Signal Strength When Adding a Camera - VMB5000

[KachinaShadow]

Am I correct in understanding that when you add a camera the connection (2GHz or 5GHz) is determined by the signal strength of that camera when added and that you have no choice in the matter.

I have an Ultra and two Pro 3's that were all added within 6 feet of the VMB5000 smart hub with an excellent signal strength (3 bars) so I would assume that they most likely connected at 5 GHz. After adding they were taken outside and mounted, only show 2 bars.

If I was to remove and then re-add those cameras while in their present location would there be a chance that they would be connected at 2GHz (thus resulting in a higher signal strength) or would I have to move them farther away (only for re-adding) to insure that when they reconnect that they do so at 2GHz due to the distance/signal strength.

Paul

[StephenB]

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@KachinaShadow wrote:

Am I correct in understanding that when you add a camera the connection (2GHz or 5GHz) is determined by the signal strength of that camera when added and that you have no choice in the matter.

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While it's true that you have no ability to choose the band, I don't think it's locked in when you onboard the camera.  I suspect it has already switched to 2.4 ghz.

But I guess you could remove and reinsert the battery.  I see no need to try onboarding again.

[KachinaShadow]

@StephenB 

So you believe that it has the ability to, in real time, change the band...it would sure be nice to have a tool to see just what it's connected at.

"I suspect it has already switched to 2.4 ghz" -

Interesting that the Ultra is only 28' away from the base with only a garage to house firewall (one panel of drywall, one of fireproof drywall) and one layer of wooden siding (along with some stuff stored in the garage rafters) which I think would not really be too much of an obstacle for 2.4GHz to penetrate.

I guess at this point I can give it a try and see what happens 🤔

[StephenB]

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@KachinaShadow wrote:

So you believe that it has the ability to, in real time, change the band...it would sure be nice to have a tool to see just what it's connected at.

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I agree.

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@KachinaShadow wrote:

"I suspect it has already switched to 2.4 ghz" -

Interesting that the Ultra is only 28' away from the base with only a garage to house firewall (one panel of drywall, one of fireproof drywall) and one layer of wooden siding (along with some stuff stored in the garage rafters) which I think would not really be too much of an obstacle for 2.4GHz to penetrate.

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Of course if it thinks 5 ghz is a better channel, then it would stick with 5 ghz.  Before I had a mesh, I had trouble reaching one room inside our house with 5G - which was about the same distance as your setup. But there was a chimney and a pipe chase along the signal path.  If your router is near the base, you can probably see the signal strength of your home network on the phone (and if you use Android, you could get more info from a wifi signal app).

In general, I don't see a lot of utility for dual-band in a security camera, as they are often installed outdoors at  distance. 

[KachinaShadow]

@StephenB 

Thanks for the feedback.

The reason I'm trying to improve the signal strength, primarily on the Ultra which has cars driving across the field of view, is that the movement is jerky/stuttering and since the stuttering is identical on both the cloud recording and the corresponding video from the SD card local storage, it definitely points to the camera to base connection...strange however, is that the stuttering is far less or sometimes non-existent at night 🤔

The Pro 3's aren't a big deal since nothing (people) moves fast enough to even see any stutter.

When I get a few minutes I think I'll try removing & re-adding the cameras in their present locations, or even farther away during setup, just to see if that changes the signal strength at all (also to satisfy my curiosity).

It may be a day or two before I can get to it but I will definitely share the results.

[KachinaShadow]

@StephenB 

Well I removed and re-added my Ultra (while mounted in it's usual location) hoping for a better connection but everything remains the same so I guess I'll have to live with a slight stutter until Arlo comes up with some type of signal booster or a way of selecting which WIFI band it connects to...although it would be nice if the Arlo Smart Hub actually showed more connection info for each camera. 

Paul