WiFi to iPhone 7 with iOS 13 Will Not Stay Connected to T3200M Router

[RonAKA]

Have had an ongoing problem with all versions of iOS 13 on my iPhone 7 dropping my home WiFi connection. My recollection is that this issue has started with the "upgrade" to iOS 13 and was not a problem with iOS 12.4.1. I have tried all the usual tricks like rebooting the router, resetting the phone, and resetting the phone network connections. Rebooting the router seems to give some temporary relief, but the problem comes back. I currently can't get much more than hour without the connection dropping out. I am currently using iOS 13.2.2, which is the latest version at this point. 

Any suggestions as to what to try? I keep reporting it as a bug to Apple, but so far nothing has changed from iOS 13.1, 13.1.1, 13.1.2, 13.1.3, 13.2, and now 13.2.2. When I go to WiFi on the phone it shows the correct network connected, and when you go in, it shows a checkmark like it is valid and working, but it is not. The workaround I have discovered is to simply turn off WiFi and turn it back on again. It immediately connects to the WiFi -- for another hour or so... I am at the point that I am resolved to do this before any attempt to use anything that requires WiFi.

[RonAKA]

Yes, there is currently one Android phone, Samsung tablet, and an Asus laptop all operating fine off the WiFi as well as one Optic TV wireless station.

I have my SSID hidden, and have done so for years. I wonder if that confuses Apple? It has never been a problem with anything else. I realize that it is still easy to discover the network, but I think it tempts the kids less if they don't immediately see it on their network list. 

[RonAKA]

Forgot. No dropouts on those other devices connected.

[NFtoBC]

I’ve had problems with iPhone and hidden SSID in the past. Just use a good password.

[RonAKA]

I will give it a try. There seems to be a somewhat new problem now too. It takes about 5 minutes to connect to the network in the morning when I turn the phone on. It keeps trying to cell service because the WiFi is not connected. The difference between that and when it drops out, is that in the morning it actually shows the network is not connected. When it drops out later in the day, it shows as connected, but it is really not connected. The phone does not seem to know what it is doing. 

[Hogan]

EXACTLY my issue.

My Telus wifi was excellent until I bundled everything & I got Optilk TV. Since then for some strange reason, only with my sons & my iPhone do we have trouble with Wifi. Often/all the time I have to either turn the wifi off/on or change the network to get it to connect. Then it works for awhile. But then same old, same old for no apparent reason.  No problems with the TV's, laptops anything. Just with the iphones and ipad to a degree. So I went ahead & got the boosters (hoping that will fix the problem) which I hooked up but then unhooked cause I didn't want to have to sign into 15 or so devices (btw, do I have to connect to the booster on all my devices or can I keep some/any/all connect to the 5g, or 2.4 network even while the booster is hooked in & powered up?).

So I think it must be something quirky about Apple products & the Optk TV modem. 

Btw, can someone walk me through "I’ve had problems with iPhone and hidden SSID in the past. Just use a good password.".

What does this mean/how to do this?

[xray]

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@Hogan wrote:

Btw, can someone walk me through "I’ve had problems with iPhone and hidden SSID in the past. Just use a good password.".

What does this mean/how to do this?

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It means don't bother using a hidden SSID as a security measure. Your best security is to use a strong pasword (a long multi-word based password with a mix of casing, numbers and symbols).

[RonAKA]

Well, the relief by allowing the broadcast of the SSID was short lived. Just tired the iPhone Stocks app and it timed out and gave me a message saying I had no network connection. This is while the icon at the top of the screen says I am connected to a network, and I'm sure if I checked in the WiFi Settings it would show connected to the right network as well. The second try on the Stocks app after it timed out, worked almost instantly. I have no idea what is causing this, but it seems the iPhone thinks it is connected but it isn't. 

It must be almost time for another release of iOS 13 with a faint hope they may fix this issue...

[xray]

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@RonAKA wrote:

Well, the relief by allowing the broadcast of the SSID was short lived. Just tired the iPhone Stocks app and it timed out and gave me a message saying I had no network connection. This is while the icon at the top of the screen says I am connected to a network, and I'm sure if I checked in the WiFi Settings it would show connected to the right network as well. The second try on the Stocks app after it timed out, worked almost instantly. I have no idea what is causing this, but it seems the iPhone thinks it is connected but it isn't. 

It must be almost time for another release of iOS 13 with a faint hope they may fix this issue...

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Does the T3200M show your iPhone as a connected device when this happens?

[RonAKA]

Yes, I recall that both the Router and the iPhone show it as connected, but when you use an app that needs Wi-Fi, it comes back saying they are not connected. Then when you try a second time it connects immediately. 

[xray]

So it sounds like there is an issue with the OS layer not reading the state of the WiFi connection properly from the hardware layer. I don't own any Apple products so I'm just guessing here but is there any power saving features on the iPhone that may be turning off WiFi and not turning it back on properly?

[RonAKA]

I have seen that theory about power saving being an issue when searching for a solution on the web. On a quick look it seems turning on the power saving is an option and does not happen automatically. Just downloaded iOS 13.3 and am praying there is a fix.

[RonAKA]

What do you think about manually setting a fixed IP address assigned to the iPhone MAC address?

[RonAKA]

I switched to a fixed IP for my iPhone. It worked for about 3 hours yesterday. It now does not work about 2.5 hours after signing in this morning. Not a solution. 

[RonAKA]

Hogan,

You have to go into your router setup. Put the address which is probably 192.168.1.254 in your internet software address line. It will bring up a general screen. You need to go into Wireless Setup. It will require a username and password. The default name is admin and the password unless it has been changed is on the side of your router. I change mine just to be more secrure... Once into the setup you can enable or disable SSID broadcast among other things. At the bottom you can set the strong password for the named SSID.

[Hogan]

Yeah, all i know is this. The problem is only with my 2 iPhones & 1 iPad. Not with TV's, laptops ...etc. Wifi connection shows very strong on phone, but will have trouble/wont connect on occasion. Wheel is spinning. What "fixes" it very temporarily is switching to another wifi channel, turning wifi off/on or turning phone off/on. Me knowing nothing and using my powers of deduction thinks the modem/router does not like the iPhone

[RonAKA]

I am now on day two of no dropout after switching to a fixed IP, AND resetting the router and Networks on the iPhone. But I have gotten up to 4 days with this router reset and network reset before, so I am not real optimistic of it being a permanent fix. It is puzzling why I can get a temporary fix for days but then it goes wonky again.

[RonAKA]

That last fix did not work. On Dec 19 I tried another solution. That was to reset the router, clear the iPhone network settings, and assign a fixed IP for the iPhone, and then sign into the 2.4 G side of the router. That would now be the only item on 2.4 G. It has been 8 days now, and that is twice as long as I have gone before without a dropout. I hope this isn't bad luck, but (for about the 4th time), I may have a solution. It would seem that my iPhone on iOS 13 does not like 5 G routers, or at least it does not like to share that band with others on the same SSID.