Frustrating to purchase a new camera and it does not connect to a 5GHZ network. I have an iPhone 16 and have tried everything. Is there any firmware available to take of this issue before I return the camera? I have read through postings on this forum and it appears that this is a big issue with this camera. All of my other Wyze cameras are working fine. Is Wyze doing anything to fix this?
If you’re using dual-band Wi-Fi (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz), then Solar Cam Pan should connect to the 2.4 GHz band. It lacks the hardware necessary for connecting to 5-GHz-only Wi-Fi.
If your other Wyze Cams are working as expected, then I would imagine they’re connecting via 2.4 GHz or you’re using only products that also have 5 GHz capability, but there are only a few of those so far.
What troubleshooting have you attempted, and what details can you share about how your network is configured? If you’re using dual-band Wi-Fi, then with some stubborn IoT devices I’ve found it necessary to temporarily disable both my 5 GHz Wi-Fi and my phone’s mobile data during setup in order to force both my phone and the new device to use only the available 2.4 GHz network. Since Solar Cam Pan can easily unclip from its mount, it may also be helpful to attempt setup close to your 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi source, if that’s what you’re using.
Crease, Thank you. I am not tech savvy and not sure if I am running 5 GHZ or 2.4 One thing for sure all of the Wyze cameras that I have are working. Did not have to do anything with my router everything worked and connected well. Have been trying for appx 4 hours - why does WYZE develop something that so many are struggling to connect to? Can’t WYZE come up with a firmware to fix this issue? Sorry but I dont want to mess with the router as everything else is working.
Can you clarify what the issue is - you said it won’t connect to the 5ghz network (which is expected since the cam is 2.4ghz only). But then you said all your other cams are working. Are they connected to 5ghz? If so they must be one of the few models that support that band. You need 2.4ghz to work with the solar cam pan. I’ve yet to see a 5ghz only router (5ghz only access points exist but it is unlikely you’d have one of those), so you may just need to enable 2.4.
Trying what, though? What specific troubleshooting have you attempted? If you describe yourself as “not tech savvy” but are pointing a finger specifically at 5 GHz as the problem, then I’m confused about your knowledge and experience with the technology. I’m trying to establish a baseline here in order to provide some suggestions to get your Solar Cam Pan online and working for you. I’d genuinely like to help.
Temporarily turning off your router’s 5 GHz radio (and also 6 GHz if you’re using tri-band) should be no big deal if you have the ability to log into your router’s Web interface or can control it with an app. Doing that is inconvenient, but I’ve had to deal with this inconvenience with other 2.4-GHz-only (which most are, I believe) IoT devices in order to get them online initially, and doing so might save you some trouble later on. Often it’s easier to just do that in the beginning to improve your chances of successfully connecting a device rather than wait until later in the process when you’re at your wit’s end and frustrated and swearing and asking why this isn’t working. (Been there; done that.) That’s why I think maximizing your chances of getting Solar Cam Pan to connect may involve these:
- Bring the Solar Cam Pan indoors and close to your router to attempt the initial setup. What I’ve done is use the included cable to connect the Cam to my router’s USB-A port so that it can be charging the battery while I’m trying to get it going.
- Log into your router and turn off 5 GHz (and 6 GHz, if you have that) radio so that only 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi is operating. You should be able to do this via a Web browser or possibly an app. My understanding is that some eero routers have a feature within the app that allows you to temporarily pause 5 GHz so that only 2.4 GHz is available, so that might be an option if you use that particular brand. (I believe that’s supposed to essentially shut off 5 GHz Wi-Fi for 5 minutes and then automatically re-enable that for you after that time, but I’m basing that on what I’ve read because I don’t use eero.)
- Disable mobile data on the phone you’re using to attempt setup, if possible. I don’t use iOS, so I won’t even try to provide instructions for that. You can probably find those online if you need them.
The idea is that you want to force the phone to use your 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi band as its only pathway to the Internet, because that’s also the band/SSID that you need your Solar Cam Pan to connect to. I don’t know what other Wyze Cams you’re using, but if Solar Cam Pan is your first new Wyze Cam in the past few years then you also need to be aware that it requires your phone’s Bluetooth connection to receive the Wi-Fi connection information during setup (it doesn’t rely on reading a QR code like older Wyze Cams), so the Wyze app on your phone will also need permission to use Bluetooth and possibly Location, and both of those features will need to be enabled on the phone. (Again, I’m using the language that Android uses, as I haven’t had to use an iPhone for >10 years and am unfamiliar with OS-level feature permissions on that platform.)
If you can get the Cam connected to your LAN, then you can re-enable mobile data on the phone and turn the 5 GHz (and/or 6 GHz) radio back on in your router’s settings.
Even if that was a solution to your particular problem, your Cam would still have to be connected to your Wi-Fi (and thus to the Internet) in order to receive that, as Wyze has not yet made flashable firmware downloads available for Solar Cam Pan. All firmware updates I’m aware of since Solar Cam Pan’s launch have been delivered over the air.
You’re welcome. I hope that at least some of this is helpful and making sense. Smart home devices can be frustrating when they don’t work as expected, and I’ve done plenty of grumbling myself about these things at times. Please feel free to ask questions.