NETGEAR is aware of a growing number of phone and online scams. To learn how to stay safe click here.
Forum Discussion
Can't get Pixel 8 Pro to work with Orbi
150m2 house with an Orbi RBK853 no other devices having issues. Did a quick search and apparently there are issues with Pixel phones working on Mesh networks. I can connect to the network but it is...
I don't know if you saw the update but I've found a workaround, so the clue to resolving the issue is something about the shared SSID and how the mesh network interacts with the phone.
- Firmware for the phone is Android 14 running March 5th Feature Release.
- Firmware for the RBR850 is V7.2.6.21_5.0.20
- No, wireless only.
- Channel Configurations are currently:
| Region | Australia / New Zealand |
| 2.4 GHz Channel | Auto (2) |
| 2.4 GHz Wireless mode: | Up to 1147 Mbps |
| 5 GHz Channel | 36 + 40(P) + 44 + 48 |
| 5 GHz Wireless mode: | Up to 2402 Mbps |
What's the work around?
In Router Wireless Settings I enabled the IoT Network and set it to 5GHz only. I connected the phone to that network and it fixed the speed and connectivity instantly. So the issue is with the main AX shared SSID network, I'm guessing for some reason the way Orbi broadcasts the network it is confusing the device.
The phone is not the problem as it's WIFI clearly works so there must be an issue with the main network. As I said in my first post apparently Fast Roaming and Band Steering appears to cause this but I can't see any options to disable in the Orbi firmware.
Design of ALL Orbi systems is the 2.4 and 5Ghz radios are put into one SSID name. This is called Smart Connect. FIrst appeared back in 2012. Orbi has been using this since 2016 and in all current Orbi systems.
It's up to device Mfrs to ensure there devices can work with "Smart Connect" featured wifi router systems. Orbi only provides the platform for devices to connect too.
Fast Roamng and Band Steering is all automatice now on Orbi AX systems.
There is also known issues with Google Pixel phones with other MESH systems. Something you'll need to take up with Google and let them know what is happening.
Message 1 of the conversation included results of Google Fiber speed test on three phones:
- Pixel 8 Pro - 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e/7 (2023)
- Galaxy Flip 5 - 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e (2023)
- iPhone X - 802.11ac (2017)
https://i.imgur.com/9zfhx4H.jpeg
Do I read the conversation correctly that connecting the Pixel Pro 8 to the IoT network increased the Google Fiber test results to over 100Mbps? Does the performance of other phones change the same way?
Does the problem of "seriously struggling with streaming and buffering even from local NAS." occur on either of the other phones?
Does the problem occur when the phone remains in one place?
I struggle with the idea that Band Steering or Fast Roaming are causing the problem.
- Band Steering relates to the methodology modern WiFi routers use to influence which WiFi channel a device chooses. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IEEE_802.11n-2009#Deployment_strategies
If the Pixel 8 Pro connects to the 5G WiFi channel, which will be reported in the phone's connection status, then Band Steering has been effective and is no longer applicable. - Fast Roaming is IEEE standard 802.11r, which is designed to reduce the transition time from one WiFi access point to another to less than 50ms (.05 seconds). If there is an observed problem with playing media from a local NAS while the phone is not moving, it is hard to see how Fast Roaming affects performance in this way.
FURRYe38 is correct that the original Orbi introduced in 2016 included an option to enable/disable Fast Roaming and that subsequent Orbi systems no longer include that feature.
It is great that connecting to the IoT network "solves the problem", but I am not confident that the original cause has been identified.
