KC420WS - Inconsistent live streaming, poor network reception

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KC420WS - Inconsistent live streaming, poor network reception

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KC420WS - Inconsistent live streaming, poor network reception
KC420WS - Inconsistent live streaming, poor network reception
2022-08-27 18:15:33
Model: KC420WS  
Hardware Version: V1
Firmware Version: 2.3.13

So I recently installed a KC420WS and haven't seen the level of performance which I think would be useful.  The big issue seems to be network performance - I regularly see "connection time out" messages in the Kasa app.

 

Before I get accused of having a junk router or something else that's silly, I believe I have made the best effort to provide the camera with a clean signal with the least crowded channel I can.  My hardware is Ubiquiti Unifi gear - I have multiple access points and I do filter queries using a PiHole. It automatically scans channels and adjusts the access points every 24 hours to find the least crowded band .  When I initially had issues, I installed an extra access point in my garage which prioritized 2.4g clients and this did improve from almost never being able to use the camera to being able to get video, albeit inconsistently. I have also validated that I am not blocking any traffic to/from the camera.

 

Currently the camera has a 256gb SD card in it - I was surprised that it filled up quickly.  I turned off person detection today to see if it will have any impact on performance.  Based on the irresponsive performance of the camera, I suspected that it might be trying to constantly perform I/O operations.  I have no way to validate this as the camera has nonexistent troubleshooting metrics.  This is not a problem with my KC110 doorbell which performs excellent with a full SD card, but it does not see near the same level of activity.

 

I did lightly mask the camera with some plastidip so it wouldn't visually stick out.  I really don't think that's the issue.

 

Hoping this is resolvable, but not holding my breath.  I have had good luck with other Kasa products, but this one hasn't lived up to those expectations.

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#1
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Re:KC420WS - Inconsistent live streaming, poor network reception
2022-08-29 11:39:14 - last edited 2022-08-29 11:43:34

  Hello @rentbox 

Some advanced Wi-Fi feature like channel optimizing may cause some instability issue on the camera, it's good that if you can have a different AP (use a differnent Wifi SSID) /  a dedicated 2.4Ghz Wi-Fi network particularly for the camera.  For the connection timed out ' error message , you could try some tips here 

  • Confirm Kasa camera received good Wifi  signal as FAQ 

What should I do if my Kasa device (smart plug, smart lighting) keeps losing connection or going Offline?

  • Ping camera's IP address from your mobile device when phone and camera are connected to the same Wi-Fi network 

Note that if there is any lag or package loss, it means the network itself is not stably enough or have some inferences

How to check the network connection stability of a Tapo Camera

  • Confirm the device firmware and Kasa APP are both up to date.

 

For 'connection time out. ' Will this error occur when camera and phone are connected to same Wi-Fi network?  Please also check my private message to help collect the APPlog

1) a photo of error message  2) MAC address of camera (please share via private message ) 3) Kasa APP version 4) Model of your phone and its Andriod or IOS version

4) Network map : e.g. ISP router --Unify AP <Wireless>Unify AP#2 ; Router -<Ethernet > AP model X in gagrage  <Wireless> Tapo C420

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Re:KC420WS - Inconsistent live streaming, poor network reception
2022-09-20 17:04:58

  @Solla-topee Sorry for the long response time.

 

Initially I did some changes on my network access points to see if the issue remained.  It did and caused me to check additional settings on my network - here is what I've leared thus far:

  • Turning off channel optimization did help.
  • The signal strength between my AP and the camera was within the specified range
  • No packet loss happened between the camera, AP, and my device from which I was testing
  • All firmware is up to date (and has been)

 

Now, here is where I found issues in my network.  I installed a new access point which has additional power/range/features.  After my initial installation of the camera, I had issues, so I put my extra access point in the garage with the intent of it handling 2.4g network traffic.  This worked, however, when accessing the camera through my new AP, I saw the lag/timeout issues.  I've since seen this behavior on every device going through my new AP... and while I'm disappointed with it, I can at least get basic camera functionality working as intended.

 

I'm not sure if this was coincidental or actually part of what helped me solve this - I did end up turning off "person detection" on the camera.  This immediately dropped the number of captured events and allowed for better retreival of data.  After a few days, I turned it back on and haven't seen the same laggyness to event viewing.  Again, this could be completely unrelated without supplemental information on how the camera operates, but I thought I would mention it here.

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Re:KC420WS - Inconsistent live streaming, poor network reception
2022-09-21 01:56:17

Hello   @rentbox 

It seems that the lagging live-streaming problem is now gone for your camera, congrats!

I did not see similar feedback on' person detection 'affecting the live-streaming, likely the problem is coincidentally solved at that time, thanks for sharing how you fix it anyway. 

 

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