Review on Enhance Your Internet Speeds with the NETGEAR Nighthawk Cable Modem by Rhonda Quire

Last update (06/25/21): Okay, I lied, another update (something positive at last). Reluctantly, I decided to give the CAX30 one last chance to make amends. And by that I really mean that I delayed the return process past the eligibility date. Luckily the latest automatic firmware update fixed almost all the problems I had at the beginning! HOORAY! The stability of the wireless network is greatly improved and the Internet connection is stable. Unfortunately, I'm still unable to assign IP address reservations in DHCP without allowing my devices to reconnect via wired and wireless. Now that my devices can connect and stay online, I will fully accept this loss given what I endured prior to the firmware update. If you have a CAX30 and are experiencing any of the issues described in my previous update, make sure your device is running firmware version 1.4.10.8. I'm so happy I'm increasing my rating to 4 stars now! Perfect, isn't it. But Netgear has given me a small glimmer of hope as to how quickly they are releasing bug fix updates. Tonight I'll be praying for these improvements to continue as I really don't think I have the strength to write the SIXTH product review update (yes, that's number 5). First Review and Previous Update: This is my fourth and final review update for the CAX30, all merged into one edit to avoid a complete mess. Two days after I posted my first review, the CAX30 started to fail. It was absolutely unbearable as I had just finished gushing about how cool it was. One day I woke up and realized that none of my devices were connected to it, wireless or wired. The weird thing was that my wireless signals were broadcasting and my SSIDs were available to connect. I just couldn't get anything to stay connected for more than 2 seconds. After hours of troubleshooting Comcast and Netgear, Netgear agreed to send me a replacement. The new CAX30 arrived the next day and worked great for 4-5 days but ended up having the same problem as my first model. I consider myself more than capable when it comes to networking, so I knew it wasn't user error. I mean I have 2 CCNA certifications from the Cisco Networking program. After some factory resets and some troubleshooting processes I came to the conclusion that the cause of all my problems was some kind of DHCP address reservation error in the CAX30. Even reserving a single IP address can cause the device to fail. Even after clearing the settings, I still get intermittent errors on both wireless and wired connections. Rebooting the device eventually fixes the problem, although sometimes it takes multiple reboots lasting more than 10 minutes to fix the problem. When this modem router works properly, it's impressive! The wireless connection speed is very fast and the effective range is amazing (especially for an all-in-one). I just can't get over all the connectivity issues and can now recommend this product. I am praying that a firmware update will resolve all of these issues in the VERY NEAR future as I am already considering various replacement options before the return period is up. Result. Wait for the issues to be resolved before spending $300 on it. If I've owned it long enough for Netgear to fix it, I'll definitely provide another update. In its current form, the CAX30 is a buggy mess that can't handle the simplest of settings tweaks. Until then, I'll reduce my rating to 2 stars (originally 5).