Arlo Base station doesn't allow channel selection & selects already occupied channel (VMB400

[RaccoonCam]

The Arlo Base station VMB4000r3d oes not allow channel selection and selects already occupied channel.  Yesterday, while troubleshooting I found every Netgear router sitting on channel 1.  I  have four routers; my provider's router to which Arlo is connected,  and two Netgear routers, one also connected to my provider's router and e second daisy chained to the first. In addition, there are a couple of extenders (one Netgear, currently powered off, and one non-Netgear).  Anyway, the two Netgear routers and Arlo were all trying to use channel 1, the provider's router was using channel 11, and Arlo was alo trying to use channel one.  As a result I had Alexa connection issues, various device connection issues, and camera connection issues.  So changing the two Netgear routers to use different channels from each other seemed to resolve the situation, but this morning I found that Arlo had channels to once again conflict with one of the Netgear routers.  WHY? WHY? WHY?  The Arlo is hardwired to the provider's router, why is it going after the Netgear router's channel?  It seems clear to me that the cameras are using the Arlo base station as their wifi source...

Anyway, there's a chart below, showing the Arlo wifi on the same channel as one of my Netgear routers.  

[TomMac · Accepted solution]

It has always been that if the Arlo base is near the wifi router, it will sit on the SAME channel.....

( since cables are about 6+ ft , thats what happens )

Only if the base unit is about 20 ft away will it be on a different channel.... tho there is no way to set it.

Netgear did extensive studies and found that there were less issues when the base and router sit on the same channel if nearby each other.

BTW, have two bases ( one each side ) of my router without issues over the last three years.

[RaccoonCam]

Regardless of Netgear's extensive testing, I had an issue, which suggests the scope of their tests was limited to perhaps only the Arlo equipment and not the impact on third party devices using wifi on the shared channel.

However, it looks like other vendors do this, at least with extenders.  Not that it makes it any better...

[RaccoonCam]

In the screenshot I have attached, the Arlo wifi, NETGEAR11, is sitting on the channel occupied by Debnet, to which it has no relationship at all. I do not understand how Netgear can claim it is better for every router to occupy the same channel, the whole point of channels is to reduce interference. I'mpretty sure Netgear feels this way about their regular routers or they would not have added the ability to change channels. 

The days of trusting a vendor's word are long over; an explanation needs to be provided. Saying that it has always been like this is not an explanation.

I'm also aware that some Cisco routers, when unable to get their own channel refuse to present wifi at all; though if this is intention or a bug I do not know.