The internet has become essential to human lives in the 21st century. Therefore, it has become nearly mandatory for each household to have internet access.
Cox Panoramic WIFI is a technology that ensures each user gets a reliable and stable internet connection in the entire house — when it works the way it should.
The technology behind the Cox Panoramic WIFI powered by Cox Communications is a two-in-one combination unit of modern and router simultaneously, which is a lot cheaper than buying multiple units separately. In addition, it allows users to have access to the internet wirelessly. Moreover, the unit provides security and safety to all internet users with a lot of security encryption installed in the system, particularly from internet hackers.
Cox Panoramic WIFI also features wide coverage of internet connectivity to eliminate dead zone areas in your vicinity. It includes optional “pods”, which are WiFi extenders specifically designed to fit the style of your house, especially if you need to boost the signal in distant areas of the home.
Despite the convenience it brings to household users, let us also look at one of the common technical issues we encounter in using Cox Panoramic WIFI – the blinking orange light.
What Does the Orange Blinking Light Mean?
To understand what is happening in the unit, we must first know what indicators and light colors Cox Panoramic has.
It has four colors signaling different statuses or problems that exist on the unit. We have green, white, blue, and orange-red.
- The solid white light is the normal indicator that users are expected to see if the unit does not have any technical problems. The router/modem is on and has a stable connection.
- Blinking orange and green together indicates that a firmware update is in progress — you should allow it to finish the entire process (during which time, you should not unplug the unit).
- The blue blinking light indicates that the device is currently in WPS mode. It means that the WI-FI Protected Setup (WPS) is on, such that other wireless devices can connect securely to the router with a push of a button. And this can be accomplished without encoding any complicated passwords or logins on your network.
- Generally speaking, the flashing orange light on the Cox Panoramic box is normal in a router. It only means the system registers all the networks attempting to connect to the router. Eventually, if the connection from other networks and devices becomes successful, the blinking orange light will turn to solid white light.
The problem only arises if the blinking orange light takes too long, usually 60 seconds or more.
If that happens, it means that there is a connectivity issue. The signal is poor, and it failed to establish a stable connection with the devices.
How to Fix Blinking Orange Light on Cox WiFi
There are several troubleshooting steps if the orange blinking light persists.
1. Check the Cable Connection at the Back of the Router
One of the common causes of an unstable connection has to do with loose cable connections. Check the back side of your router and make sure that all cables are tightly connected and in place.
If loose cables are connected or misplaced, reconnect them to the corresponding port and once done, you will see that the orange light will stabilize and turn to white. Ensure that all the cable wires are not damaged or worn out. If you notice one, please make sure to replace it immediately to avoid further connection issues in the future.
2. Power Reset the Router
In many cases, even after checking and securing the cables connected at the back of the router, the orange light is still blinking continuously.
We recommend performing a power reset on the router/modem. If it is not the physical hardware or components that caused the problem, it might be internal or the software system. The proper way to do the power reset is through the following steps.
- You have to unplug the power cable from the wall socket
- Wait for about 1 minute
- Then plug the power cord back into the socket.
Once you have performed said resetting procedure, it will normally take 20 seconds before the orange light turns white. If you notice that the light is still blinking orange after a minute, it likely means that resetting failed to rectify the technical glitch.
We must proceed to the next step.
3. Reposition your Cox Router/Modem
There is a possibility that something blocks the signal from the router to the devices. We recommend changing the position of your router and moving it to another place or room.
*Note that this commonly occurs even if your WiFi previously worked with your router in its current location. Many users dismiss this advice because “the router has always been there,” but fluctuations and signal degradation over time is nonetheless quite possible.
Chances are that the router is placed in an awkward position that can cause signal jamming. Ensure that your router is positioned away from another electronic device like an antenna, television, other router or cable box, or a mobile phone that can disrupt the signal movement.
Though we don’t like to proudly display our home internet components, you should avoid placing your router below the table or at the back of wall cabinets. Those factors might disrupt the signal or connections with other devices.
Try moving the router from one place to another and see if you can gather a much stronger signal. Please make sure to place the router on a clear desk without any electronic devices placed beside it.
If, after changing the router position and the same thing happens, we will carry on to the next step.
4. Do a Hard (Full) Reset of the Cox Router
Don’t consider sending the unit for repair or contacting a technical support team just yet, we will instead consider that as a last resort. Now, we will try the hard reset of the unit. This is also sometimes called a “factory reset.”
The unit will return to its factory settings upon performing the procedure. So all the personal settings, customizations, and password names you have created for the system will be erased after resetting. Needless to say, you should make note of your passwords and any pertinent settings.
Below are the steps to perform a hard reset.
- Check the back, side or top portion of your router to locate the reset button
- Once you have located it, press and hold the reset button for about 30 seconds
- You will see the lights turn on and off, then eventually stop blinking
If ever you see the light turns solid white after the hard reset, it means that the connection has stabilized and the resetting procedure was successful.
However, if the same issue persists, we will proceed to the next step.
5. Check for Outages
Many of us (myself included) fall into the trap of thinking that anything can be fixed with the help of Google and/or Youtube. But if there is a local or system-wide outage, our troubleshooting efforts are entirely futile.
Before breaking your router in frustration or opening any utility panels in your neighborhood, it would be wise to check if Cox internet is experiencing downtime in your location. Cox does a good job of communicating outages, and you can check on your location here.
Further, there are third-party outage checkers available online. Or, you can pick up a good old-fashioned telephone and call customer service.
6. Contact the Cox Panoramic Technical Support
Once you have done all the steps suggested above and the orange light still blinks, contact customer service for further assistance and recommendations. They are also the ones in authority to tell you if your unit is due for replacement or service.
You may contact them directly — hope you like elevator music!
Final Thoughts
The Cox Panoramic router provides convenience by allowing multiple users to connect in a much more stable and faster WIFI in one location. Moreover, it also gives the user full control of their network.
As a modem and router combined, the unit offers convenience and a clean setup. In a perfect world, it offers a reliable WIFI connection inside your house and vicinity, especially if paired with Wifi Pods.
But, like any other internet service provider, downtime is frustrating and more frequent than you would hope for. Oftentimes, to enjoy the full benefits you must master all the basic troubleshooting steps, which is still much easier than trying to get a quick resolution from the customer service hotline!
