NetGear R6700v3 Slow speed

JSebek
Aspirant
Dec 12, 2022
I have a Gigabit fiber connection and with any new firmware past 1.03.66, my max speed test is around 180mbit. The firmware update after that which integrated the Armor software kills/throttles LAN wired speeds. Instead of giving us an option for a new firmware version without the Armor code, they are forcing it on us and don't seem to care that they're slowing down people's connections. It amazes me that with technology and Internet speed continuing to trend upward that they seem to think this is acceptable. People reported since 2019 that the Armor code severely limited download speeds but they won't offer a fix. I've pretty much given up hope at this point and will probably buy a router from a different brand. It amazes me that I'm still reading this years later and they are oblivious to their customer's needs. Word of mouth and reputation goes a long way, you need to do better Netgear or you're going to keep losing customers. The tech who installed my fiber was shocked when I downgraded my firmware and showed him the difference in speed.

Netgear needs to offer a firmware that's secure and modern without the Armor code that decimates wired throughout.

I'm very disappointed.
- michaelkenward
  Guru - Experienced User
  Dec 12, 2022
  JSebek wrote:
  I have a Gigabit fiber connection and with any new firmware past 1.03.66, my max speed test is around 180mbit. The firmware update after that which integrated the Armor software kills/throttles LAN wired speeds.
  
  These toys and other things that eat into your router's processor power, such as QoS and traffic metering, are known to slow them down.
  
  You should be able to disable Armor and prevent that hit.
  
  Try asking for help here:
  
  NETGEAR Armor - NETGEAR Communities
  
  It amazes me that with technology and Internet speed continuing to trend upward that they seem to think this is acceptable.
  
  Another way of putting it is that someone who has a gigabit Internet service shouldn't expect too much of a router that dates back to 2014. While R6700s claim to be Gigabit, that'll be at the top of their operating window.
  
  Technology and Internet speed do indeed trend upward, so does router technology. You might like to look into getting a router that matches your Internet service.
  - JSebek
    Aspirant
    Dec 12, 2022
    Telling me to buy a new router is completely missing the point of the reply/reason other people are complaining/upset.
    
    If you were referring to the wireless performance then the age of the router not getting sustained Gigabit speeds, your point might be valid but I'm not referring to WiFi performance. I'm referring to the fact that my wired connection is cut to 20-25% of what it should be. It's like you buying a car that's supposed to go 120 and the company releases a recall issue that you have done and your car maxes out at 30. You could drive it but why would you want to? You'd likely demand the company fix the issue or revert it. If they left it, you'd probably not do business with them ever again.
    
    Basic switching/pass through for wired LAN gigabit connections has been available for far more than 10 years (probably more than 20 since Europe has had Gigabit connections to home for longer than that even). It's also proven that this router CAN handle proper speeds by downgrading the firmware. Netgear themselves have caused this problem with their firmware when they added the Armor code to the firmware basically breaking/throttling the LAN port. Even if you disable it in settings, the code still throttles the connection. It amuses me that you think this is an acceptable thing to do to customers who pay for one of your products to do a specific thing.
    
    The purpose of Firmware is to IMPROVE performance and stability, not make the user experience terrible.
    
    You have a right to your opinion but any router in the last 10-15 years should be able to do basic switching to a wired connection/LAN port without requiring someone to buy a new router.
    
    I have a $40 router from 2010 that doesn't harm my LAN throughput but isn't up to spec in terms of WiFi or I'd throw this in the trash.
    
    Why should I have to buy a new router when the company themselves released software that hurt the product's performance. I don't understand how anyone could think that's a good or acceptable practice.
    
    To anyone else having this speed issue, the only solution I'm aware of is to downgrade your firmware to the version I mentioned unfortunately.
- t0md0
  Aspirant
  Dec 12, 2022
  I'll be honest... I've never really tested speeds via hard wiring on any firmware past v1.0.3. I assumed the "throttling" was mainly a WiFi issue but that's pretty crazy to hear it's also wired that takes a hit.
  
  Still looking for confirmation if the latest firmware is still "throttling".
  - FURRYe38
    Guru - Experienced User
    Dec 12, 2022
    I see the OP mentioned that there was a beta offered to the user after contacting NG support. One might contact them and reference that post and see if it's still available.
    
    https://community.netgear.com/t5/Nighthawk-WiFi-Routers/NetGear-R6700v3-Slow-speed/m-p/2264220/highlight/true#M222278

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