Why is Orbi telling me to upgrade to FV 2.5.2.4 when I'm in US region

[Wire1852]

The subject is the question. When I log into orbi router & check firmware it says new firmware 2.5.2.4 is available. Since I live in Virginia, why isn't it the firmware 2.7.0.70 since the netgear website indicates 2.7.0.70 is for US region?

[Mikey94025]

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@Wire1852 wrote:

The subject is the question. When I log into orbi router & check firmware it says new firmware 2.5.2.4 is available. Since I live in Virginia, why isn't it the firmware 2.7.0.70 since the netgear website indicates 2.7.0.70 is for US region?

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This is normal.  Most internet cloud systems carefully and slowly rollout and changes to their customer base, in case there is a problem then it is discovered early and only that small percentage of customers are affected before the rollout is halted.  It is very bad practice to upgrade 100% of your customer base at once, which is what would happen if every installed Orbi discovered and applied a new firmware version as soon as it is available.

Still, because some customers are "chomping at the bit" for the latest and greatest firmware they make it available for download.

I recomemnd you decide:

1. You want to allow the Orbi to silently upgrade itself and follow Netgear's slow rollout strategy of new firmware (this is the safest and most convenient option).  Don't check if new firmware exists and trust Orbi to update itself.
2. Jump on new Orbi firmware as soon as it is available.  When you see something new on https://www.netgear.com/support/product/rbk50.aspx#download or if you hear about new firmware here, manual download and apply it.  This is "early adopter" and many of us are in the category, including me.  We don't wait for the automatic and slow rollout.
3. If you have a specific issue and need some hot fix right away that is in the new firmware, manually download and apply the new firmware as soon as it is availlable.

[FURRYe38]

Yes, mines saying same thing though I've downgraded back to v16. 

It's up to you if you want to udpate or not. NG isn't pushing v70 since this is as new FW version for nerwer parental controlls and Circle support. So NG is only giving the FW files for those in the US region who want to manually update. v4 is just a notification for users that it's avaiable if you want the system to update to this version. You don't have too and NG isn't auto pushing it. 

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@Wire1852 wrote:

The subject is the question. When I log into orbi router & check firmware it says new firmware 2.5.2.4 is available. Since I live in Virginia, why isn't it the firmware 2.7.0.70 since the netgear website indicates 2.7.0.70 is for US region?

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[Wire1852]

The it would be logical for Netgear to specify directly to the users on their website which software release was for early testers and which software was for general release. It's not rocket science & it's not hard to do. People come to their website if they have an issue  & see what the current firmware release is and assume that firmware must be installed. The information being provided is misleading and the fault is entirely Netgear's.

I don't have issues with Netgear's hardware but Netgear fumbles again & again with releasing Orbi firmware that isn't ready ready for prime time. I have used home routers for over 20 years & I have never had as much confusion & lack of information as a I have had from Orbi in the 1.5 years I owned this router. The Orbi app indicates for you to upgrade the firmware. Logging into the Orbi router indicates new firmware to update. And now  netgear community moderators tell us that's you really only update if you want to be an early tester.  Total incompetence.

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@FURRYe38 wrote:

 It's up to you if you want to udpate or not. NG isn't pushing v70 since this is as new FW version for nerwer parental controlls and Circle support. So NG is only giving the FW files for those in the US region who want to manually update. v4 is just a notification for users that it's avaiable if you want the system to update to this version. You don't have too and NG isn't auto pushing it. 

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[FURRYe38]

Well anything posted on NG download site is general release for users. 
These two versions, v4 and v70 seems to have hit as the same time. No sure why they did it that way, only NG knows this. I believe the v4 is just a follow on to the v16 sequence while v70 bridge a whole new version, specs and features pointed towards parental controls and Circle support. I agree, it would be nice if NG would let us know a bit more what users should or could be using. Kind of ambiguous currently. 

NG isn't the only one that fumbles the ball when it comes to FW. 

[Mstrbig]

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@Wire1852 wrote:

I don't have issues with Netgear's hardware but Netgear fumbles again & again with releasing Orbi firmware that isn't ready ready for prime time. I have used home routers for over 20 years & I have never had as much confusion & lack of information as a I have had from Orbi in the 1.5 years I owned this router. The Orbi app indicates for you to upgrade the firmware. Logging into the Orbi router indicates new firmware to update. And now  netgear community moderators tell us that's you really only update if you want to be an early tester.  Total incompetence.

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 For the record, I didn't see a moderator suggest anything here. But you will hear a lot of opinions based on personal experiences. I think the problems may arise from end users with different levels of experience and maybe don't follow the instructions. 

However, I agree with you that firmware updates can be confusing, not only with Netgear, as I've experienced it with other brands as well. The newest 2.7.0.70 has some fixes as well as the new parental control and Armor updates. Being in the business we usually update a test unit first before rolling it out to our customers. Regarding 2.7.0.70, it is very stable and appears to have increased speed. I currently have over a dozen RBK53 systems running the firmware with absolutely no issues. The only thing I've noticed is it takes around 24 hours for the app and GUI to properly report.