NETGEAR Orbi RBK863S Tri-Band WiFi 6 Mesh System

[VSG]

NETGEAR has updated its popular Orbi WiFi 6 mesh systems with the all-new RBK860 series that gets several new features compared to the previous generation. Today we examine the triple pack RBK863S that uses one router and two satellites to provide excellent and secure performance across a long operating range.

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[MrDweezil]

If I'm paying that much money, I want to be on the latest wifi standard...

 

[VSG]

If I'm paying that much money, I want to be on the latest wifi standard...

The WiFi 6E versions cost 50% more.

 

[MrDweezil]

The WiFi 6E versions cost 50% more.

Understood, and I'm unlikely to buy that either. But I definitely wouldn't be able to feel good about buying this.

 

[VSG]

Understood, and I'm unlikely to buy that either. But I definitely wouldn't be able to feel good about buying this.

Yeah I get it, most people would be content with the router unit alone which I am happy to see NETGEAR finally sell by itself now. People purchase an Orbi for the ease of use, else you can get better value from the likes of MikroTik depending on your time and interest level to set up your home network. Others would also look at prosumer class access points too in this price range.

 

[Guwapo77]

I have the Orbi 6E (RBRE960). There was a problem with Orbi and game downloads in which it causes the router to crash. These routers come with Anti-virus software and rumor is that it may be the cause of the crashes. Again, it only crashes through big game downloads, its really weird. I'm going to turn off the software and see if it crashes or not. Outside of that, this setup is tight like gnat bootie. Super stable and fast as hell. Just that one little thing that bugs the ever living hell out of me...I'll figure it out soon enough.

 

[VSG]

I have the Orbi 6E (RBRE960). There was a problem with Orbi and game downloads in which it causes the router to crash. These routers come with Anti-virus software and rumor is that it may be the cause of the crashes. Again, it only crashes through big game downloads, its really weird. I'm going to turn off the software and see if it crashes or not. Outside of that, this setup is tight like gnat bootie. Super stable and fast as hell. Just that one little thing that bugs the ever living hell out of me...I'll figure it out soon enough.

I've been using this with the Netgear Armor on and never noticed any problems. You can easily turn it off in the Orbi app and see if it helps.

 

[Guwapo77]

I've been using this with the Netgear Armor on and never noticed any problems. You can easily turn it off in the Orbi app and see if it helps.

Did you try downloading from Steam or Epic? That is when I have my problems. Yeah I found it under the settings/security tab. I'll try it later this evening to see if that is the issue. Customer service says there is no known problem, but if you google "orbi download games from steam crash" you will see multiple people with the same problem. Its pretty weird.

 

[VSG]

Did you try downloading from Steam or Epic? That is when I have my problems. Yeah I found it under the settings/security tab. I'll try it later this evening to see if that is the issue. Customer service says there is no known problem, but if you google "orbi download games from steam crash" you will see multiple people with the same problem. Its pretty weird.

Steam, I don't use Epic much. I'll look more into this, I have the Orbi 960 series here also.

 

[Guwapo77]

Thanks man, its greatly appreciated.

Steam, I don't use Epic much. I'll look more into this, I have the Orbi 960 series here also.

A quick follow up. I turned off Bitdefender's Armor and guess what, I downloaded A Plague Tale: Requiem and the router did NOT crash. This is the first time for any download to complete without a router restart.

 

[VSG]

Thanks man, its greatly appreciated.


A quick follow up. I turned off Bitdefender's Armor and guess what, I downloaded A Plague Tale: Requiem and the router did NOT crash. This is the first time for any download to complete without a router restart.

Please let Netgear know, I'll also pass this on to them so they can investigate.

 

[Guwapo77]

I'll make that happen now and thank you for referring this issue to Netgear.

 

[fb020997]

Over one (euro)kilobuck, 120w of power consumption for the trio and paywalled features???? I’m thankful I live in a smallish house (~80m2 on two floors) and have a good wifi signal via my ISP’s gateway. Also, as a gamer, I’m by far the heaviest user, so I ran a cable directly to the gateway for my main desktop.

 

[Operandi]

Yeah I get it, most people would be content with the router unit alone which I am happy to see NETGEAR finally sell by itself now. People purchase an Orbi for the ease of use, else you can get better value from the likes of MikroTik depending on your time and interest level to set up your home network. Others would also look at prosumer class access points too in this price range.

MickorTik is for network engineers, Orbi, eero, ect is for my parents. Ubiquiti is the network engineer vs. easy manage consumer gear like compromise most technology enthusiasts are going to be interested in. Its powerful enough for business use (really anything short of enterprise) and its not really any more complicated than your typical advanced'ish high-end consumer router if you don't want it to be. Just pick the gateway, switch and APs you need and follow the instructions. Its cheaper, more powerful, has an upgrade path, and almost certainly longer support.