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Introducing the Orbi 970 Series Mesh System with WiFi 7(BE) technology. For more information visit the NETGEAR Press Room.

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Re: NETGEAR INTRODUCES A FAMILY OF ORBI TRI-BAND WIFI SYSTEMS

ChristineT
Admin

NETGEAR INTRODUCES A FAMILY OF ORBI TRI-BAND WIFI SYSTEMS

We are announcing the availability of two new Orbi kits and two new Stand Alone Satellites. 

 

  • RBK30: The new Orbi Tri-band WiFi System includes an AC2200 router and wall-plug satellite designed to cover an area of up to 3,500 square feet. 
  • RBK40: This new Orbi Tri-band WiFi System includes the AC2200 router and matching satellite, which are designed to cover a property up to 4,000 square feet.

NETGEAR is also offering the new satellites for individual purchase for cases where you would like to add greater range to an existing Orbi WiFi System.

 

  • Orbi AC2200 Wall-plug Satellite adds 1,500 square feet of range  
  • Orbi AC2200 Satellite to add 2,000 square feet of range  

Please visit NETGEAR for more products details on the Orbi™ Tri-Band Home WiFi System family.

 

For the more details of the press release please visit NETGEAR INTRODUCES A FAMILY OF ORBI TRI-BAND WIFI SYSTEMS.

Model: Orbi High-Performance AC3000 Tri-Band WiFi System (RBK50)
Message 1 of 15

Re: NETGEAR INTRODUCES A FAMILY OF ORBI TRI-BAND WIFI SYSTEMS

hi , my first question would be WHY ????

 

netgear hit a home run with the RBK50 kit and has been acclaimed and reviewed as by far the best of the distributed wifi / mesh systems on the market

 

the main  claim to fame being that awesome 1733Mbackhaul

 

i can understand dropping the usb cause lets face it the usb has never worked anyway

 

but to essentially chop in half its backhaul throughput to make it $50 cheaper makes little sense to me * in the case of the rbs40 ) and its suggested less coverage

 

the rbs30 plug mounted mode drops the ethernet and usb and even less coverage for another $50 less

 

to be honest with you i dont know who was in the focus group when it came to these two units but the logic couldnt have come from a performance or technical point of view

 

why take what is the best of what it does and make it worse just to fit into a price point , would have been far more logical to work on ways to make the existing RBS50 cheaper but keeping the part that matter the most eg the 1733Mbackhaul

 

i will prob get flamed for my opinion on these units but when i read the press release my first thought was WHY!!!!

 

netgear made a product that soars with the eagles but now adds bits that just fly with the rest of the turkeys

 

just to make sure im not missing something here , the rbs 40 or 30 still have to connect to the orbi router right and not mesh onto the sat

 

you still have to use the RBR50 orbi router with its 1733M backhaul transmission that wont get used in ether the 40 or 30 version

 

imho its a backward step for netgear not adding to the range as they claim

 

pete

Message 2 of 15

Re: NETGEAR INTRODUCES A FAMILY OF ORBI TRI-BAND WIFI SYSTEMS

oh and i forgot when did the RBS50 orbi sat suddenly get extra coverage as claims in the press release

 

the orbi sat rbs50 alway was rated at 2000 sqft , now its suddenly 2500sqft

 

so are they saying the rbs50 has increased its range ? i think i know the answer

Message 3 of 15
whsbuss-1
Apprentice

Re: NETGEAR INTRODUCES A FAMILY OF ORBI TRI-BAND WIFI SYSTEMS

Well BestBuy and MicroCenter still have th 50 priced at $349.99 but I'm sure the next stock will be back to the $399.99 price. Decisions about getting it...

Message 4 of 15

Re: NETGEAR INTRODUCES A FAMILY OF ORBI TRI-BAND WIFI SYSTEMS


@whsbuss-1 wrote:

Well BestBuy and MicroCenter still have th 50 priced at $349.99 but I'm sure the next stock will be back to the $399.99 price. Decisions about getting it...


well if you want to get the full and real benefit of the orbi system grab the RBK50 , anything else is a compromise even if it is cheaper

 

orbi multinode throughput.jpg

 

the graph above shows why the orbi is so much better , halve that backhaul and you will halve that throughput

 

wireless bridge throughput.jpg

 

along with the media bridge throughput will be halved

 

(image from smallnetbuilder review )

Message 5 of 15
cue003
Apprentice

Re: NETGEAR INTRODUCES A FAMILY OF ORBI TRI-BAND WIFI SYSTEMS

The new units also appear to be smaller.
Message 6 of 15
djc6
Luminary

Re: NETGEAR INTRODUCES A FAMILY OF ORBI TRI-BAND WIFI SYSTEMS

So, the new models still have dedicated backhaul - only 2x2 instead of 4x4?  Should still perform better than competition.  Just surprised they felt the need for all these different models.

 

RWB30 satellite is a neat option, I could see preferring that satellite.  But not even having one ethernet port is unfortunate, I use the ethernet on my satellites for roku, fire tv, apple tvs and such.

  

Glad I was able to pickup my RBK53 kit from Costco!

Message 7 of 15

Re: NETGEAR INTRODUCES A FAMILY OF ORBI TRI-BAND WIFI SYSTEMS


@djc6 wrote:

So, the new models still have dedicated backhaul - only 2x2 instead of 4x4?  Should still perform better than competition.  Just surprised they felt the need for all these different models.

 

RWB30 satellite is a neat option, I could see preferring that satellite.  But not even having one ethernet port is unfortunate, I use the ethernet on my satellites for roku, fire tv, apple tvs and such.

  

Glad I was able to pickup my RBK53 kit from Costco!

 


2 x 2 means they will perform at the same level as other systems as thats what they are doing

 

the RBW30 thing would be good if its  mesh based or had dedicated ethernet backhaul , as it is it just means its a smaller coverage area and 2 x 2 based

 

 

 

Message 8 of 15
JMU1998
Luminary

Re: NETGEAR INTRODUCES A FAMILY OF ORBI TRI-BAND WIFI SYSTEMS

It baffles me why useless decisions are approved by sales execs just to increase their sales numbers and totally trash something that was ahead of the competition why? Why mess with something that was so awesome? Greed!! 

Message 9 of 15
AmitR
NETGEAR Employee Retired

Re: NETGEAR INTRODUCES A FAMILY OF ORBI TRI-BAND WIFI SYSTEMS

A couple of comments: 

1.  Based on extensive testing in the field, we realized that we were conservative in our initial assessment of coverage.  Then we layered in some firmware updates to support things like DFS channel support, which moves connectivity to a relatively uncongested channel, improving throughput and increasing coverage area of the RBR50 & RBS50 to 2,500 sq ft each.  

 

2. the RB*50 devices aren't going anywhere, they're still the top of the line Orbi, devices.  We're going to continue to add features to Orbi OS through software updates.  Stay tuned. 

 

NETGEAR Product Team.  

Message 10 of 15

Re: NETGEAR INTRODUCES A FAMILY OF ORBI TRI-BAND WIFI SYSTEMS

sorry but

 

point 1 makes no sense , you cant just get extra 20% coverage by using quite channels , i think 5000sqft is an over estimation unless you are talking outdoors , indoors the backhaul starts to drop after about 10 meters

 

point 2 , its obvious the rbk50 isnt going anywhere , but again WHY a 2 x 2 sat

 

stay tuned , we have been waiting a long time already , still no usb , no word on ethernet backhaul , no qos  to name a few

 

 

Message 11 of 15
schumaku
Guru

Re: NETGEAR INTRODUCES A FAMILY OF ORBI TRI-BAND WIFI SYSTEMS

Dear @AmitR

 

Ref. #1: All the assumtions ref. coverage massively depend on the building structure. What might be a workable number in a light weight wooden / plasterboard / drywall constructions are not reality proof in a multi store concrete / bricks and stones or even in a camper environment where aluminium covered plates are common...

Ref. #2: Well, the new lower cost system variant does make use of a "half" 2x2 backbone - allowing to save some Dollars on the SoC and/or the radio and RF amplifiers. The result of a 2x2 must be a much lower bandwidth, and very likely a much much lower bandwidth than what a 4x4 can deliver. Undoubted, the weak point of any in-house wireless mesh systems is the mesh backbone. And we know what using a 5 GHz connected client one floor above/below an access point can achieve. Reality is that most clients faoll-back to 2.4 GHz.

I'm not stating that the 5 GHz band is not fit for purpose in general. But there are massive limitations and restrictions. Allowing DFS channels does not overcome most of the problems. This makes me speechless Netgear does still don't offer Ethernet backbone support.

 

And a properly implemented Ethernet backbone support would allow smooth the integration with the much better Netgear Nightawk router platforms. One day with the ability of offering a proper segregation of the guest network.

I understand the Netgear sales and marketing problem: Compared to a good WiFi router allowing reasonable coverage (leaving the leading edge tri-band routers or application platforms like an R9000 alone) paired with one or some WiFi extender, the classic Orbi system list price is to high for for many markets.

 

More and more ISP are forcing customers to use the ISP CPEs - in most VoIP and IPTV environments over here in Europe, more and more elsewhere, the users have no choice. And there it goes the Guest network feature not only fellow Amit does perfer so much ... with the pure AP mode.

 

Technology affine users have invested in decent router platforms already. This customer base is not keen to change today or tomorrow. Orbi does compete with Nighthawk...

 

And last ... with the more than outdated router implementation carried forward for almost two decades, Netgear can't win a horse. A new UI supposedly to be introduced later in 2017 will likley just add lipstick to the pig - the bigger issues won't change. Most of the problems and limitations we're facing with each and every new model are ... old, and caused by the inability to change, to drop of the crappy DNI router platform in favour of something that really works. Otherwise, the story will be repeated with each and every new "designed" platform.

 

The new models are a typical management reaction of a hardware company. It's not a proper reaction for a system vendor however.

 

It's sad for Orbi - because of the intention is great.

 

Regards,

-Kurt

Message 12 of 15
cue003
Apprentice

Re: NETGEAR INTRODUCES A FAMILY OF ORBI TRI-BAND WIFI SYSTEMS

So the new units have similar/same wireless backhaul speeds as the Linksys Velop. Also same AC2000. The RBK40 specs match up almost the same as the Velop and the RBK30 specs at first glance seem to be aimed at the Amplify config.
Message 13 of 15
djc6
Luminary

Re: NETGEAR INTRODUCES A FAMILY OF ORBI TRI-BAND WIFI SYSTEMS

The new units are still 'tri-band' meaning they still have a dedicated radio for backhaul - correct?  That is where the advantage lies among the competitors, not sharing a radio for backhaul and clients.    Its just that now that radio will be 2x2 instead of 4x4.

 

So it might be slower for computers talking to eachother on your home's intranet, but for traffic leaving the home - most people don't have internet packages where they should run into this new limitation,  unless they have gigabit service to their home.  I think for majority of users RBK50 and RBK40 would perform similarly.

 

That said, RBK40 is priced where RBK50 has been recently so why bother getting RBK40.

 

I think the router should be RBR50 across the board and some variety in satellite form factors would have been a nice expansion of the lineup

 

Message 14 of 15
schumaku
Guru

Re: NETGEAR INTRODUCES A FAMILY OF ORBI TRI-BAND WIFI SYSTEMS


@djc6 wrote:

The new units are still 'tri-band' meaning they still have a dedicated radio for backhaul - correct?


As per the current information available, three radios, one for the backhaul - yes.

@djc6 wrote:

That is where the advantage lies among the competitors, not sharing a radio for backhaul and clients.    Its just that now that radio will be 2x2 instead of 4x4. 

Not sure there is no more/new competition using a radio exclusively for the backhaul.

@djc6 wrote:

So it might be slower for computers talking to eachother on your home's intranet, but for traffic leaving the home - most people don't have internet packages where they should run into this new limitation,  unless they have gigabit service to their home.  I think for majority of users RBK50 and RBK40 would perform similarly.

If this would be true, something is wrong. Each satellite can take traffic from a 2.4 GHz 400 Mbps radio, a 5 GHz 867 Mbps 2x2 radio, and four resp. one GbE ports. So in plain free space, one average 867 Mbps STA as installed in most notebooks today is able to use up all the backhaul capacity. With longer distance, wire more obstacles like walls, ... from the satellite to the router, the performance of the backhaul will come down, the latency will go up ... much faster than on the fully featured 4x4 backhaul. And depending on the environment, a 2x2 on 5 GHz can go well below 100 or even 50 Mbps. Now we're well within good DSL connection downlink speeds again. And this in a local (W)LAN system, where one might want to access a NAS, ...?

@djc6 wrote:

 

That said, RBK40 is priced where RBK50 has been recently so why bother getting RBK40.

List price vs. street price vs. MSRP vs. Amazon sometimes selling below costs. Of course there must be a massive price difference. After the initial phase, I'm convinced, the new units are designed to be massively discounted. Otherwise, the effort would not make much sense.

 

Message 15 of 15
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