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Forum Discussion
Why no firmware updates for C7800 Nighthawk
Netgear website says no firmware available for C7800 (AC3200) Nighthawk cable modem/router. Why not? Thanks.
Because Netgear does not control firmware on cable modems.
If your firmware is outdated, you cannot manually upgrade your cable modem’s or modem router’s firmware. You must contact your Internet service provider (ISP) to upgrade your firmware.
That is not true theISP will not do firmware upgrades on third party modems only theirs!
dmac1026 wrote:
That is not true theISP will not do firmware upgrades on third party modems only theirs!
Funny that people have reported that their Netgear cable modems got updated. Perhaps they imagined it.
But here's the official, line to remind people.
If your firmware is outdated, you cannot manually upgrade your cable modem’s or modem router’s firmware. You must contact your Internet service provider (ISP) to upgrade your firmware.
- I contacted xfinity and they said they can not upgrade any firmware unless it is their modem. They don’t have the capability to do third party modems. I don’t know about other isp but xfinty/Comcast can not do upgrades on firmware.
I suspect that it is more a case of "will not" rather than cannot.
ISPs are doing their best to lock customers into over priced hardware contracts. ISPs do not make hardware, but they want to maintain a revenue stream. From what I see here, it is cheaper to buy a new modem every year than to rent something from an ISP.
On cable modems, I am not sure what firmware updates will do for you. If the thing works, why change it? Doesn't the cable ISP protect users from nasty intrusions?
With DSL modems there is a different issue. You can upgrade that yourself, and the modems that most ISPs supply are rubbish. In the UK, for example, BT provides a "free" Homehub modem that is mind numbingly basic in what you can do with it. That's why there are so many BT customers who set aside their Homehubs as a spare for when something goes wrong with their grown-up modems.
I wonder of threatbuster has any reason to suspect that their C7800 needs an update.