Smart connect versus two bands with same SSID?
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Do the following two setups vary? Note that in both cases my cell phones only show a single WiFi network (as I would expect).
1. My 2.0 and 5.0 network use the same SSID and Smart Connect is not enabled.
2. Smart Connect is enabled.
Yes, I know I can't specify a channel when using Smart Connect, I mean the obvious stuff aside. Are #1 and #2 identical in that my phone will choose the strongest to connect to? If I move from room to room and 2.4 becomes much stronger than 5.0 will my phone automatically switch to 2.4 in both of the setups listed above?
My problem:
My downstairs has had several additions, so there are two very thick brick walls in my house. Stood at the router my connection is fine, as expected. But when I walk to the back of my house the 5.0 connection can't connect, and the 2.4 connection, though weak, can connect.
So I would like my phone to automatically connect to the proper band. And if I walk from one end of my house to the other I want my phone to automatically change from 5.0 to 2.4.
Now to confuse matters. I have my TP-Link Archer C7 (aka AC 1750) downstairs. It's in Access Point mode. It connects via Ethernet to my Bell (Canada) Fibre-optic modem upstairs. The connection to the upstairs modem via WiFi is very poor in most places downstairs (hence the Access Point). Both my router and the modem upstairs provide WiFi. If I use the same SSID on the modem upstairs and my TP-Link router downstairs, my Samsung Galaxy S8 almost always connects to the upstairs modem even when it's a very poor connection choice compared to the TP-Link router downstairs. My daughter spends time up and downstairs, and I spend some time upstairs. So cells and laptops auto switching between the TP-Link and the modem would be really nice. Is there any way to fix this so that upstairs and downstairs can use the same SSID but cells and laptops connect the correct one?
Here's the algorithm which your mobile is using for roaming - shifting Wi-Fi network association:
https://docs.samsungknox.com/admin/knox-platform-for-enterprise/kbas/kba-115013403768.htm
To be able to benefit from the standards like 802.11 k/v/r (seamless Wi-Fi connection) you need a mesh network built.
These are OneMesh, Deco, Omada SDN.
In your particular case there's no special benefit from having the same SSIDs for both routers and wireless bands.
On the contrary, I would prefer to have different SSIDs between devices and wireless bands, so I can always know which router and band I am connected to at that particular moment.
SmarConnect may or may not work for you - just enable and test to see if it meets your expectation.
I am not using it, since I have particular devices that I always need on 2.4GHz band and others that could work on both bands - so it depends on your devices and infrastructure.
About auto switching between the C7 and your modem - in the Samsung documentation the Enhanced Roaming Algorithm is described.
But in your case it may be necessary to lower wireless transmission power of your modem or/and C7 to force the Galaxy S8 switching to the stronger wireless signal.
For C7 these settings are here:
Just experiment with these to find the sweet spot for your devices at home.