WiFi Problems

Do you want to buy a wireless camera, but you don't know if the Wi-Fi range will be sufficient? Or maybe you already own a wireless monitoring system, but one of the cameras loses the signal?

Usually, when we install home monitoring, we do it for security reasons. However, we cannot always afford to lay wires and then we decide on wireless solutions. This is convenient because we only need to supply power to the Wi-Fi cameras, but unfortunately it has its drawbacks. The bane of wireless systems is the signal strength, which can drop drastically when it encounters an obstacle on its way (e.g. camera - router), e.g. a wall. Before we decide to buy a system without a cable, it is good to test our Wi-Fi network coverage. Nowadays, most of us have mobile phones with the ability to download various applications. Youtube is perfect for checking our Wi-Fi range.

We go to the place where we want to install the camera. On the phone, turn off cellular data (LTE) and turn on Wi-Fi. We go to Youtube.pl, and then enter "camera 5 mpx". We click on the movie. After starting the movie playback In the upper right corner, click on the 3 dots to expand the options. Click quality and select 1440p. At the moment we are playing a 5 mpx video and if it plays smoothly then great. We can mount the camera and it should be fine. If there are no additional signal interference in the future, the camera should work without any problems. If, on the other hand, the video stops / buffers, it means that the wifi signal in this place is too weak and you need to improve the wifi signal before installing the camera

They follow the above instruction, we can use the phone to check whether the Wi-Fi range in the place where we plan to install the camera is sufficient. What to do when it turns out that the range of our wireless network leaves much to be desired? Below we present a few ways to solve problems with the range and scope of our wireless monitoring.

The basic element of the WiFi system is the router and we should start with it. It should be noted that over 90% of wifi cameras on the market operate on the 2.4 Ghz frequency, so our router should have such a frequency. Cameras operating at a resolution of 5.4 Ghz are available sporadically. Another thing that we should check is that the bandwidth of the wifi link should be at the level of 300 Mb / s, and the strength of the wifi antennas above 15 dbi.

We recommend the TP-LINK Archer router

However, if for some reason, despite a good router, our WiFi signal is still too weak for our monitoring to work stably, you should consider using a more serious signal extender (amplifier). The TP-LINK AC1750 RE450 TP-LINK AC1750 RE450 repeater for indoor use or the TP-LINK CPE repeater for outdoor use work very well as a wireless signal repeater. External transmitters can be used as access points, which according to manufacturer can increase the range of our wireless network up to 2 km (so far we have tested such solutions for 100 m, and if a set is used - i.e. 2 pieces with the right configuration, they can create a radio bridge (AirMAX), the range of which can reach up to 5 km.

There are both omnidirectional and panel antennas available on the market, also available in our offer, which we screw in place of the antenna socket of our device (e.g. our Wi-Fi camera). We use omnidirectional antennas when we have a short distance from the router and interference occurs due to obstacles (e.g. walls). Panel antennas are usually recommended for distances of several dozen meters.

Panel Antenna

Omnidirectional antennas

Such antennas usually operate in the 2.4 - 2.48 - 2.5 GHz band and enable the amplification of the signal from cameras with lower power to about 8 dBi. It is difficult to determine how many meters of range can be gained thanks to such devices, because it is a matter of the number and structure of obstacles on the way, as well as the power of the transmitter (router), but it is certainly a cheap and good solution at short distances. It should be remembered, however, that not every manufacturer gives us the opportunity to replace the antenna. Before buying a new antenna, check if you can unscrew the old one, confirm the diameter of the SMA connector and check if you have a male or female connector.

Rodzaje złącz SMA

If none of the above solutions is available or does not meet expectations, all we have to do is lay the cables.