Netgear Orbi return to JB - will they take it back?

Forums › LAN (ethernet/Wifi/routers/Bluetooth) › Netgear Orbi return to JB - will they take it back?

Insanekiwi

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#233808 3-May-2018 19:16

I have Orbi router and satellite system which work reasonably well. This was initially purchased from PB tech and recently in Feb purchased 2 extra satellites to increase coverage. Unfortunately they didn’t work well as mesh and whenever I moved the phone from that area of coverage to another satellite the internet would get stuck or dropped. I waited for firmware updates and looked for solutions on netgear support forum but many people are having similar problems and basically fed up with the product. I have tried all the firmwares including going back to the older one as well as frequent resets.

I have turned the new satellites off for the past 2 months as i have no issues without the two recently added ones.

I do not think they are fit for purpose and doesn’t work. I would like to return them to JB and get a refund to buy Google Wifi (a lot cheaper on Dick Smith). I will return to the shop tomorrow with items fully boxed and with receipts.

What are my chances of being able to get a refund or at the least store credit? They are worth quite a bit....

MikeB4

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#2007434 3-May-2018 19:50

why return to JB hi fi when you purchased from PB Tech ?

KiwiSurfer

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#2007436 3-May-2018 19:57

Did you buy all of them from PB or JB, or some combo of the two? Not quite clear from your post.

Insanekiwi

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#2007437 3-May-2018 19:59

Oops sorry. Initial pair from PB which works perfectly. Satellites from JB recently when they were on sale. Have a 2 year old toddler on my lap... that would be my excuse...

alasta

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#2007464 3-May-2018 20:51

I imagine they would want to send them away to the repair agent in the first instance to check whether they are faulty and, if not, then you will have a fight on your hands to argue that the design of the product is not fit for purpose. The Disputes Tribunal is where that is likely to end up, unless the particular product is widely known to have issues.

Jase2985

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#2007507 3-May-2018 21:20

i would say there is nothing wrong with them, they just dont work for your use case. all the reviews ive read have them handing over smoothly. maybe you have them too far apart?

michaelmurfy

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#2007509 3-May-2018 21:25

Yep I agree - I've used Orbi and found it to be great. It sounds like it is the positioning of the satellites.

Don't go with Google WiFi as this doesn't support VLAN tagging (yet - still). The Ubiquiti Amplifi is where it is at if you want a better system.

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sdavisnz

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#2007513 3-May-2018 21:33

michaelmurfy:

Yep I agree - I've used Orbi and found it to be great. It sounds like it is the positioning of the satellites.

Don't go with Google WiFi as this doesn't support VLAN tagging (yet - still). The Ubiquiti Amplifi is where it is at if you want a better system.

i want to get an amplifi hd, but im put off by no mu-mimo. thoughts?

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hio77

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#2007537 3-May-2018 22:44

Suspect your better option would be trying to sell the devices to get your return.

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Insanekiwi

592 posts

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#2007616 4-May-2018 09:04

Thanks for the responses. I have to say I don't want to dump a possibly faulty product (from design) on some other members here or on Trademe. I do not believe there is anything wrong with the hardware as both units do exactly the same thing (tested individually, different batch production), despite trying different versions of the firmware including a roll back.

https://community.netgear.com/t5/Orbi/bd-p/Orbi

As you can see, there are a lot of unhappy customers. I have to say I was pretty happy with the initial AC3000 pair - had no issues, easy set up, great 5Ghz coverage. Forwarding from one unit to another with no issues.

The whole thing became problematic as soon as I added the RBS30 (plug in wall unit) - it kept on locking and losing internet signals / everything on halt regardless of where you are in the house. I awaited for new firmwares which didn't do anything at all. Only way to make it work was to reboot the system. This would occur daily. My satellites are only about 10 meters apart with 2 wooden walls so I do not think they are too far apart. If you put them too closely - it will get more confusion for the devices to decide which satellite to connect to.

I really don't think Netgear solved the firmware issues with more satellites especially when they advertise the unit as up to 3 satellites - this certainly isn't the case. Problem with me sending the units back to the distributor getting them tested etc - I am sure they will come back and say they function normally. It doesn't for my need - and this is where it becomes tricky to prove how many hours I spent online / offline trying to sort out this issue. I can't be bothered going to disputes tribunal - I am busy as I am.

** my parents Google Wifi is working perfectly with zero issues for past 5 months **

chevrolux

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#2007624 4-May-2018 09:23

sdavisnz:

michaelmurfy:

Yep I agree - I've used Orbi and found it to be great. It sounds like it is the positioning of the satellites.

Don't go with Google WiFi as this doesn't support VLAN tagging (yet - still). The Ubiquiti Amplifi is where it is at if you want a better system.

i want to get an amplifi hd, but im put off by no mu-mimo. thoughts?

In real life I think you will find this has very little effect on your day-to-day usage.

Amplifi is a cool product - especially the easy set up.

Insanekiwi

592 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2007771 4-May-2018 12:30

I sent a very honest email to JB Wellington. They kindly offered a full refund. I would definitely be interested in buying more items from to replace this. My Orbi AC3000 system may be up for sale which works perfectly with no issues and purchased from PB tech still under warranty.

alasta

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#2007777 4-May-2018 12:39

Insanekiwi: I sent a very honest email to JB Wellington. They kindly offered a full refund. I would definitely be interested in buying more items from to replace this. My Orbi AC3000 system may be up for sale which works perfectly with no issues and purchased from PB tech still under warranty.

That is great service, and certainly makes me more likely to buy stuff from them.

Crowdie

228 posts

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#2007844 4-May-2018 14:28

sdavisnz:

i want to get an amplifi hd, but im put off by no mu-mimo. thoughts?

How many MU-MIMO clients do you have? There are almost none around as a number of vendors, including Apple, have largely skipped MU-MIMO.

MU-MIMO has the following limitations, which have adversely affected adoption:

Does not support moving objects. The radio reverts to SU-MIMO.
Does not support objects too close - a phone and a laptop next to each other on a desk, for example.
Largely becomes SU-MIMO due to the lack of MU-MIMO clients.
Has backward compatibility issues with some SU-MIMO clients. Enterprise deployments commonly have MU-MIMO disabled for this reason.

Insanekiwi

592 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2008406 5-May-2018 14:11

I was surprised that I received an email from online JB shop as well as local Wellington JB shop offering refund. I went in today - and they offered a refund with zero issues; and even offered to match Google Wifi (3 pack) for $399 (Dick Smith $389 + shipping). As I am going to think about it as I can get by using Orbi AC3300 for now (and it is blazingly fast) - I declined but asked if I can take the offer in the future. They are happy with it - I expressed how good the JB service is and that I would shop there again for sure.

I would highly recommend JB Hifi and would use them again for purchases. Their price matching is not unreasonable either.