I recently bought an Arlo Ultra wireless security system to work with my Orbi System (RBR50 and X4 RBS50). My broadband download speeds within my house are over 200mB/s. I'm finding that the wifi signal strength just outside the house is dropping a lot and the Arlo cameras are struggling to pick it up. Using a broadband speed app the download speeds at the cameras are only around 10mB/s and sometimes they don't even recognise the wifi leading to them being unable to send back pictures etc. My RBS50's are on 5GHz and I wondered if there is a way to get the signal any stronger to the cameras. I have the RBS50's as close to the cameras as I can. Would the 2.4GHz work better at all? Does anyone else use a wifi camera system with their Orbi network? Thanks

What is the exterior walls of your home? Foil lined insulation, steel side, plaster, adobe, metal lathe, etc. This is kind of important as certain materials are great at blocking wifi signals. How big is your home?Have you tested the speed at the satellite to ensure its not the backhaul thats got issues?

Hi, I'm UK based. The walls are brick built and windows all double glazed which I appreciate will be a factor. The home will be approx 3000sqft in area. How do I test the speed at the satellite? Thanks Ian

You can test the speed at the satellite by hardwiring into it. You can also test wirelessly at the satellite to have a comparison for wireless speeds. If its slow even by the satellite, then the brick isn't the issue. If speed/reception are fine in that spot, the brick is causing your issues. Brick is great at blocking wifi sadly. You might have great reception on one side of the brick and horrible on the other. The only way to know is to test it. https://eyesaas.com/wifi-signal-loss/Arlo ultra might not be your best best with brick exterior walls. if its possible to hardwire in the camera's, that might be better in your circumstance.

I tested the wifi speeds using the Orbi app on my iPad. Standing beside each of the RBS50 satellites I get about 20mBps upload and over 200mBps download speeds. Standing below each camera, which are about 7-8yards from the satellite in my garden, the wifi speeds are similar. One Arlo camera shows an acceptable wifi - see pic - the other is very poor. I guess it sounds more of an issue with the Arlo units? Thanks

If you're testing with the orbi app, that's based off the built in speedtest on the orbi. its literally running ON the orbi, not your device. It won't be accurate to what your actual device is getting. Try using the speedtest app.

RBR 50 and Arlo Ultra Cameras | NETGEAR Communities

12 Replies

plemans
Guru
Jan 03, 2020
What is the exterior walls of your home?
Foil lined insulation, steel side, plaster, adobe, metal lathe, etc. This is kind of important as certain materials are great at blocking wifi signals.
How big is your home?
Have you tested the speed at the satellite to ensure its not the backhaul thats got issues?
- Ian_Dickson
  Aspirant
  Jan 03, 2020
  Hi, I'm UK based. The walls are brick built and windows all double glazed which I appreciate will be a factor. The home will be approx 3000sqft in area. How do I test the speed at the satellite? Thanks Ian
  - plemans
    Guru
    Jan 03, 2020
    You can test the speed at the satellite by hardwiring into it. You can also test wirelessly at the satellite to have a comparison for wireless speeds. If its slow even by the satellite, then the brick isn't the issue. If speed/reception are fine in that spot, the brick is causing your issues.
    Brick is great at blocking wifi sadly. You might have great reception on one side of the brick and horrible on the other. The only way to know is to test it. https://eyesaas.com/wifi-signal-loss/
    Arlo ultra might not be your best best with brick exterior walls. if its possible to hardwire in the camera's, that might be better in your circumstance.

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RBR 50 and Arlo Ultra Cameras