Side by side
Ubiquiti vs Netgear Orbi RBR50
Ubiquiti
10 positive (83%) · 1 mixed (8%) · 1 negative (8%)
Trust + time weighted: +76%
Top excerpts
Folks who made the switch seem to love Ubiquiti
We've moved on to Ubiquiti at this point and so far the system appears far more reliable for our use-case (smart home + two WFH). ... The Ubiquiti experience is far better than the Orbi ever was and I don't have any issues.
Ubiquiti doesn't a wireless mesh system with dedicated wifi backhaul, the AP's are great only when wired.
Our house moved to Ubiquiti and we haven't looked back (the 960 is still sitting in its box in the basement).
if you have the ability to do wired backhaul, Ubiquiti is superior IN EVERY WAY to Orbi.
Netgear Orbi RBR50
8 positive (33%) · 9 mixed (38%) · 7 negative (29%)
Trust + time weighted: +9%
AI summary — not a quote
The Netgear Orbi RBR50 is a legacy WiFi 5 mesh system that elicits mixed reactions from long-term users. While many praise its historical reliability and performance as a basic Access Point, it is now officially End of Life (EOL), leading to concerns over security, hardware failure, and inconsistent speeds.
Pros
- Proven longevity with some users reporting over 7 years of stable use
- Capable of reaching WiFi 5 speeds between 400-600 Mbps in optimal conditions
- Works effectively when configured strictly as an Access Point (AP) rather than a primary router
- Availability of stable third-party firmware (Voxel) to extend the device's life
Cons
- Officially End of Life (EOL) with no further security or firmware updates from Netgear
- Reports of hardware 'bricking' where the unit becomes unresponsive and cannot be reset
- WiFi speeds often fall below gigabit expectations, typically ranging from 250-400 Mbps
- Software bugs including 'Anywhere Access' registration errors and intermittent connectivity drops
Top excerpts
I had a bulletproof Orbi RBR50 WiFi 5 setup that was maxing out around 600 on WiFi.
I'm still using RBR50s in my house and they're still doing very well.
My previous RBR50 was much more reliable but it completely bricked after 4 years and after 2 satellites also bricked within the past year.
RBR50
My RBR50 just bricked itself a month ago. So I replaced it with the 370. I wouldn’t recommend it, I’m selling mine on FB marketplace soon at a loss and upgrading to a Ubiquiti system.