NETGEAR is aware of a growing number of phone and online scams. To learn how to stay safe click here.
Forum Discussion
Disappointment with Customer support
I am unsure if this in the right topic board or section but I just felt the need to convey my frustation with the situation that I encountered with my new R280 Nighthawk Router.
To begin, with I purchased a new desktop computer as my old desktop was not compatible with Windows 11 and it was more cost effective to purchase new.
With that said, I also was informed that my existing R6220 Router was at end of life service and needed to be replaced.
I purchased a new R280 Nighthawk Router that included 1 year of Armor Protection from a different retailer and attempted to install which developed into a 4 day adventure.
1st there was NO physical manual included with the new device and I was unable to access or find any resource material to retrieve which I feel may have been my lack of finding it.
I am unsure if there was some process to activate my new Router or perhaps being unknowledgeable with electronics.
So I contacted Spectrum whom is my Internet provider and was informed that the new Router needed to be activated which I was having great difficulty with and to contact Netgear for assistance.
Upon contacting Netgear Tech rep I was informed that I needed to purchase a subscription plan in order for my new Router to be activated which would have been an additional fee.
By this time I am extremely upset and ended the conversation without satisfaction of activating said Router.
With that said, I attempted to install the new Router and for some reason it was achieved.
I am unsure whether it was my misunderstanding of instructions given or perhaps connectivity issues with Spectrum but after all was said and done, my new Router is up and seems to working.
I want to extend my appreciation for being allowed to vent my frustration.
I also want to make my concern aware that there was a great deal of difficulty without having a physical manual to view and everything being done online with a cell phone.
3 Replies
It has become rare for companies to include an actual printed manual with products. Surely there was something in the box that suggested how to install the router? I would expect to see instructions to install the Nighthawk 'app' on a mobile device and use it to configure the router. Spectrum setup should be almost automatic.
Netgear provides 90 days of 'complimentary support' specifically to help customers get new purchases installed and working. My guess is that you did an internet search for "Netgear Support" and got connected to a "not Netgear"
Thank you for your response. There was indeed 2 of paper. One was for digital guidance process through the Nighthawk app and one was regarding the Armor protection service. Both so called documents had QR codes for scanning from cell phone. I sadly have issues with comprehension of instructions and work better with something in writing in physical form. So I do partially blame myself for whatever inadequency I had. You are correct in your comment about doing a Google search for Netgear Support and most likely do in fact get connected with a "notNetgear". Sadly when I was in the Netgear website I could not locate any Contact Us information to enable me to either chat online or by phone. The website navigation was not very user friendly or at least it appeared to be for me. Perhaps it is because I am a senior? It was very frustrating as I do not have the luxury of knowing people that are tech savy and have to rely on myself to attempt to figure things out. With this being said, I want to thank you again for your response and helping to assist my venting as this was my only outlet for expression. Have a great day!
When restaurants started using QR codes instead of menus during Covid, I almost lost my mind. Certainly "feel your pain."
Since there is time remaining on the free support it is probably a good idea to lock in the support:
- Register the router with Netgear by creating an account at my.netgear.com
- Register the router using the model number and serial number.
(p.s. R280 is not actually a model number. Check the product label on the bottom of the case.) - Notice the link to Open a Case Today.
If you decide to use the Nighthawk 'app', the credentials used to set up the Netgear account will be used for the 'app'.
p.s. If the model number is RS280, new firmware was released on Oct 28. https://kb.netgear.com/000070339 There is a lot of confusion these days over question of
- Do I rush to update firmware in fear of "missing out" or being vulnerable to some potential attacks, or
- As long as the system appears to be working well and meeting expectations, perhaps putting off updating firmware until there is broad consensus among users that the newest firmware did not introduce performance problems.
My mantra is, "if it ain't broke, don't be in a rush to fix it."
