Both WiFi calling and WhatsApp calling drop out when switching to different router

[Viperce]

When I am on a WiFi call, or a WhatsApp call and walk around my house, when my phone switches to a different router in the house, the call hangs up. Any ideas?? 

Also I can see my Google speakers on 2 of my routers, but when I'm connected to my main Google router, I can only see 1?

[Viperce]

Ignore the second issue I have sorted that.

Still have the calling drop out issue though 

[MichaelP]

Hello @Viperce 

A WiFi system is not like a cellular phone network – hand-off from one AP to another may not happen quickly. It may take 30 to 60 seconds to initiate a hand-off after moving from one AP to be closer to another (though this could vary significantly depending on the device and conditions), and once there, it may take a few seconds to re-associate. If a call is in progress, you will very likely see some disruption. But, if the call is hanging up entirely, that could be caused by a number of things. What type of phone is this, if I may ask? If it's something that doesn't support the hand-off specifications Google/Nest WiFi uses to help clients make their decisions, it may be struggling to do that by itself. Also, if your access points are too far apart, you may be walking completely out of coverage from one (rather than just moving far enough to maintain a weak, but still working, connection). This stuff can be very complex to diagnose, unfortunately.

[Viperce]

Hi Michael, thanks for getting back to me.

I would be very disappointed if that was the case, I understand there would be slight delay but I wouldn't expect it to hang up. I have a Samsung S21. The routers are definitely close enough though they are 2 rooms max away and both have a "great connection" with the main router. 

Again thanks for your help

[MichaelP]

Ok, so the Samsung S21 may not support the 802.11k and 802.11v standards that enable clients to optimize hand-off. Without that, the phone may not feel "safe" initiating a hand-off until it's so far away that it can no longer communicate with the previous access point. This would make the hand-off take longer. As I said, this kind of thing can get really complicated, and may not be possible to diagnose remotely, but if the application in question is more sensitive to losing packets while the hand-off is in progress, it might be more likely to drop the connection entirely. I'm not sure what to suggest here. It sounds like your system is set up with recommended placement and is showing good mesh quality. It may just be a combination of that phone and the applications in question not managing to work well in this environment.

[Viperce · Accepted solution]

Ok so I think I've sorted it.

There is an option in the advanced WiFi settings on my phone which is "Switch to mobile data", which switches to cellular network if the WiFi signal is bad.

I can only assume that during handover, the phone thought signal was bad, tried going cellular, before the next router took over.

It now hands over, there is a less than a second pause in the voice before continuing, but seems to be working.

Thanks for your responses though, at least you now know if someone else has the same issue.

All the best. 

[MichaelP]

Great catch! I'm really glad you got this sorted.

[Jeff]

I'm happy to see you go this worked out, Viperce. Thanks to MichaelP for all the help and input here.

Viperce, before I mark this as resolved, is there anything else you might need here?

Thanks.

[Viperce]

No thanks Jeff, all sorted. Again thanks Michael, first use of this forum and really pleased with the quick help I received. Thanks

[Jeff]

Sounds great, Viperce. If you need anything else at all, please feel free to open up a new thread.

Thanks!