Poor Signal Fix?

[KyleK]

I have been playing with my Arlo Pro 2 and it’s location quite a bit. I’ve finally found the sweet spot for limited false alarms, best coverage, and where the all weather cable can reach. My problem is the signal quality. I’ve noticed that since it’s on the other side of a brick wall, the signal is not ideal. Often times the camera will take a while to load, and it seems like it’s missing things more often. I have a normal base station, but I was considering upgrading my router to the Netgear Nighthawk. Has it been found that using the Router as a base station has improved signal quality or even extended the range compared to the Arlo Base Station?

If not, it’s not really possible to move my router/base station unless I use an extender. Also, I’m not certain an WiFi extender will help, based on the fact hard wire connection is always best I would believe.

Does anyone have experience with either??

Thanks!

[TomMac]

The only true way to expand coverage is with multi bases.... Unnown if the signal from the router ( as base ) would give a better signal.

As to extenders , yes, they work quite well. Many online have used them.

If the extender has a good signal from the main router and an ethenet port for a second base, that sounds like it would solve your issues.

[KyleK]

Probably being the most cost effective way would be a longer Ethernet wire and just figure out a way to move my base station closer. The next option would be to try the WiFi extender, but it would get very expensive to buy another base station too. Do you know of others that have used their one base station with the extender?

[jguerdat]

Many folks here, including myself, have used WiFi and/or powerline extenders to position bases where they need them. Extra base stations aren't that expensive compared to the cost of your system or even an extra camera. You may be able to find used ones, too (make sure the old owner has removed it from Settings, My Devices so you can claim it).

[KyleK]

Would it be worth trying to use my main base station on a WiFi extender? I bet I can move it within view of my router even and still be closer to the other camera as well. I’ve never used an extender before, I would like to know if an extender would cut my internet speeds.

[jguerdat · Accepted solution]

Use of an extender is a great way to be able to position the base optimally if you don't want to use multiple bases. It won't impact your Internet speeds but speed on the extender can be half the normal expected speed if you use the same frequency (2.4 or 5GHz) to connect to the router. It depends on what your router supports (both frequencies?) as well as the extender. Better ones use one frequency to connect to the router and the other for WiFi access. However, since you're using the extender just for the base, which is hard-wired, There's really no issue.

A powerline extender could be another choice due to no WiFi involvement at all.