Many WiFi client devices are only capable of connecting to 2.4 GHz networks. Plume SSIDs broadcast on both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz simultaneously and the vast majority of 2.4 GHz-only devices will connect to Plume without issue.
However, there are many 2.4 GHz Smarthome and IoT devices that require the use of another device such as a mobile phone running an app to connect them to a WiFi network.
In some of these cases, their app may refuse to connect these devices to the WiFi network if the mobile is not connected to the 2.4 GHz band. If you run into this issue onboarding an IoT device using an app there are several ways to connect these devices to your HomePass network:
Make sure the app for the device setup is up to date
The device manufacturer may have updated the app, removing the limitation of only allowing you to complete the device setup if your mobile phone is connected to 2.4 GHz.
IoT Onboarding Mode
HomePass 3.101.0 introduced IoT Onboarding Mode to specifically address this issue. It allows you to temporarily connect your mobile device to 2.4 GHz, allowing you to complete the setup of these 2.4 GHz-only devices.
- Make sure you are using the same device to run both the setup application for the 2.4 GHz device you wish to connect to your network and the HomePass (3.101 or later) app.
- Make sure your mobile phone is connected to your HomePass network.
- In the HomePass app, find your mobile phone and open its detail screen. It should be identifiable as the phone with the Plume logo.
- If you do not see this logo on the phone, it is either not the one running the HomePass app or it is not connected to the HomePass network.
- Tap on the IoT onboarding mode button. A new screen should pop up explaining the feature.
- Tap on Enable. Your mobile phone will now be kicked off the network and should reconnect to your HomePass network on 2.4 GHz.
- The following screen will confirm when your mobile phone reconnects on 2.4GHz. The count-down timer displays how long it will stay connected to 2.4 GHz.
- If your phone does not reconnect to the HomePass network, make sure it has not connected to another network. If it has, forget that network on your phone.
- Open the app for the device you are trying to connect and complete the setup for all of the devices. You should no longer be getting the “2.4 GHz networks only” error messages during the process.
- Once you have completed the setup of the devices, go back to the HomePass app and tap on the IoT onboarding mode button again if needed, and then tap on Disable. Your phone should reconnect to 5 GHz within a few minutes.
Contact Plume Support by phone if you are having issues connecting your mobile phone to the network using the method above. We may be able to force your mobile device to temporarily connect on 2.4 GHz, so you complete the IoT device setup.