WiFi Dropping On and Off

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Level 1

0 points

WiFi Dropping On and Off

I got my 3g iPhone over the weekend, and have had trouble staying connected to WiFi networks. I've tested on three different WiFi networks and had the same results:

1. iPhone takes awhile (maybe a minute or so) to find the network in order to sign on initially.

2. iPhone often does not show full strength on the WiFi signal indicator, even when I am within 5-10 feet of the wireless router, with nothing between iPhone and router.

3. iPhone will lose WiFi connection within 1-3 minutes, and periodically pick it up again, dropping on and off with no perceivable rhyme or reason. This happens at very close distances to the router, and farther away (25-50ft.), and it happens without moving the iPhone...sitting on a table or desk, it will just drop WiFi and pick it up.

Anyone have any thoughts on this? Thanks.

MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.5.4), 2.4 GHz Core 2 Duo / 4GB RAM

Posted on Aug 4, 2008 6:35 AM

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Answer 1

Fred360

Level 1

38 points

Aug 4, 2008 10:04 AM in response to Trey Miller

Connection has been intermittent for me as well on my Edge/2.0 phone. I noticed it beginning Saturday in two locations. At the first, the phone couldn't connect to the network, despite being within ten feet of the wireless router.

At home, while my imac was (wireless) consistently connected, the iPhone in the same location would go in and out. I noticed that there are deadspots in my house, and figured walking around with the phone would be different than leaving the imac in one location.

It appears the phone wireless connection is tenuous, compared to my ibook and imac. I don't think the 1.0 version had the same problem.

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Answer 2

Aug 4, 2008 11:06 AM in response to Trey Miller

I have had the same problem since I upgraded my first-gen iphone to version 2.0. It is clearly a software issue and is a huge hassle for me. I have tried:

rebooting the phone
restoring the phone from backup
setting up the phone again as new
rebooting the router
turning wifi on and off and on
etc, etc, etc.

nothing works. apple needs to fix this ASAP. This was NOT a problem with prior software versions. Wifi is totally unusable on my phone. I am really mad.

Message was edited by: lostarchitect

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Answer 3

Jason L

Community Specialist

Aug 4, 2008 11:19 AM in response to Trey Miller

Hey Trey,

Try resetting the Network Settings on the iPhone as described here:
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1398

If that does not work give us a little more information. What type of wireless router is the iPhone connecting to? Are you using a protective case with the iPhone?

Make sure you have the latest available firmware updates. Also try to avoid interference by changing the channel of the network. This article provides more tips that will help reduce interference. http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1365

Jason

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Answer 4

Trey Miller Author

Level 1

0 points

Aug 6, 2008 5:38 PM in response to Jason L

Thanks, Jason.

I reset my wireless settings and that seemed to help a lot at the office. iPhone found the wireless network, I re-entered the WEP key, and it seemed to stay attached pretty well. If I lock the phone and then unlock it awhile later, it takes 10-15 seconds to re-connect to the WiFi network, but then stays attached until I lock it again. I think this is normal behavior, but I can't recall for sure how my 1st gen iPhone handled that same scenario.

Unfortunately, I am still having a lot of trouble on my home network - Linksys WRT54GX2 with SRX200. I can be touching the iPhone to the antenna and it still doesn't see the wireless network. Earlier today, sitting on floor above the router (about 12 feet away, through wood subflooring - no concrete, no metal) and the same result - iMac in front of me has full signal, but iPhone can't see the network even if I type in the SSID and enter the password.

I am open to changing the channel on the wireless network, but given the zero-distance scenario above, isn't it safe to rule out interference?

Is there any chance this is an iPhone hardware issue? If so, what are my potential remedies, given that I bought it less than a week ago? It seems unlikely to me, but I hate beating my head against the wall unnecessarily.

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Answer 5

Alain21

Level 1

0 points

Aug 6, 2008 10:12 PM in response to Trey Miller

Looks like there is an issue with Linksys wireless routers, and not your iPhone 🙂

I have a BEFW11S4 v4 with latest firmware, and I have the same behavior at home. I know it's not my iPhone, I connected easily to several public wireless points without trouble. At home, 1 foot away from the router, i still get only 2 bars on the iPhone, and access most of the time doesn't work, even though I see the MAC address of my iPhone on the router.

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Answer 6

Aug 7, 2008 7:08 AM in response to Trey Miller

I am seeing the same issues with my new 3g and the problem didn't present itself until July 26th. The week prior to that everything worked fine. Now I have to reset my network settings to see a network I am 5 feet away from. I have a netgear router, and my office has a cisco and the problem exists no matter where I am. It all started on that Saturday.

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Answer 7

Jason L

Community Specialist

Aug 7, 2008 11:14 AM in response to Trey Miller

Trey Miller wrote:
I am open to changing the channel on the wireless network, but given the zero-distance scenario above, >isn't it safe to rule out interference?

No. The devices described in the article above can still cause interference.

Is there any chance this is an iPhone hardware issue? If so, what are my potential remedies, given that I >bought it less >than a week ago? It seems unlikely to me, but I hate beating my head against the wall >unnecessarily.

This does not sound like a hardware issue with the iPhone but, if you believe it is, you can make a reservation to see a Mac Genius. The Mac Genius can take a look at the iPhone and test it with the open Wi-Fi network at the Apple retail store.
http://www.apple.com/retail/geniusbar/

I recommend restoring the iPhone to rule out software issues.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=305744

Make sure the wireless router has the latest firmware updates available. Also, try to hard reset the router to factory default settings and reconfigure it.

Jason

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Answer 8

Aug 7, 2008 5:23 PM in response to Jason L

I have this problem with my original iphone as well. REALLY IRRITATING. I can't tell you how much time I have wasted just trying to get on networks and troubleshooting this thing. While my iphone's wifi was spotty at best before the 2.0 upgrade, now it's completely broken. Wifi will not connect to a signal and keep it at all. 2.0.1, which I thought would fix the problem wont even connect to a network period. Most of the time, I get a message saying that my iphone is unable to connect to whichever network. So much for using apps, using the browser... Goodbye to essentially anything that the Edge won't connect to... My iphone basically has dial up access to the internet. Neat.

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Answer 9

Aug 7, 2008 5:24 PM in response to Shane Otis2

oh yeah, I did try restoring... and I did try renewing the DHCP lease. Waste o' time in my case.

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Answer 10

Aug 7, 2008 5:26 PM in response to Shane Otis2

an additional detail...

I have tried connecting wifi to Linksys, D-Link, others... behaves the same. Won't connect.

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Answer 11

jonzak

Level 1

0 points

Aug 31, 2008 2:54 PM in response to Chopper5150

I noticed this problem only 2 days ago, when i'm at work my iphone doesnt get connected to 3g, my wifi signal at time is showing full strength and dropes to one bar most of the time. Im not able to get connected to internet, the wireless router is just beneath my desk at work. Well, i thought the 3g network was the problem eventhough the 3g network in my area is beleived to be strong. I switched off the router and my phone gets automatically conected to 3g(offcourse) and i can browse the net. its the same when i switch of the wifi setting on my phone. But when i switch on the router it goes back to wifi and im not able to browse again. The router model is Linksys SRX 200.

My question is it do something with the router or the network. As at home everything seems to be working fine with the wifi or 3g and its a different router at home.

Thanks in advance.

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