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Forum Discussion
Roaming without application fallout?
I've been trying to solve a problem for a year now:
Problem
I want to roam around my 2600 square foot house whilst using various voice and video applications on smartphones and tablets without any drop in service.
examples being Skype, WhatsApp voice call, Lync call etc on Android 6+ devices and Apple iphone5 onwards
This led to trying to find session aware wifi systems with support for 802.11 k and r.
Until 6 months ago, the only solution I'd found had been Ubiquiti UniFi but due to the PoE connectivity requirements, I would have had to wire bits of my house with cat6 but also get a PoE capable switch and still have my router and modem!
Then along came Orbi, Eero, Google Wifi, Amfplifi, Velop, Luma, etc
Orbi seems to have the best reviews for connectivity, high in networking features, seems a little behind on ease of use (for parental controls from an App etc) so is looking the best choice of these mesh wifi platforms.
However, after all of this reading and research, I'm still not clear if Orbi (or any of the other Mesh wifi systems) really is session aware and the transition between nodes is seemless and will therefore solve my problem stated above.
Maybe I don't need it to be completely seemless. Maybe the applications error correction is good enough that the steering and switching is fast enough to appear seemless, I don't know. Unfortunately I don't have any of these devices either to actually test these types of applications.
Is there anyone who has invested in Orbi (or other solutions) that can tell me if these platforms will actually solve my problem?
3 Replies
- Roaming with an active voice or audio call is the toughest situation to handle seamlessly. Even with 802.11 r/k/v it may not be perfectly seamless. That said, this is my non-exhaustive understanding of vendors that may have support for these protocols.
Netgear: none
Eero: At least 802.11r
Ubiquiti: At least 802.11r on Unifi, 802.11k coming later, 802.11v unknown
Google: unknown but probably no
Linksys: At least 802.11r on their Maxstream products; Velop 802.11r/k (yes?)
BTW: The single pack versions of the Unifi APs come with PoE injector, so you don't strictly need a PoE switch. You still need to wire Ethernet. I have both Ubiquiti and Orbi systems at two separate sites. I have tested WiFi calling (using FaceTime) and streaming video while roaming on both systems. I conducted roaming testing by walking inside and outside the house, forcing transition from one AP to another, and from 5G to 2.4G bands. Other than an occasional blip when transitioning, both systems seemed to work fine. This was on an iPhone 5, which would also transition seamlessly to LTE once beyond WiFi range. I didn't encounter any issues, so the testing was not extensive. I imagine the results will depend upon the client deivce as well as the app used.
Thanks for the replies.
I have seen other posts on these forums where people have suggested the roaming doesn't work on Orbi.
As you suggest, this could be down to the client device but these standards are hardly new so I can't imagine devices younger than 5 years old don't support these standards.
I guess I'll keep hanging on until I can get a consensous or maybe even a formal statement on this.
