Hero Wifi dropping connection? This might help...

[ukherouser]

Hi all,

My WiFi drops connection all the time which seems to be a common problem for many Hero users.

I've found the 'Wifi Fixer' application helps a little bit. You can download it for free from Market.

It tries to reconnect your WiFi in the background everytime it drops.

Hopefully that might help someone out.

Cheers

 

[G8D]

Or just flash your router with an appropriate firmware.

 

[hoppy1986]

Or just flash your router with an appropriate firmware.

explain please

 

[daveybaby]

Yeah, please explain. Think my router's wifi (Netgear 834N, latest official firmware) is actually cutting out, since wifi analyzer doesnt even find the signal any more once its dropped. If i reset the router it comes back, or if i leave it for half an hour or so it'll suddenly come back up again on its own.

Very very weird. I'm figuring the hero is interacting with the router in some weird way thats causing it to drop out, since i didnt have this problem with my laptop (which i no longer have, otherwise i would test to be sure).

Intrigued to know what the reason for the problems are which require new (custom?) router firmware. If every other device works fine then surely its a problem with the hero, not the router?

 

[Merago]

I take it the problem is that you're noticing it dropping the connection whilst you're using it and not that it's dropped whilst the phone has been in standby? I ask because the phone automatically drops the wifi connection upon entering standby to conserve battery power, but you can configure it not to do this.
The instructions are here.

 

[justjimjpc]

Use the following :

Click MENU Key | Settings | Wireless Controls | Wi-Fi Settings

Then Press MENU button followed by option :
Advanced | Select Wi-Fi Sleep Policy:

AS:
When screen turns off
Never when plugged in
Never

NEVER would be what you want if you are looking for continous/ no WiFi loss of connection ...

 

[daveybaby]

It's dropping the connection while actually browsing. After a 10 mins or so of browsing the connection is lost and it drops back to 3G or GPRS depending on the weather. Checking wireless settings at this point lists my network as 'not in range, remembered'. Neither Wifi Analyzer or G-Mon will detect the router at this point (but the wired part of the router is still working just fine). Can still see other networks though.

Reboot the router and the signal reappears. Seems to me that some interaction between the hero and the router is causing the router's wifi stack to hang, but without affecting other functionality of the device.

Weird.

 

[Merago]

Have you been able to try another wifi router by any chance? It'd be interesting to see if it does the same thing. Do you have other wifi devices, and are they affected by the cut-out at the same time as the Hero? What you're seeing certainly points to the router havnig an issue, but it'd be interesting to find out if it's being caused by the interaction with the Hero, or by the router itself.

 

[Mojo Fones]

I have the problem too, it just drops the connection randomly while I'm browsing or similar. I use Wifi Fixer and that automatically reconnects for me, it also gives a notification that it is doing so.

Might be of interest that this only happens with my Hero. All my other wireless stuff and my wife's Nokia E75 are all fine.

 

[daveybaby]

Think i have an old router kicking around somewhere - will give it a try tonight. Might borrow a laptop as well - try to determine the cause properly.

Will report back.

 

[garybaldi]

Hi,

Just wanted to share my Hero wireless experiences. Cracking device but I've had some issues with my wireless network at home (although it's worked at most other locations)

I have a Netgear DG834N (running latest firmware). I never had any problems with the router or wireless connections dropping, I run a couple of laptops and a PS3/PSP connected to it and have typically been able to leave it on for months at a time without re-boots. I had been running it in a mode that allows b/g/n connections with WPA2-PSK AES encryption.

Since getting the Hero I've encountered my first real wireless problems. The wirelsss connection would drop frequently and my laptop would also keep dropping. Although they would normally re-connect, at multiple times a day I would either have to re-boot the router or leave it for a while. Windows and phone would not see my wireless connection at all (phone would report remembered, not in range). If I re-booted and kept my phone wireless off the router would work faultlessly with all my other equipment, soon as I turned the Hero's wireless on, it would start dropping/locking up the router's wireless connection.

I started trying all combinations of encryption and tried all channels with some channel settings being better than others. I also tried various older router firmware versions all with same results. I've since read that the Hero does not like wireless-n being used. I've now turned this off and I'm only using b & g.

I've also used WiFi analyser and checked for other networks clients from laptop software etc and I'm using the least congested channel.

Turning off wireless-n mode and choosing a clear channel has resulted in quite a stable connection from the Hero and laptops. I can actually turn on and use wireless on my phone without it seemingly bringing down my router. I've had the occasional drop but it's came straight back.

Another little quirk I've seen on the Hero is when I've picked it up and it brings wireless out of standby (I have it set so that wireless sleeps when the screen locks) that it occasionally will not connect to my router, if I go into the wirless settings it then immediately starts to connect and obtain an IP address (turning wifi off and on also works). This I can live with.

I've also tried my Hero on a DG834G (no problems, not sure of firmware) and another older Netgear wireless AP again with no problems).

Sorry for the long post and waffle, just thought I'd share my experiences so that others can try the same. I don't currently run any wireless-n equipment so for now I'm happy with using b&g only and the connection I'm getting but these problems definately seems to be occuring for other people from other forum posts I've read.

Gary.

 

[andy d]

Thanks Gary

 

[garbageman]

You can easily determine if you router is the problem or the hero. Just go to different wi-fi hot spots (caffee, hotels or other places) and try to surf there. If it still drops connection, is the phone. If not, the router is your problem.

 

[daveybaby]

@garibaldi: just tried limiting my 834N router to B and G and now my hero works just fine with it.

Seems like its the hero doing something wrong, because other wireless devices (e.g. PSP, an old laptop) work just fine when i enable 802.11n.

The only thing i havent tried yet is this custom router firmware which supposedly fixes quite a few problems with the netgear router. Might give that a go over the weekend if i get a chance.

Think i will also raise a support call with HTC and see if any information is forthcoming from them.

 

[daveybaby]

You can easily determine if you router is the problem or the hero. Just go to different wi-fi hot spots (caffee, hotels or other places) and try to surf there. If it still drops connection, is the phone. If not, the router is your problem.

It's really not that simple - the phone works fine with other routers and the router works fine with other devices. Modern technology is full of incompatibilities between devices that supposedly follow the same standards, because this stuff is ridiculously complex (often due to the requirement to keep backwards compatibility to older standards).

It's possibly just a quirk between these 2 devices, but my money is on the hero being badly behaved w.r.t. 802.11n networks - however to prove this we need to test it with other 802.11n devices, which arent as easy to find at hotspots.

You could argue that even if the hero is badly behaved w.r.t. 802.11n the router should be able to handle it gracefully, but that's not necessarily possible in the wireless domain. The hero might be outputting just the right sort of garbage to make the netgear router fall over but not a different brand. Or vice versa.

Gah!!!! Bloody technology. I think i preferred it when it was carrier pigeons and bits of string with tin cans on the end.

 

[daveybaby]

Sorry for the double (triple!) post, just got a reply from HTC customer services on this:

As you have noticed, this is linked to N mode.

As all manufacturers use their own version of N mode (as there was no official version until a week or two ago) there are always compatibility issues. In this case, N routers are simply incompatible with our routers*, and so they will only function when N mode is turned off.

This will likely not change until our devices are updated to suport N mode now that this has finally been standardised in the last week or so.

Until then, i am afraid you will need to turn N mode off to use an HTC with that particular router.

*presume they meant to say devices instead of routers

So, known problem, hopefully will be fixed in a firmware update. Good news IMO.

Still not sure it lets them completely off the hook though, a wireless b/g device like the hero should work with an N router regardless of how that N is implemented, cos it will have been implemented to be backwards compatible with b/g. Every other b/g device i have manages to talk to it ok...

 

[subhramani]

Use the following :

Click MENU Key | Settings | Wireless Controls | Wi-Fi Settings

Then Press MENU button followed by option :
Advanced | Select Wi-Fi Sleep Policy:

AS:
When screen turns off
Never when plugged in
Never

NEVER would be what you want if you are looking for continous/ no WiFi loss of connection ...

This sorted my issues. Thanks a lot for this tip