Google Wifi pods, relay and cable problem. Not sure why. Anybody using Google Wifi ?

[UnluckyKate]

Hey Era,

I'm using Google Wifi pods, first gen, not the new ones.

Main pod is plugged on the internet line.

It broadcast wifi to the second pod, upstairs.

That one broadcast to the third pod, in my room. It's plugged via cable to my PC, because my PC doesn't have a wifi card.

Problem is, that third pod doesn't seem to broadcast wifi but I can't tell why : my phone and other wifi apparels upstairs keep having weak signal ON TOP of the pod and loosing signal and disconnecting randomly a meter away from it.

The app doesn't help me. Says signal super strong. I have tried rebooting everything several times, resintalling the mesh network several times.

Maybe its my phone who doesn't pair well with mesh networks (pixel 3A) even my macbook (2019) is randomly struggling with the signal... While my PC plugged in on the pod is butter smooth fast

 

[kagete]

Does it have more than one Ethernet port? Maybe the one connected to your PC thinks it's a source/Router instead of a host?

Are they set up as a Mesh network properly? I have no experience with that app, but if doing Mesh and the 3rd one is in the farthest area then don't make the 2nd too far from your source. You want the 2nd to be the bridge between your parent node and the farthest.

 

[The Albatross]

Does unplugging the PC from the wireless port make a difference in the wifi strength?

 

[Krakatoa]

They are pucks not pods :)

It seems like the distance maybe too much for the mesh. Try moving the pucks around to see if improves?

 

[talkingood]

OP, this might be a dumb question, but is there any chance that your modem is also a WiFi router? Reason I ask is I recently set my in-laws up with the same Google Wifi mesh. I decided to just make the network name and password the same as before so all of their devices connect without having to change anything (not exactly great networking protocol but whatever!) I started to notice that we didn't have a great signal even right next to one of the mesh pucks. Also my phone would periodically (but regularly) lose connection for 5-10 seconds before reconnecting. Then I realized that their old modem sends out WiFi as well, meaning all of our devices were getting confused about which network they should connect to--there were effectively two different versions of the same network! Disabling the old network from being broadcast from the modem fixed this problem.

 

[UnluckyKate]

OP, this might be a dumb question, but is there any chance that your modem is also a WiFi router? Reason I ask is I recently set my in-laws up with the same Google Wifi mesh. I decided to just make the network name and password the same as before so all of their devices connect without having to change anything (not exactly great networking protocol but whatever!) I started to notice that we didn't have a great signal even right next to one of the mesh pucks. Also my phone would periodically (but regularly) lose connection for 5-10 seconds before reconnecting. Then I realized that their old modem sends out WiFi as well, meaning all of our devices were getting confused about which network they should connect to--there were effectively two different versions of the same network! Disabling the old network from being broadcast from the modem fixed this problem.

Click to shrink...

I ditched the wifi router years ago. It was indeed interfeering badly with the mesh.

 

[Protmind]

I've had the first gen wifi for a few years. I don't think you can set up the secondary pucks to use the ethernet. Ethernet is only for the primary puck. Sounds like you have two separate meshes going on.

 

[Wingfan19]

I've had the first gen wifi for a few years. I don't think you can set up the secondary pucks to use the ethernet. Ethernet is only for the primary puck. Sounds like you have two separate meshes going on.

Click to shrink...

You sure? I have an ethernet cable going from one of my satellite pucks into my PS5, works just fine. I tried to have my PS5 connect via WiFi sitting right next to a puck, but it was still too laggy which is why I just hardwired it to the puck.