAX80 is too new but will get better if I just wait for a firmware update. How reassuring... Netgear eventually sent me an RAX80 and magically the tv worked. The RAX80 has its own unreliability issues though and I now have a Linksys system, which works perfect.
Not only did certain TVs have issues with the CAX80, but it always had connectivity issues that seem to have been caused by the smart wifi feature. Frequently the CAX80 wifi would be broadcasting, but no internet was flowing through.
The cold hard truth is that the chips on the Netgear “AX” devices are not ready for prime time. The kinks were not worked out before the release. It was a great idea but the most important thing for me, and many others, is reliability. There are other companies with AX products that are indeed reliable. Linksys being one.
Again, the problem isn’t the TV. If it were the TV, it would have problems with every device. But it doesn’t. It only has problems with the CAX80 when both wifi or Ethernet connected.
The best advice I. Can give is: Don’t even bother wasting your time troubleshooting. Ill they will do is tell you to disable the very features that made you want to buy the product in the first place. Spend your money elsewhere is my advice.
tamanaco
Dec 09, 2020Apprentice
FURRYe38 wrote:
Be sure the TVs FW is up dated.
Try disabling AX mode on the CAX80 and try.
How far away is the TV from the CAX80?
First, I'm not placing blame on Netgear or Samsung... I'm just identifying a problem that was not there before the CAX80. I also reported the issue to Samsung.
The firmware in all my networking components, including the TV at release 1372.2 + TV apps are up to date. AX mode or distance from the router does no apply as the TV is (wired) connected via Ethernet "directly" to the CAX80. Is not the Ethernet wire or Ethernet port in the CAX80... I have switched cables and tested on other ports.
- ryecliftDec 09, 2020TutorI feel for you... I too did all of those things and much more.. I’m certain the problem won’t get solved. I literally spent over for 4 months troubleshot the devices with Netgear and Samsung. The problem didn’t get fixed no matter what was tried.
I’m still trying to get my money back from Netgear because I made the mistake of troubleshooting and waiting too long, and as a result I now cannot return it to the store for a refund. I’m at the mercy of Netgear. Hope you don’t fall into the same trap. - tamanacoDec 09, 2020Apprentice
ryeclift - I hear you. I rarely use Samsung TV Plus and I have been "somewhat" satisfied with the replacement CAX80 I received a few days ago just before my 90-Days were up. My disconnect issues appear to be gone with the replacement CAX80 Router. Today marks the 7th day without having to reboot the CAX80. I have issues with the GUI and with the Log not recording events (all zeros) after a day or so, but clearing the Log fixes the issue.
I'm going to stick around to see if future firmware updates to either the TV or the CAX80 fixes the issue with Samsung TV Plus. I agree with you about the CAX80 not being fully baked when it was released. But I also reliaze that because of the current situation some development and release cycles have been accelerated and been negatively impacted by not having all the usual resources and personnel readily available to address unforseen issues.
- FURRYe38Dec 09, 2020Guru - Experienced User
I to and trying to help you identify the issue for those of us who still have the CAX80.
One thing you might try as well, give a IP address reservation for the TV, Save and apply.
Put this IP address into the Modems DMZ and save and apply. You might restart or power cycle the TV here. Then check and test again.
Is IPv6 enabled on the CAX80?
What DNS are you using? Auto or manual custom?
tamanaco wrote:FURRYe38 wrote:
Be sure the TVs FW is up dated.
Try disabling AX mode on the CAX80 and try.
How far away is the TV from the CAX80?
First, I'm not placing blame on Netgear or Samsung... I'm just identifying a problem that was not there before the CAX80. I also reported the issue to Samsung.
The firmware in all my networking components, including the TV at release 1372.2 + TV apps are up to date. AX mode or distance from the router does no apply as the TV is (wired) connected via Ethernet "directly" to the CAX80. Is not the Ethernet wire or Ethernet port in the CAX80... I have switched cables and tested on other ports.
- tamanacoDec 09, 2020Apprentice
@FURRYe38 - Thanks for the suggestion, but I'm not going to use the DMZ to fix this issue. I will wait for some firmware update to either the TV or the Router that will fix this issue. As I mentioned before, all other apps in the TV work without a hitch in my current setup. The TV currently has a DHCP reservation, but I have also tested using a dedicated IP. I have tried it with the ISP's DNS servers, with Google DNS servers and combination of those. I believe there's some issue in one or more of the TV/Router Networking Layers - Something is not being upacked correctly, some parmeters don't sync or a time-out is occuring. Exactly what and where the issue exists... I don't know, but it only happens when you try to use Samsung TV Plus with the CAX80 while everything else in the LAN is working fine.
- FURRYe38Dec 09, 2020Guru - Experienced User
The DMZ mention was to just run a quick test to see if this changed anything.
Seems that if other features are working on the TV and just the one app isn't, something with this app isn't being handled right thru the modem or there service isn't getting connected to this app. Reason for checking the DMZ. You can disable it after checking.
- brsox88Dec 31, 2020Tutor
I too have the same exact issue and tried the same things you did as well. I have two Samsung TV's that TVplus don't work (NU7100 and Q60r). Hopefully netgear gets enough complaints about this and updates their firmware. My phones hotspot and neighbors Wifi make TVplus work fine.
- FURRYe38Dec 31, 2020Guru - Experienced User
Someting to make contact with NG support about. Doesn't seem like theres anything we can do here in the forums and needs to be addressed by NG.
Good Luck.
brsox88 wrote:I too have the same exact issue and tried the same things you did as well. I have two Samsung TV's that TVplus don't work (NU7100 and Q60r). Hopefully netgear gets enough complaints about this and updates their firmware. My phones hotspot and neighbors Wifi make TVplus work fine.
- ronproDec 31, 2020Guide
Did you try this: Hold down the power button on the remote until unit starts to reboot. After reboot you will have to go through the setup to reconnect to your wifi.
- brsox88Dec 31, 2020Tutor
How can we do this if Netgear doesn't provide a way to get in contact with them. I've never seen a company with such poor communication options.
- FURRYe38Dec 31, 2020Guru - Experienced User
You can start here:
https://www.netgear.com/support/#
and or contact a forum moderator as well. This is a holiday and weekend so best would be to make contact Sunday evenng or early Monday. Good Luck.
brsox88 wrote:How can we do this if Netgear doesn't provide a way to get in contact with them. I've never seen a company with such poor communication options.
- brsox88Jan 09, 2021Tutor
Update: I switched to my providers modem/router as it was only $5/month. Issue was resolved immediately. So it seems Netgear needs to fix the firmware to be compatible with many Samsung TV's. They should also find a better support solution as 90 days is unrealistic. And then not be able to contact them for regarding a bug just adds to more frustrated customers and negativity toward their brand. I'll be selling my $500 CAX80, there are just too many other companies out there with better support and products.
- FURRYe38Jan 09, 2021Guru - Experienced User
Thanks for letting us know.
Good Luck.
- BPichmanJan 11, 2021Aspirant
Hi!
I actually am having the same issue - both Plex and Samsung TV Plus apps cannot load the streamed content from my Samsung Q90 TV.
Here's what I've tried:
Wifi, Unsecured Wifi, Ethernet, Disabling AX, and even put a managed switch between the TV and the Router.
Interesting enough -- if I do a full reset of the TV or the modem, whatever channel was left on the Samsung TV Plus starts to play. But as soon as I change the channel or go back to that channel, it can't load the content again. It seems to be blocking it somewhere, but there's nothing in the logs that can help me determine this.
I've swapped out my router with a junk old router, things work fine. So it's not the ISP either.