I bought this with the expectation that Circle was included...bug mistake! Website is confusing IMHO. I can't believe this is not included at these prices...disappointed to say the least! Anyone have a clue WHEN this will get added?...please tell me it will.
I agree, my rbr50 and rbs50 Orbi which cost $400 has parental control with Disney Circl. I now bought the new AX4200 which has the new wifi6 and is $500 and it does not include any parental control? Really? They already had the software implemented with the older version so not sure how they can sell this without it.
Unfortunately I fell in to the same trap. I bought and configured an RBR10 for a large area implementation with slower speeds which had both Circle and Armor. I was so impressed with the RBR10 that I decided to buy the RBK853 for my home as my wife and I both work from home and now have three kids all doing distance learning. Luckily Armor was added to it right after I purchased, but now I'm unable to utilize Circle to add an additional layer of downtime above-and-beyond iOS/MacOS screen time. Netgear - any idea when this will be added to the AX line? Even a rough estimate would be appreciated! 🙂
It is highly rideclous that Netgear would release their nmost expensive product without Circle or some other parental application. This frankly makes me want to return this product and go with another vendor. BAD MOVE NETGEAR....rip you customers off.
I made a YouTube video this weekend comparing a few different mesh routers, and I commented about the parental controls at the end of my video. https://youtu.be/yrkJvVAh5-o I'm also going to return it and stick with my rbr50 until they release parental controls because we use it all time and now the kids are getting away with stuff because we don't have it anymore, LOL.
Totally agree! I had to buy Circle Home Plus to get circle back on my network and that has compatibility issues with the AX6000 RBK 852/853 network, were always having to turn it on offf compatibility mode on off to get applications or the TV working. Netgear can you please update the firmware for the Orbi AX6000 to support Circle either built in or through Circle Home Plus? It doesn’t make sense that Circle is built in or compatible with the entire Circle line except the Wifi 6 series!
I actually warned about this in my review of the units 10 MONTHS ago, but I had hoped that this would have been implemented by now as they did add Bitdefender Armor in. Still hoping Circle implementation is coming:
The lack of transparency by Netgear makes me believe they have no intention of adding this. Is it a license issue? Is the margin on the sales price of the wifi 6 routers not enough to make up for the license fee with Circle? 1K router and they can't have something that is standard on routers 1/2 their cost? What gives? I just want a yes or no. Come on NetGear, transparency is all we're asking for.
I just received my Orbi Ultra-Performance Mesh WiFi System - AX6000 - 2 pack (RBK852) and am astounded that there are no parental controls at all. The website is very misleading on this, it makes it look like Circle is included on the entire Orbi line.
Looking into this issue through the forums shows it's a long standing issue with the AX#### series, with no clear response from Netgear as to if/when it will be added as of 9/12/2020.
What an incredible let-down. There should be a huge, blinking warning on the AX product and order pages that says NO PARENTAL CONTROLS INCLUDED. Anything less is incredibly misleading.
Very disappointed in Netgear. I'm returning this immediately.
Came home with my 852 on Thursday. I am utterly shocked about no parental controls. $700 bucks and there is NO type of parental controls? Really? I understand the wants to make more money with circle, for premium type services. like website filtering. . But basic parental controls like pausing a certain devices connection at a certain time come standard on routers a fraction of the cost. You don’t add circle due to whatever reason, so why can’t you implement the simple stuff to your own firmware.? Awesome unit and I love how she performs but I’m really thinking of taking her back.
Thank you all for this thread. I needed to extend my current RBK50 system with another satellite and was planning to just move to a 2 satellite AX4200 mesh instead until I decided to double-check that it comes with Circle (critical with 5 kids in the home) and was shocked to find that it did not!
Since I'm investing in another Satellite now, I don't expect to revisit investing more for several years - Netgear lost itself a sale on their newer Orbi line due to this feature gap.
Netgear - it would really be helpful to your user community for you to weigh in on this thread and clarify the future plans for Circle with your products. One of the reasons I went with the RBK50 originally rather than a cheaper competitor was because of the built in Circle support. Please make the investment to make it easier for families to keep their kids safe, especially for the price that you're charging for your systems!
My work around is that I bought a Circle Home Plus and use it with the AX6000 (Orbi Wifi 6 RBK853) but it has all sorts of compatibility issues. It works probably 90% of the time, but really is needing native Netgear Orbi support and integration.
I guess they did not say directly that they would add it. Christian_R posted that new features are always added and to stay tunned. Maybe I read to much into their post!
Welcome to the club. We've been asking for Circle Integration for years. As a new owner you can talk to customer service and technical support about this and voice your frustration. Once your complimentary support expires then you have to resort to sounding off on the community forums where Netgear really doesn't care or nothing to reply, respond, or address any of these issues. So be a pal and exploit your warranty support window and YELL AT THEM FOR US -- INTEGRATE CIRCLE!
Welcome to the club. We've been asking for Circle Integration for years. As a new owner you can talk to customer service and technical support about this and voice your frustration. Once your complimentary support expires then you have to resort to sounding off on the community forums where Netgear really doesn't care or nothing to reply, respond, or address any of these issues. So be a pal and exploit your warranty support window and YELL AT THEM FOR US -- INTEGRATE CIRCLE!
I posted on another thread about my Circle Home Plus and Orbi AX (RBK853) units where everything came to a crawling halt until I rebooted it. Also it seems Circle has now updated their website on the page regarding router compatibility and the AX units especially the 853 have some "known issues." 😞
I can’t believe I paid through the nose for a wifi 6 router and it doesn’t have circle support even after advertising on the website that circle is included. I spent 2 hours waiting for tech support to tell me nothing until I researched some more and found many people having the same issues. There is no good option to control content on other devices besides going back to the nighthawk router. The 30 day trial included of armor and bitfender doesn’t have any type of parental control. What a disappointment. I think I’ll be returning this
I found this thread while browsing after posting elsewhere in the forum, and was very surprised.
I've been considering upgrading my "original" Orbi for a newer model--but not now. No way, until Circle or a comparable parental control feature is implemented.
I had ignored Circle as a feature since...well, since forever. But when the pandemic drove my kids to online schooling, I finally got around to implementing it. It's become an essential part of how I manage our family's Internet access.
I know this doesn't add much to the converation, but I wanted to add my voice the the crowd in the hopes that Netgear will realize that this is an essential feature that many can't do without.
