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Forum Discussion
Using devices that require 2.4ghz on Orbi
I'm considering buying a device (AmbientWeather Weather Station) that says that it only works on the 2.4ghz wifi and if you have a dual band router, you need to turn off the 5ghz radio. I already hav...
pup0975 wrote:I'm considering buying a device (AmbientWeather Weather Station) that says that it only works on the 2.4ghz wifi and if you have a dual band router, you need to turn off the 5ghz radio. I already have a Skybell that also requires this but works anyway on Orbi. Anyone know if this requirement to turn off the 5ghz can be ignored universally on all devices?
I don't think this makes any sense, why would 5Ghz hurt 2.4Ghz only devices? Are you sure you (or whoever wrote it) didn't misunderstand instructions to set 2.4Ghz, not 5Ghz?
I have many devices that only connect via 2.4Ghz to my Orbi and work just fine with 5Ghz also enabled.
Just read the instruction manual online. I can turn off the 5ghz, connect it to the wifi, then turn the 5ghz back on. Skybell (doorbell) specifically tells you to turn off the 5ghz or separate the signals. It works without doing either on the Orbi. I had a AirPort Extreme before the Orbi, and the Skybell wouldn't connect until I separated out the 5ghz signal on a separate SSDI. I think some devices may try to connect to the 5ghz signal and that causes it to fail in the connection. I'll see if it'll connect without having to turn off the 5ghz once I get it.
When a device doesn't work with the 5GHz band then it just ignores it because it's not compatible with it, ie: it does not see it, then it will normally connect to the 2.4ghz band which is what it sees and works with.
FYI ... I had to do the same thing for my Rachio sprinker system. I think its due to the fact that SSIDs are shared between 2.4 and 5 GHz. I turned off broadcasting of SSID for 5GHz, set up the Rachio (which wouldn't find wifi until I disabled 5 GHz SSID), then re-enabled 5 GHz SSID. The Rachio has stayed connected ever since. Had the same problem with Sylvania Lightify Hub.
Good to know about the Rachio as I'm thinking about getting one soon. I think the Skybell worked right away with the Orbi because I went from the Airport to Orbi without changing the SSDI. Glad to know that this trick probably works with all devices that can't recognize dual band signals on setup.
