NETGEAR Insight Mobile: Setup and Monitoring

Yes, you can use 192.168.1.1 (or 10.0.1.1 depending on the connection) or Orbilogin.com in the browser of your choice. Be sure to have logged into the network first using the default credentials either way. What I instead did because NETGEAR itself suggested as much at the time of testing and on the packaging is set up the Orbi Pro SXK80 using the NETGEAR Insight app available on both iOS and Android. This is the biggest unique selling point (USP) for the Orbi Pro system and automatically enables a 1-year subscription with NETGEAR Insight Premium. There is a free basic version which is mobile only, but good luck navigating it for anything useful you can't get from a browser interface.

So yes, the app is new to me, so somehow NETGEAR manages to introduce me to yet another software solution to go with the ~5 I have used before. If you are new to the app, and NETGEAR Insight in general, things are different from, say, the Orbi app, which is not compatible with the Orbi Pro. The online manual does a good job going over setup, and the included quick start guide is alright at best. You basically add the device using the plus symbol in the top-right corner, which then prompts you to scan a bar code on the router unit, or scan the network itself. Regardless of which route you take, the entire kit is identified immediately if you have both units powered on and connected as described earlier, so you do not have to set up the router first and the satellite later, which is a welcome change from the norm. The setup process is self-explanatory, but weirdly loops to an intermediate point for no reason since you have to go back to it anyway. The best way to describe this is like a check point in a video game, so take that for what you will. Once you have named the device and location as desired, as well as set up the kit to be an access point or router along with updated log-in credentials, the process is complete, as confirmed by the app.


It takes a couple of seconds, but the app will refresh to show the main menu with the router and satellite combination as part of the SXK80 SKU. As with anything to do with networking, I first check for any firmware updates, and NETGEAR Insight was kind enough to let me know of one right away. The increased monitoring capabilities are what you are paying for anyway, but then things hit a snag when I attempted the actual update process. Indeed, it seemed to go as expected until it did not. There was a reproducible error in the downloading stage where it kept failing no matter what, even with a power cycle and disconnecting the satellite unit. NETGEAR has since fixed this bug, so I suppose I will give props to the Orbi Pro team for responding quickly.


We get to the meat of things with there being a device-specific page with the usual options you'd expect, including SSID assignment, traffic meter, connected client list, etc. With the Orbi Pro and NETGEAR Insight, you also have the option of having backups of configurations saved locally and in the cloud to where you can restore a saved configuration anytime. This goes beyond your own devices too, so if you need to RMA the product (which can be done via the app), you can choose to have the replacement units come with the saved configuration for a smooth turnover, which is critical to businesses, no doubt. Content filtering is available as well, although not as extensive as on the retail side. The diagnostics menu has a lot of options, most of which will aid in troubleshooting and lowering any downtime.

It is at this point that we notice all this was just on the devices page, of which only one relevant device is covered in this review. There are three other pages at the bottom: Health, Locations, and Notifications. This is where you configure other things you would never see in a typical consumer-grade product, including VPN settings, virtual LAN, link aggregation groups, location-based settings, and a real-time monitoring and alert system that brings up notifications both locally on the phone or mobile device, and via emails for remote monitoring. If you are asking yourself why you need this, congratulations on having made the decision not to pay extra for the Orbi Pro systems as the Orbi would suffice.


There are more options here, but these pertain to NETGEAR Insight itself. Some of these global settings are handy for quick changes, but most pertain to whether you want to give NETGEAR more of your money in the form of various subscriptions. You get a year of all this with the hardware and can pay for more time to monitor not only this setup but any other compatible product. In addition, there are first-party VPN and captive portal services that are priced better than I thought they would be, but I would not be buying any of these myself.


What that section did tell me is that there is a web-based Insight Portal. It works on mobile platforms in a typical browser, as with Google Chrome (mobile) above, but only makes sense on the desktop since you would use the app that is better laid out for a smaller screen. With the firmware bug fix also came a notice that NETGEAR is phasing out the recommendation to use the NETGEAR Insight app for setup, instead recommending the web portal itself. In fact, the company is going to remove the suggestion to use the app from the product box as well, which is more reactive than I expected.