Weak Connection

[brownel02]

I have a split level home of roughly 2700sf.  My nearest neighbor is about 1/2 mile away.  No new services/devices have been added to my house although 1 wall was removed to create a more open concept.  My services come into the basement (power, cable, internet...).

Case 1: For the past 3 years I have had my 1st Google Wifi set up in the basement attached to my router.  My 2nd point is in my dining room (1 room and 1 floor away), 3rd point is in the living room (2 rooms away but within eye sight, no walls).  

I started having internet issues about 3 months ago (weak connection, dropped service, tv (in living room) buffering.  All speed tests show 450+Mbps and all connecting lines are CAT6.  I followed these instructions (they have been given multiple times on this forum): 

*Do a full power cycle of the network - this will allow the entire network to re-establish connections. Here's how to do it properly.

• Disconnect the power cable and Ethernet cable from the Google Nest Wifi router.
• Disconnect the power cables from the other Wifi points.
• Disconnect the power cable from the modem.
• Allow the power to stay disconnected from all for 5 minutes.
• Connect the power back to the modem only and wait for it to fully boot back up.
• All lights should be lit up before moving to the next step.
• After the modem is back online, connect the Ethernet cable to back to the Google Nest Wifi router's WAN port (globe symbol).
• Connect the power cable back to Google Nest Wifi router and to other Wifi points.
• Allow the all Wifi points to be fully back on.

These instructions made no difference to the signal quality, still showing as Weak on both of my wifi points.  

Case 2: I moved my Main Google Wifi to the 1st floor running new CAT6 back to my router (30').  My 2nd wifi spot is now in the living room (eye sight to the main Google wifi modem) but the signal still shows as a Weak connection. No 3rd wifi puck is currently installed.   

Any help on getting my service back to stable before I ditch these pucks?

Thanks

[rwb]

I suggest you run speed tests on your wifi connections.  "Good" and "Great" for me,  still mean I'm getting about 5-10% of the expected wifi speed.  (700 meg connection using ethernet, 50 meg wifi off the Nest Routers, with wired backhaul, being used as access points)

[Jfritton74]

No change for me after full factory resets and all the headache that goes into that. My $350 Nest mesh system is still vastly outperformed by a $75 Linksys router from Walmart.

[BSCD]

Same issues for me too. Just got a second router that's hardwired to act as a point. Now my true point device is showing a weak connection. Wonderful.

[Marty]

I ended up replacing all my Google Nest WiFi routers/points (two routers, three points) with a really cheap TP-link Deco M5 kit (3 nodes).  Not only is the coverage better but also the speeds..  Was planning to have the TP-link kit for  just a short period while investigating/planning for a more complete Ubiquity setup. But with the speeds and reliability I am seeing now, I might as well keep it.   

[BobBacon]

@Marty  I thought of replacing the Google hardware but it's hard to give up the speaker part of their system.

[Marty]

@BobBacon : Yes.. I am missing out on the speakers (but luckily I was not using that part - I have inbuilt speakers in the ceiling). I guess a pair of Nest speakers or a Nest Mini can serve as a replacement.  

[Crom2022]

I'll share what worked for me. Disabling preferred activities entirely. Restarting the network. The connectivity stopped dropping off and I stopped getting weak signals.

I tried the option, preferred activities, later on and the network became unstable again.

Good luck.

[Nyg]

This worked for me, big thanks. But I agree it should be fixed cause otherwise why offer preferred networks?!

[Fatty423]

This worked for me as well.    I removed this a couple of weeks ago and the system started working better but I didnt put 2 and 2 together until you mentioned it.   Thank you. 

[addis001]

How did u disable? In home app?

I went to wifi--> settings--> preferred activities... It won't let me disable..makes me pick one or both .. it won't let me uncheck both.

[olavrb]

I have both disabled on my Nest Wifi router.

• Do you have the latest Google Home app?
• Have you tried to restart the network from the Google Home app, does it make a difference?
• Have you tried to disable, then re-enable "Nest Wifi cloud services" (privacy settings)? I've heard that sometimes fixes wierd settings  glitches.

Here is relevant doc:

• https://support.google.com/googlenest/answer/9541371?hl=en

[SNB]

Thanks a ton! The “preferred activities”and “Nest Wifi Cloud Services” setting do help fix weak connection issue.

[DesiBhai]

@Crom2022 - this worked for me too!!!  System with 4 pucks around the house.  Went from having weak connections to all being Good.  Thanks a bunch!!!!

[rwb]

have you done speed tests?  Mine says good/great connection even when I'm only getting 10% of the router speed

[DesiBhai]

Just did one. Internet speed 840 Mbps and device speed 383 Mbps. So not too bad.... 

[rwb]

Under Device Setting, Wifi Information, do the 4 pucks show "Mesh" or "Wired"?  This is assuming you have the access points connected to ethernet.

[DesiBhai]

They're not hard wired. Only the primary is hardwired to the router. 

[brownel02]

I never set up any preferred activities so the easy fix will not work for me unfortunately.  Thanks for sharing though.  Still waiting on Google and Support to fix the issue properly.  I believe I will give it until the end of January and then swap systems entirely as this is ridiculous.  I have sent in over a dozen system logs with no reply.  Maybe over the holiday break I will grab an extension cord and see how far/close I need to be between points to get a 'GREAT' signal.  The extension will allow me to position the point any place.  I will keep you posted (maybe with pics).  So frustrating!

[Jeff]

Hey, davekva.

I'm sorry to see that you're having the same issues. And yes, we're still waiting for a fix to roll out on this. I know there are a lot of others waiting on this as well. I hope to know more soon.

Thanks.

[Jeff]

Hey, everyone.

We have a lot of new reports that I'm noticing and I'm still keeping an eye on things. Unfortunately I still don't have news of when a fix might be ready, but I'm hoping to hear something sooner than later. I know this is frustrating for all of you. I'll share when I know more.

Thanks.

[very42nate]

That’s because there’s no fix. 
I tried to return to Best Buy but it was more than 15?days, so I couldn’t return. Nifty, because that’s about how long the Nest product works. 
If you could honor my warranty and return my money that would be awesome. It would be the start to the fix. Maybe you could come reconnect all my peripherals to eero which is actually working too. 
verity byerlein 

[kcginger78]

Jeff,

I believe we should receive discounted service because of this. Some of us first reported this in the Fall. I’m considering switching to another provider and I’ve been a long loyal time customer. 

[Kurelgyer]

People were reporting this over a YEAR ago 

[Nyg]

Jeff why didn't you tell us to contact the Google Phone support? I'm in touch with them now and they're saying I shouldn't even be looking at these forums? Why offer a community specialist if they're going to undercut you like that? 

[ABuchanan]

I'm having the same issue.  Previously, I had just the old Google Wifi setup installed in my home, and it was fairly stable, but would have slow speeds at times.  A few weeks back, I added the Nest router and one Nest AP to the setup, re-created a network, using the google points as additional AP's, so 1 router and 4 AP's.  Since switching to the "more powerful" Nest router, my network has become ridiculously unstable (especially between the 2 new Nest modules.

[Shmoe01]

I am also experiencing the same problem. it doesn't matter where I put the wifi points they always so weak connection. I even bought the 2 point thinking the first one was going bad but it has the same issue. 

[Axelp]

I have the same issue, 1 google mesh router, 2 google mesh point. Upgraded from old google wifi with every buck in same spots but intermittently getting weak connection everyday. The google support call was pratically useless, the india call operator suggested i get wifi interference since im staying in an apartment, said i should not have such issues if i stay in a landed property. Come on! 80% of folks in my country stay in apartments!!! When i asked why the old google wifi was working, he was dumbfolded......

[DaisyMae]

@Axelp you are quite lazy. I mean if you're not even willing to purchase property upon which your new, custom home is to be built in order to (possibly, no guarantee) better your new Google Wi-Fi performance, you just might be a hopeless case. Perhaps you can begin with praying for the willingness to be willing to not be so cheap.

[jeanmarie123]

I have 1 Google Nest Wifi router with 4 points. All worked fine, suddenly all points started saying: "Weak connection" The connection indeed became weak ie not strong enough for video. I moved one point 6 inches from the router. No change, still says "Weak connection." I disconnect this point, reset it, try to reconnect it. Cannot reconnect it, I get a message saying "Unable to connect with the Cloud" What is going on??? Now the entire system is useless. Did I waste my money buying a system that is junk? Please fix this, looks like a firmware issue

[davekva]

I just started having these same issues. Everything worked great for a year, now all of a sudden my 2 wireless pucks show " weak connection". This is really annoying. We were so happy with this system, that we decided to "cut the cord" a few months ago. Now all we have is streaming services with connection problems. I hope they figure something out soon. This sucks.

[Anonymous]

same issue.  Nest point 10 feet from router showing weak connection constantly while one in the master bedroom 20 feet away is showing good.  This product is turning out to be complete garbage. Sweet geezus.

[PetePaul]

I have a Nest Wifi router, 5 Nest points and a Google Wifi router in a 3300 sq ft home on 1 level.  I get weak connections on all of the points.  My internet speed is 605 Mbps.  Incredible.

[olavrb]

https://support.google.com/googlenest/answer/7182840?hl=en

Max 5 in total are recommended. You also got more pucks than recommended given the size of the house.

Doc on placement:

• https://support.google.com/googlenest/answer/7183150?hl=en

[PetePaul]

Does the 5 include or exclude the router?

[ca2511]

I'm having the same issue. I took off the preferred activities but that didn't work. Not only is there a wear connection, but it's dropping connection to my devices all the time. I thought maybe the wifi pick was bad so I bought a new nest router and it's the same. I've had Google wifi with fiber for years with no problem until the past month. I have a daughter with autism who melts down each time the internet goes down, exhausted and desperate!! Guess I'll have to buy a different router that's not Google. 

[Snkvora]

Having same issue.  Nest router with 3 points.  The mesh network worked excellently for year and a half.  No changes to setup and all of a sudden mesh points are showing weak connection.

Factory reset devices and entire system.  Changed password.  It works fine for few hours where I get good or great connection but the all of a sudden it drops to weak connection.

[JanosX]

I'm glad I found this thread and know that Im not alone.  This has been driving me crazy!  Same deal as everyone else, 1 router basement, 2 ap's each 1 floor up.  They are all basically stacked on top of each other and show weak signal.  Sometimes after restarts, I get great connection, but within an hour won't even be able to listen to Spotify... I wouldn't have even moved in that time.

I'm getting annoyed!

[Crom2022]

Overall this is an extremely disappointing system. The reveiws were good but the product has not lived up to them in reality. We bought a brand name and expected excellence that Google did not deliver.

Here's what has given me some measure of functionality:

Firstly, ensure you do not have double NAT. It's not mentioned at all as part of the setup process but if you game or stream lots it may become a problem. Your ISP router needs to be set to bridge mode. More than one device assigning IP addresses is a disaster.

Secondly, turn every feature off. WPA3 security was an absolute wreck of a feature that caused dropped WiFi galore. 

Preferred activities caused weak signals galore.

Restart the system with every toggle off, that is preferred activities, all privacy settings, all notification settings, UPnP and IPv6 all off.

You will be able to use for a reasonable period with all privacy settings, UPnP and IPv6, all enabled, ONLY.

I realized on my system at one point that the IPv6 wasn't even initialized, although toggled on, using a showmyip site. Restarting with that toggled off and then reinitializing was a fix. 

Waiting and hoping for an update.

 Frustrating. 

[mark007]

Thanks. You are not the only one now to have reported disabling IPv6. Im going to try this. Just set up a new smart home and its a nightmare with two nest wifi routers bot wired to the ISP switch and every few days connections to devices beginning to drop. 

Has anyone else tried with IPv6 off. Hopefully it fixes this for others and google can at least hone in on a fix as im sure this would be good feedback for them.

[JanosX]

After turning every feature and privacy setting off.  Doing the whole unplugging process and factory restarting... I got good and great connection (for now).  But, it's not a victory though, it's still messed up.

Somehow, with the router in the basement the 2nd floor AP has great connection, while the 1st floor AP is only good.  They are all essentially in one vertical column, so it's not like they are on different sides of the house.  How does the one furthest away and with arguably the most interference have the better connection?

And still wifi speeds are only 100mbps on a 1g fiber service.  I don't expect 1g, but it should be way better than this!